CHOOSING A HORSE 29 



ninths that of the total weight, and in addition the hind limbs 

 are not intended to break concussion as are the fore limbs. 



The hind feet should be oval, dense, fine in texture, of good 

 size, and perfectly sound. They are inclined to become 

 narrow, the sides often appear sunken, leaving them rather flat, 

 thus causing the foot to appear narrow. The hind feet should 

 have the characteristics that have been described in the refer- 

 ence to the desirable points of the fore feet. 



CHOOSING A HEAVY HORSE 



In choosing a heavy horse, it must be borne in mind that the 

 fatter the animal the more difficult it is to detect many of the 

 defects which would stand out clearly were the animal not 

 padded with a thick coat of fat. A horse in serviceable condi- 

 tion will often show many defects, especially in the body, that a 

 thick coating of tissue will hide. By changing the food one can 

 increase or diminish the size of the abdomen: thus by feeding 

 food containing much bulk, the shape of the narrow-gutted horse 

 is modified; by feeding concentrated foods, such as oats, the 

 cow-belly can be made to disappear. By regulating the light 

 in the stable and increasing the temperature, the coat can be 

 made to assume brighter shades and to reflect a more brilliant 

 luster. By removing or clipping the hairs scattered over the 

 face, around the mouth, nostrils, eyelids, along the lower jaw; 

 in diminishing the thickness and length of the mane and tail; 

 in clipping the thick hairs along the cannons and pasterns ; and 

 finally in cutting the hairs on the inner surface of the ears, the 

 apparent quaUty of the horse can be greatly changed and a 

 rough, coarse animal can be made to take on a rather refined 

 appearance. 



General appearance in heavy horses 



The same general method should be followed in examining a 

 heavy horse as in the hght, with the difference, that we place 

 much stress on weight. 



