250 TRAINING VICIOUS HORSES. 



and kind as possible with a vicious horse, and use soothing in- 

 stead of harsh languge. 



PULLING ON THE HALTER. 



To break a colt or horse of this habit either in the stable or 

 at the post, take a rope with a loop or ring in one end, pass the 

 end with the loop in it over the animal's back just forward of 

 the hip, letting it drop down at the flank, then run the other 

 end of the rope through the eye or ring, making a slip-noose, 

 and passing the rope lengthwise of the belly between the fore 

 legs and up through the halter ring, and make fast to a stanch- 

 ion or post, and then give him an opportunity to pull by ad- 

 ministering some of the causes of his former pulling, and con- 

 tinue this from time to time until permanently cured, which 

 will not require many lessons at most. 



Shying may be recorded as one of the evils to which horse- 

 flesh is heir, and is generally the result of improper training or 

 breaking of the colt. The inconvenience, annoyance, and oft- 

 times danger occasioned by a shying horse is anything but 

 pleasant to its rider or driver. Shying in horses is undoubtedly 

 the offspring of fear. Fear is the motion excited by suspicion, 

 apprehension, appearance, or approach of danger. This may 

 be termed natural timidity, giving rise to that kind of shyness 

 with which colts and young animals are endowed ; another kind 

 of shyness may be said to be acquired; but as I have gone over 

 the ground pretty well in my views of breaking and training 

 (see Chapter XXVIII), I will only say here that unless the eye- 

 sight is impaired and the animal shies from that defect, it is in 

 most cases easily cured, as already stated in Chapter XXVIII. 

 By all means do not whip an already frightened horse. 



HUGGING THE- LINES. 



The best remedy that I know of for a horse that is in the 

 habit of catching the lines with his tail and then hugging them 

 so hard that it is almost impossible to get the free use of them 

 again, is a leather pad some four to six inches in width and 



