386 MANAGEMENT AND BREEDING OF HORSES 



can lay hands on, with the result that a habit is established 

 which may be exceedingly difficult to overcome. All 

 such excitement and resulting bad habits easily can be 

 avoided by a little patient effort in properly training the 

 horse. It is seldom if ever that a horse is really born 

 vicious. While it may be true that tempers are trans- 

 mitted, and that certain tempers are more predisposed 

 than others to develop vice, yet vice itself is not a 

 hereditary character. 



Overcoming whims and vices. — In overcoming bad 

 habits in horses we should make a careful study of each 

 case in order to ascertain the cause, and, if possible, re- 

 move it. Then we must establish a new habit that will 

 have a stronger influence on the horse's mind than the 

 old one which impairs his usefulness. To do this we 

 must impress upon his mind that we are superior and our 

 commands must be obeyed. From the beginning, there- 

 fore, we must use such appliances as will give us the 

 advantage. This can readily be accomplished in either 

 of two ways : First, by the application of such appli- 

 ances as will use the horse's strength in overcoming him ; 

 and, second, by the use of self-punishing harness, which 

 will inflict punishment at the instanthe violates our wish. 



The horse must be given to understand that he must 

 obey us or suffer accordingly. Next, he must be im- 

 pressed with the fact that we are his friend. This can be 

 accomplished by caressing him and feeding sweets when 

 he obeys our commands. To aid in securing his con- 

 fidence we should abstain from all forms of punishment 

 likely to cause him pain. Thus we should not use the 

 whip or spur in overcoming bad habits, as the pain in- 

 flicted may provoke further rebellion. 



The most efficient means of punishing the horse in 

 overcoming faults is to humiliate him. This seems to 

 have a greater effect upon the stubborn horse than any 

 form of punishment whereby he is caused physical pain. 

 There are two common methods of humiliating the proud 



