THE CARE OF HORSES. 291 
a recent work will be found a plan for making loose 
boxes convertible at will to straight stalls. 
If the latter are used, they should be as wide 
as possible; and they should be long, not less than 
twelve feet. Short stalls have three disadvantages : 
they allow two contiguous horses to kick each other, 
—a possible but infrequent evil; they fail to protect 
the hind legs from draughts; and, worst of all, they 
enable the occupant to stand with the toes of his 
hind feet in the gutter, which usually runs behind the 
stalls. This is a bad position, being certain, if long 
continued, to result in a straining of the cords and 
muscles of the pastern. It is said in all horse books 
that the stall should slope backward but a trifle, only 
just enough for purposes of drainage; but I go fur- 
ther, and declare that it ought not to slope at all. I 
believe that-the natural position of a horse is with his 
fore legs actually lower than his hind legs, and cer- 
tainly he should never be put in a stall where his 
fore legs must stand in the least degree higher than 
his hind legs. 
Perfect cleanliness can be obtained by having the 
stall floored with slate, sloping as much as may be 
desired. On the top of this is laid a removable floor 
of wooden or metal slats, so supported that it is ex- 
actly level. On this the horse stands, and, as it is 
easily taken up, the slate floor can be flushed with 
water every morning. It may be doubted if a stable 
should ever have a pipe or gutter connecting with a 
sewer, the danger of its becoming clogged is so great. 
1 “Stable Building and Stable Fitting,” by Giraud. London: 
B. T. Batsford, 1891. 
