32 SPRAINS. 



lowing lessons with respect to sprain of the suspensory ligament 

 and back tendons : — 



1. The leading fore leg is far more liable to these accidents than 

 the non-leadiDg fore leg. Hence, in order to keep our saddle-horses 

 sound as long as possible, we should accustom them to lead with 

 one fore leg, as much as with the other fore leg. 



2. In giving work at the gallop or canter to horses which have 

 a fore leg that has been rendered more or less infirm from sprain, 

 we should teach them to lead with the sound on©. Or we should 

 give as much of the work as we can at the trot, at which pace the 

 weight of the body is alternately supported by the near fore and 

 off hind, and by the off fore and near hind. 



3. The steeper the ascent upon which work is given to horses, 

 the less strain will there be put on the back tendons and suspensory 

 ligaments of their fore legs ; and vice versa. 



4. The faster the speed, the more strain will be thrown on the 

 tendons and ligaments. 



5. The more a horse is " collected," the less strain will there be 

 on the fore legs ; and the more, on the hind legs. 



6. In training racehorses with weak suspensory ligaments or 

 infirm back tendons, the only safe method for giving them fast 

 work is by short and repeated gallops. For instance, instead of 

 sending such a horse a mile gallop, we might give him three " spins " 

 of three furlongs each, with intervals of from a quarter to half an 

 hour, in order to allow the muscles to recover their strength and 

 tone. 



I think we may take for granted the existence of more or less 

 perfect harmony between the strength of the muscles, respectively, 

 of the fore and hind limbs, and that, if a horse were turned loose 

 and allowed to gallop at his own free will, the muscles of the hind 

 legs would become fatigued as soon, or nearly as soon, as would 

 those of the fore. Here, the diminished assistance which is afforded 

 by the back tendons to the suspensory ligaments in the fore legs, 

 would, when their muscles became tired, be compensated for by the 

 decreased propulsion given by the hind quarters. But if we put 

 a rider into the saddle, this harmony is at once destroyed ; for then, 

 the weight being brought forward by the position assumed in riding, 

 the muscles connected with the back tendons of the fore legs will 

 have more work to do, proportionately, than the muscles of the 

 hind legs, and will consequently become more quickly fatigued. 

 The opposite to this is often the case with troop horses, which, 

 being ridden on the curb, and being kept up to the bit by the 

 pressure of the legs, are apt to relieve the forehand at the expense 

 of the hocks. 



The harder the ground upon which a horse is worked, the more 



