2i6 JUDGING HORSES 



attention should be paid to the feet. The larger the foot, 

 the more of the shock will it be able to absorb, and the less 

 will there be transmitted to the upper parts of the body. 

 The foot should be large at the hoof head, so as to give 

 greater freedom for articulation in the movement of the 

 foot, and thus lessen the susceptibility of the horse to foot 

 troubles. 



The feet should be of the same size, and point straight 

 forward. In front they should slope gently from the top to 

 the ground. A very flat foot is too low at the heel. On 

 the other hand, if the foot is very steep, the pastern of the 

 horse is usually steep, which has already been noted as an 

 objectionable feature. 



The quality of the foot is very important. The horn, of 

 which the outside is composed, should be dense and waxy, 

 not dry and flaky. The condition of the foot can be greatly 

 influenced by the treatment. If kept on hard floors, and 

 worked on paved streets, the feet will appear flaky, and will 

 be more likely to crack than if the animal is kept on a dirt 

 floor and worked a part or all of the time on soft earth. 

 A poor horseshoe may also work great injury to a horse's 

 feet. 



Chest. — The chest is that part of the body that contains 

 the heart and lungs. Its capacity is measured by the 

 length of the girth, the distance around the body of the 

 horse, back of the shoulders. At this point, the animal 

 should be deep and wide, indicating that there is sufficient 

 room for large, vigorous organs. The breastbone should 

 be low, providing ample chest space and giving the low- 

 down, blocky appearance so essential in a valuable draft 

 horse. 



Ribs. — The form of the body depends to a large degree 



