HITCHING m HORSES 23 



a ring at a walk when ridden with bit and 

 bridoon, but if a change is made to a snaffle bit 

 they will go squarely, thus showing how a sharp 

 bit will cause unsteadiness and irregularity of 

 the gait in some light-mouthed horses. 



In case there is any doubt as to whether irregu- 

 larity of the gait is due to lameness or to "hitch- 

 ing," it is easily settled by jogging the animal in 

 question at a slow trot "in hand" without any bit 

 in the mouth, or at most a plain snaffle, with the 

 head loose and carried straight. It may be em- 

 phasized here that the only true test in the de- 

 termination of the question as to whether a horse 

 goes sound or not, unless the lameness is fairly 

 pronounced, is to jog "in hand" as already ex- 

 plained. Horses are sometimes condemned as 

 going lame in the show ring when it is impossible 

 to determine with certainty whether they are lame 

 or not until taken out of harness and run "in 

 hand." It is sometimes a help, in deciding 

 whether a horse is slightly sore forward or not, to 

 get on his back, when the increased weight on the 

 legs will intensify the tenderness. 



The idea of a horse "hitching" in front is some- 

 times ridiculed, but occasionally one may be seen 

 to do it unmistakably, and it is usually the result 

 of some discomfort in connection with the mouth. 

 As has been already said, anything that puts a 

 horse off his balance is liable to make him "hitch." 



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