STRUCTURAL EXAMINATION 41 



disease of the bone which interferes with the function of 

 the joint. These all result in excruciating pain and greatly 

 lessen the horse's utility. Wide, open hoof heads (this 

 has reference to the top of the foot) are very desirable. 



70. Body Short, Broad Back, Deep Ribs. The typical 

 draft horse should stand comparatively high in front. This 

 should not be due to straight shoulders or height of the 

 withers, for when these are high it will generally be found 

 that they are not well covered with muscle. Undue length 

 of the back, very often sunken, is a common defect of draft 

 horses. Another feature to look for in viewing the barrel 

 is the breadth and depth of the ribs. If the body is not 

 round and the ribs well sprung and deep, the chest is 

 likely to be narrow. The volume of the chest behind the 

 withers is an index to the capacity of the lungs, and it is 

 a fact that horses that are light there and short in the hind 

 rib easily become languid and depressed during exertion. 

 The horse with a poorly sprung rib making a shallow barrel 

 and light loin is usually a poor feeder and ill doer. 



71. Loin Thick, Broad. The loin should be thick and 

 broad. If there is a slight elevation over the loin due to 

 an extra development of the muscle it may be considered 

 as indicating strength, though it detracts from the sym- 

 metry. 



72. Croup Broad, Muscled. The croup should be 

 broad and thick with muscle. There is considerable differ- 

 ence in draft horses in regard to the slope of the croup. In 

 some it appears as if they had been hit with a board in the 

 hind quarter giving the croup an extreme slope, while in 

 others it runs almost straight. The main factor which adds 

 to the strength of the croup is not the slope of it but the 

 degree to which it is muscled The slope that runs from 

 the center of the hips to the root of the tail is made by the 

 vertebrae to which some important muscles are attached. 

 The other slope which runs from the sides of the hip joints 

 as seen from the side has perhaps more to do with the 

 favorable application of power in this part, than the slope 



