IN THE BREEDING CLASSES 49 



sufficient consideration to give his breeding but those who 

 have given the matter any study will concede that there is a 

 vast difference in the value of the pedigrees of standard 

 horses. The judge should be able to discriminate between 

 pedigrees and also to be broad minded enough to include in 

 his estimate of the different stallions before him the other 

 characteristics that make the animal valuable for breeding 

 purposes. 



82. Importance of Correct Conformation. In the breed- 

 ing classes special attention should be given to the conforma- 

 tion. A defect of conformation even in the smallest particu- 

 lar is very apt to be transmitted and for that reason it should 

 be discountenanced in breeding stock. It is generally known 

 that even such a slight matter as a twist of the fetlock, or 

 the turn of the foot in action is very likely to pass from a 

 stallion to all his get. Considering however greater defects 

 such as a curby hock, a weak knee or other malformations, it 

 is certainly the duty of the judge to pronounce against them. 

 To present this feature plainly it may be stated that a breeder 

 would be better justified in using a stallion that had a spavin 

 on a well constructed hock than one that was without a 

 spavin but had a hock that was very defective in conforma- 

 tion; the reason being that in the instance of the well con- 

 structed hock with a spavin it is certain that the horse was 

 subjected to a severe wrench or injury of some kind else the 

 spavin would not be there. In the instance of the horse 

 with the badly constructed hock it needs only the opportu- 

 nity, which occurs in nearly all kind of work, to develop a 

 spavin, and the reason there is not one there is solely because 

 extra care has been given to the protection of this part. Breed- 

 ing animals of this kind may be so carefully tended and 

 pampered that they fail to show such diseases as would be 

 produced by their conformation under the ordinary stress of 

 labor. 



