306 ON THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF HORSES. 
into a new situation : he should be placed by himself if possible, 
or in a corner next to a quiet horse, and watched. Many 
horses, more especially mares, will kick when in contact with 
others, who will be quiet enough when placed by themselves. 
This precaution, together with that of nailing* a thorn or a whin- 
bush against the wall, or the side of the post, will generally be 
sufficient to check or correct this evil in its infancy ; but when it 
has once become a confirmed habit, nothing will perhaps be of 
any use, in the way of prevention, but a log, fastened upon one 
of the hind legs; or what is nearly the same, a certain length of 
chain attached by means of a buckle and strap, and w hich, by 
striking the other leg' in the act of kicking, frightens the animal 
and makes him desist. Log's may be made of different lengths, 
according to the part of the limb to w hich they are to be affixed. 
If buckled above the hock, which is generally the most effectual, 
the log ought to hang dow r n to the lower part of the shank-bone, 
and shouldbe of a long or oval form : if fastened to the middle 
of the leg, the lower part of the log should touch the top of the 
hoof, and it is better to be of a round form. Every troop ser¬ 
geant-major should always have, at least, two of each sort in his 
possession, ready for use on any occasion. 
I shall say nothing here of the vicious propensity of kicking 
at the trooper, a frequent complaint amongst troop horses, nor 
of the mode of prevention I would recommend; that being a 
matter more within the province of the riding master than the 
veterinary surgeon. But I am persuaded there are many trou¬ 
blesome and vexatious habits that horses acquire, which may, in 
a great measure, be prevented by a little care and perseverance 
on the part of those who have charge of them: for instance, if 
there be any cribbiters or wind-suckers in a troop, they ought, 
as nr ch as possible, to be kept separated from the rest, because 
it is well known horses often learn these tricks from each other; 
and the precaution is easy—it requires only a little care and 
attention. Another, although a minor, yet a troublesome habit 
enough, is that of slipping the collar in the stable. Some horses 
will get into the way of doing this so dexterously, as to be con¬ 
stantly found loose amongst the rest, a source of much mischief 
often in a troop stable: the non-commissioned officers should 
always therefore take care to have a horse of this sort properly 
secured;—a broad strap made to buckle round the neck is the 
best means. Each troop serg'eant-major should be provided 
with three or four of these neck-straps, which may answer 
equally both for this purpose, and to prevent cribbiting. 
X. Formerly it was a common practice to strip horses imme¬ 
diately on their coming in, and, whilst sweating from any great 
