FAULTY CONFORMATION 131 
shoe, care must be taken to have the hinges (f, f) far enough 
back, or the shoe will have a tendency to spring at the 
heels, and the grips (e, e), which catch on the bars, will have 
a difficulty in biting. This trouble will be avoided by 
having the hinges about 14 to 2 inches from the heels. 
After the shoe has been firmly nailed to the foot, the 
travelling nut b is driven forward on the screw a so as to 
cause the grips to just catch on the inside of the bars of 
the foot. According to the inventor, the amount of pressure 
to be exerted must be learned by experience, and he says: 
‘TI serew up very gradually until I see the cleft of the 
frog just beginning to open. I now trot the horse up, and 
if he goes sound it is certain that the pressure I have 
exercised will not give rise to trouble. The animal is sent 
to work to assist in the expansion of the foot. On examining 
the shoe next day, the grip is found to be quite loose, the 
foot has enlarged, and the nut is turned once more until 
the grip on the bars is tightened, the horse being again 
tro: 2d to ascertain that no injurious pressure is exerted. 
‘Eve.y day or two I repeat this process, making measure- 
ments in all cases before widening the heels. The increase 
in width of the foot which results is astonishing, } to ? inch 
during the first week may be safely predicted, and in a 
month to six weeks it is impossible to recognise in the 
large healthy frog and wide heels, the shrivelled-up organ 
of a short time before.’ * 
It is pointed out by the writer of the above (and his 
observations, doubtless, apply to the use of all other 
expansion shoes in which the bars are gripped and forcibly 
expanded) that the whole secret of success lies in avoiding 
injurious pressure by exerting too great an expansion at 
one operation. After each manipulation of the expanding 
apparatus the horse should trot sound and the frog remain 
cool. Should the foot become hot, and lameness super- 
vene, then tension should at once be relaxed. 
Recorded Cases of the Use of the Shoe.—The inventor of 
* Journal of Comparative Pathology and Therapeutics, vol. v., 
. 98. 
: 9—32 
