42 THE HORSE 



The kind of horse once chosen, the next step 

 for the breeder is to have a distinct picture in his 

 mind of the type at which he aims and always 

 breed with that end in view. This is the first 

 principle in successful breeding and it can never 

 be neglected with impunity. There is an ex- 

 tremely erroneous idea in many minds that if the 

 breeder has his foundation stock of some pure and 

 distinct breed, he will then be saved this trouble 

 and that all he will have to do is to breed his regis- 

 tered mares to a registered horse of the same kind. 

 But there is no royal road in stock-breeding; and 

 if the same care is not observed in the mating of 

 pure-bred parents that would be in the case of 

 other animals, the stock will surely and swiftly 

 deteriorate. 



It seems almost needless to add that the ideal at 

 which the breeder aims should be first of all per- 

 fect in conformation. For instance, if you are 

 raising Percherons, in which large size is a de- 

 sirable feature, have the size, by all means, if pos- 

 sible, but do not sacrifice symmetry to it; sym- 

 metry should come first. I am convinced that 

 even the breeders of trotters can make more money 

 in the long run and have a far more satisfactory 

 experience when they breed for type and confor- 

 mation rather than speed. A great many breed- 

 ers of trotting stock, in fact, do this. For 



