THh. GARDEN AND FIELD. 



418 



lop. The feed which it there gathers 

 is of such a character as requires the 

 animal to he almost continuously eat- 

 ing, and when the appetite itself is sat- 

 ised, looking at its companions and 

 surrounding objects to amuse itself. As 

 soon as one thing has lost its attraction 

 another presents itself, and thus the ani- 

 mal's time is constantly occupied, and 

 it never becomes bored with existence. 

 On the other hand, the change which 

 comes over its life when placed in a 

 stable, which is virtually a prison, is 

 very marked. In its stable the animal 

 stands for hours upon end ; sometimes 

 for days in succession does not leave 

 the stable. The feed which is placed 

 before it during that time is of a dry 

 stimulating nature, and of this a little 

 serves in comparison with what it has 

 been in the habit of picking up in the 

 paddock. In the stable it will prob- 

 ably be feeding for only three hours 

 out of the twenty-four, which, as com- 

 pared with the time devoted to feeding 

 in the open, is a great contrast. Is 



it therefore to be wondered at that a 

 horse when placed in a situation so 

 different from that to which it had pre- 

 viously been accustomed should acquire 

 such a habit as crib-biting? When the 

 animal is taken out of the paddock and 

 placed in tlie stable, having nothing to 

 amuse itself with, the manger in front 

 of it is the most convenient thing to de- 

 mand its attention. The top of the 

 manger is generally round and smooth 

 and the animal soon begins to lick it. 

 This licking has a certain amount of 

 fascination, in that it occupies the ani- 

 mal's attention, and by the motion of 

 the tongue the glands are excited and 

 give forth an increased quantity of 

 saliva. This habit continues for some 

 time, perhaps a fortnight or three 

 weeks, or even a month or more, as 

 horses vary much in the length of time 

 during which they practise it. 



One really good preventative is not 

 to allow the animal to stand in ,the 

 stable too long.^ but, once the horse has 



February, 1914 



TBY 



JAMES WHITE & SON 



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become a confirmed crib-biter, there is 

 nothing whicl^ will keep it in check 

 except what is known as the neck- 

 strap, a broad and stiff band of lea- 

 ther running round the neck and under 

 the throat, and catching the animal very 

 much in the same position as that oc- 

 cupied by what is known as the Adam's 

 apple in man. At one time :t was 

 supposed that an effective cure was to 

 be found in ' cutting off the tip of the 

 tongue. It may have the desired effect, 

 as one can readily understand that 

 when a portion of the tongue is taken 

 off the same power as existed before 

 to draw in the air does not exist after 

 the operation. Seeing, however, that it 

 is a remarkably cruel proceeding, this 

 remedy is hardly likely to appeal to any 

 but the most inhumane. Possibly there 

 are a good many people connected with 

 horses in this country who do not ap- 

 preciate the fact that no horse which is 

 a crib-biter can be regarded as sound. 

 The reason of this rests in the fact 

 that a horse is a crib-biter seldom or 

 never carries much flesh. Its coat is 

 staring, and generally long; the state of 

 the skin is regulated by the stomach,* 

 and if the skin is out of order so is 

 the stomach, and vice versa. Moreover, 

 the powers of digestion are generally 

 weakened, and the animal is thus pre-, 

 disposed to various diseases, such as 

 spasmodic and flatulent colic. Every 

 time the horse cribs he draws in a 

 quantity of air into the stomach, an or- 

 gan made to receive food, and not at- 

 mosphere. In addition to this it may 

 be remarked that the stomach of the 

 horse differs from that of a man and 

 other animals. When air or other mat- 

 ter has once entered the stomach the 

 horse has no power to expel it by the 

 mouth again, in consequence of the 

 strong, muscular fibres which are ar- 

 ranged in a valve-like manner at the 

 cardiac orifice. Since the air occupies 

 space, the same as the feed itself, the 

 stomach has two walls, instead of one 



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