DISEASES OF THE FOOT. 199 



When a contracted hoof has been thus 

 treated, the next thing to be done is to keep 

 the foot as moist as possible, and expose the 

 frog constantly to pressure, either by means of 

 the artificial frog, or by reducing the crust at 

 the heels. When these remedies have been 

 persevered in for a snort time, the frog will 

 have acquired a certain degree ot hardness 

 and solidity ; it will then be proper to turn the 

 horse out into some soft meadow irround, 

 without shoes, taking care that the bottom of 

 the foot is occasionally reduced, so that the 

 frog may constantly receive pressure. If the 

 foot be examined after a short time, it will be 

 found that all the new formed hoof at the 

 quarters and heels, that is all the horn that has 

 been pro.lujed at those parts since the reme- 

 dies were first employed, instead of growing 

 down nearly in a perpendicular direction, or 

 obliquely inwara, is torced outward in its 

 descent, so tiiat the cavity of the hoof wiii be 

 considerably enlarged, and tne compression of 

 the internal parts removed. When tlie horse 

 has been at grass a sudicient time for the new 

 hoof to grow coiiipietely down, the siiape of 

 the foot will be found mucii altered ; tiie 

 heels, instead or being narrow^, wiii be open 



