STABLE VICES 111 



lie all night in such distressing positions that it was a 

 miracle they lived till morning. By throwing a halter over 

 both legs, or three or four straps buckled together, the cast 

 horse may be readily drawn over on to his side, when he 

 will gladly get on his feet, unless seriously injured. 



Halter-casting is occasioned by the animal getting one 

 of his fore-legs over the halter and throwing himself. 

 Whether with rope or chain the animal is in danger of 

 badly wounding himself. Horses addicted to pawing are 

 most liable to accident, though we have seen it arise from a 

 habit of scratching at the head with the hinder-foot — the 

 drop weight of the halter or collar rein not acting so as to 

 prevent it getting loose. A couple of collar reins should be 

 used to prevent the pawing accident ; for that with the 

 hinder \Qg, a ring in the head wall, about seven feet from 

 the ground, with a rack chain about three feet long, may 

 prevent the calamity. 



Restive while Shoeing will be included in our general 

 remarks on this vice. Where a horse, otherwise docile, 

 exhibits a peculiar aversion to the smithy, and we have 

 seen such, make an investigation as to his treatment there. 

 It is only a month since we attended at a police investiga- 

 tion where a shoeing-smith had struck wantonly a valuable 

 saddle-horse on the stifle with his hammer, by way of 

 preliminary to taking up the foot. The poor animal was 

 irrecoverably injured ; had he been less so, he might have 

 been set down as " vicious to shoe." With a young horse 

 great caution is necessary, and the gag or twitch should be 

 only resorted to in extreme cases. It is the biped, not the 

 quadruped, that is generally the aggressor in these 

 instances. Mr. Youatt, whose humanity shines in all his 

 writings, says on this point : " It should be a rule in every 

 forge that no smith .should be permitted to strike a horse, 

 much less to twitch or to gag him, without the master- 

 farrier's order ; and that a young horse should never be 

 twitched or struck. There are few horses that may not be 

 gradually rendered manageable for this purpose by mildness 

 and firmness in the operator. They will soon understand 

 that no harm is meant, and they will not depart from their 

 usual habit of obedience ; but if the remembrance of cor- 

 poral punishment is connected with shoeing, they will 

 always be fidgety, if not dangerous. This is a very 

 serious vice, for it not only exposes the animal to 



