UNRELIABLE MARKS. 761 



lired liorses take their ages, in England, usually from the 1st May. 

 hi Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, and South Africa, horses 

 are aged from the 1st August. For instance, a Colonial colt born 

 in September, 1914, or in March, 1916, will be a two-year-old on 

 the 1st August, 1916. To age a young horse, the actual date of 

 whose birth is unknown to us, we should, in case of doubt, assign 

 to him the younger of the two ages, if his " class birthday " be 

 near at hand ; the older of the two, if it be recently past. Thus, 

 suppose an Australian horse had a " full mouth " (all his incisors 

 permafaent) in June, but his corner incisors showed little or no 

 wear, he should be then aged as a four-year-old, and, twO' months 

 later become a. five-year-old. At the worst, we could, here, be 

 only a couple of months out. But if we put him down as five, we 

 should be adding on, at least, nine or ten months to his age. If 

 a Colonial animal in, say September showed the condition of mouth 

 just described, age him as five years old ; for if put down as four, 

 we should bg giving our sanction to an animal at least four years 

 and nine' months, remaining a four-year-old for another eleven 

 months ! In India, Arabs and country breds are aged from the 

 1st January. Here, again, to age in, say, September, an Arab 

 which had shed only his central milk incisors, it would be right 

 to age him as three-year-old, if there was a doubt as to Eis 

 retaining his lateral milk incisors until the 1st of the following 

 January. 



The term " rising," is, as a rule, applied to a horse's age, when 

 it is less than that which is stated; and, "off," when it is more. 

 The former is used when the birthday is comparatively near at 

 hand ; the latter, when it has recently past. Thus, a horse " rising 

 five '' is a four-year-old which is nearer five than four. An animal 

 " four off," is a four-year-old that is nearer four, than five. 



The large majority of half-bred horses sold as five-year-olds 

 during the autumn in England and Ireland, as already indicated, 

 are really only four-year-olds. Such aniinals, instead of having 

 the cutting surfaces of the corner incisors of both jaws fully in 

 wear, on the inside as well as on the outside of the tooth, very 

 rarely show any wear of the upper corner incisors at the time 

 mentioned. 



Teeth which Retain the Mark and Central 

 Enamel Beyond the Ordinary Time. 



The depth of the cavity on the tables of the incisor teeth varies 

 considerably in different horses, and even in particular pairs of 

 teeth, in the same mouth. The thickness of the layer o.f cement 

 lining these cavities, is also, as seen on p. 753, subject to much 



