222 DISEASES OF THE FEET. 



at the Jieels, and of making the outward edge of the inner 

 heel of the shoe to coincide with the outward edge of the wall 

 of the hoof at that part, or even " set " slightly inside it. Here, 

 although the position of the shoe is perfect for the time being; it 

 does not allow for the continued opening out and lengthening 

 which the heels undergo during the downward growth of the 

 hoof. Consequently, when a shoe is applied in this way, and is 

 allowed to remain on, say, for six weeks, the heels of the shoe, 

 instead of exactly covering those of the foot, will be found to be 

 a little within their outer margin and somewhat in front of their 

 rearmost point. As the horn of the ground surface of the foot is 

 hardest on the outside and at the extreme end of the heels ; 

 the heel of the shoe in the case just described, will, as a rule, be 

 more or less embedded in the comparatively soft horn invaded b}' 

 it, with the probability of a corn being formed. As regards keep- 

 ing the heels of the shoes of the fore feet short, those of us who 

 ride or own 'cross-country horses, are impaled on the horns of a 

 dilemma : one being the risk of a corn ; the other, that of the 

 shoe being pulled off by the hind foot, especially, when jumping 

 and even galloping on heavy ground. As the latter danger admits 

 of no escape; we must face the former, which we can prevent by 

 frequent shoeing, say, at least once a month. As a horse does 

 not brush with the heel of a foot, but with its quarter; I would 

 advise that when a horse is shod, the outer edge of the inner heel 

 of the shoe of a fore foot should be fitted so as to slightly project 

 outside the wall. When shoes are kept on an inordinately long 

 time, the web of the shoe, generally at the toe, may become so 

 thin, as to cause the shoe to get out of shape and press on the 

 spot which is most liable to corn. 



The use of calkins may cause corns by localising, on the heels, 

 the effects of concussion with the ground. In some rare cases, 

 corns are produced by the horse treading on a stone or other 

 hard body, which is a result that will very seldom occur if the 

 solo be not " thinned." When the ground surface of the foot 

 has been reduced too much, the sole may become bruised at any 

 part pressed upon by the web of the shoe, especially, if the animal 

 is worked at a fast pace and on hard ground. As previously men- 

 tioned, some horses have such weak feet that it is almost impossible 

 to prevent them getting corns by any system of shoeing ; for in their 

 case, the concussion produced by the iron on the wall of the 

 hoof at the heels, appears, when the animal is worked on hard 

 ground, sufficient to set up an irritable state in the seat of corn, 

 which condition will be manifested by more or less lameness, 

 even when the characteristic red mark in the horn is not present. 



Narrow-heeled shoes which rest only on the wall at the heels. 



