148 JUDGING SWINE 



broad and deep. To fill out the form desired there should 

 be some development of the brisket, though as a rule 

 there is very little of this in the fat hog. 



195. Front Legs Short, Straight; Pasterns Strong. 



The front legs should be short, straight, strong and taper- 

 ing. The pastern should be strong and the feet com- 

 paratively short and of medium size. What are known 

 as "bucked knees" or pasterns are sometimes observable 

 in hogs that bend over in these parts. Long, slim pasterns 

 are very undesirable, for hogs having them readily break 

 down when carrying much flesh. The fat hog should 

 stand firm and high on the toes without any evidence of 

 weakness of the pasterns. Viewed from in front the leg 

 should be straight. A rather common defect here is 

 crooked knees which come too close together, but the 

 reverse defect is very rare among hogs. 



196. Chest Low, Wide. The floor of the chest should 

 be as low as possible, for it is the depth and width of this 

 part that adds to the girth. With width between the fore- 

 legs there is usually width above on the shoulder, though 

 this is not always true. The girth should be large, for it 

 is undesirable to have any shrinkage just behind the 

 foreleg at the fore flank. 



197. Sides Deep, Fleshed Evenly. The sides may be 

 deep and yet supported with a round rib. Usually depth 

 of side is associated with flatness of rib, but there are 

 many decided exceptions to this to be found among fat 

 hogs. When the rib springs from the back, well arched, 

 and continues to follow the circumference of a circle 

 it gives the hog the appearance of not only being leggy, 

 but also lacking in depth of body. The rib, however, 

 not only should be well sprung, but it should also be long, 

 giving roundness and smoothness of body with more 

 depth than appearance would indicate. The sides should 



