THE CARE OF HORSES. 321 
that has very little work, being ridden or driven only 
a few miles every other day, perhaps, —in such a case 
there can be no doubt that a heavy coat, and the con- 
sequent sweating, are advantageous. This is a plain 
consideration, but I have never seen it adverted to 
in any horse book. 
Another point of some importance in deciding 
whether or not to clip your horse is this: Will the 
operation have a permanent effect upon his coat, mak- 
ing it come out earlier, or heavier, or coarser the next 
autumn’? Skilled opinions differ on this point; but, 
as a general principle, the cutting of hair certainly 
tends to affect its future growth; and there is no 
reason why this should not be true of horses as of 
other animals. Still, clipping the coat once a year 
probably has only a slight effect, — at least, until it 
has been repeated for some years. 
In fine, whether or not your horse should be clipped 
depends upon his coat, upon the work which he has to 
do, upon the exposure to which he is subjected, and 
in some degree upon the stable where he is kept. If 
you wish to avoid a necessity for clipping him, be 
sure that he has a thick blanket on the first cool 
nights of autumn, even in September: this will tend 
to keep his coat short. 
The operation of clipping should not be performed 
on a damp day, nor on a warm day when the pores of 
the skin are open and there is a consequent liability 
to take cold; and it need not be said that a clipped 
horse requires at least one more heavy blanket than 
an unclipped one. 
