1004 
JAMES m’dONOUGH. 
They go sore. Point first one foot, then the other. They move 
along, oftentimes under the whip, with little short steps. But 
it is only when the pain of one foot is more intense than that 
of the other, which causes them to limp, that we respond to 
their pleadings for relief, and then only to the extent of restor¬ 
ing the crippled limb to its former usefulness. 
But our duty does not end there. We should know that 
the shape of that hoof cannot insure comfort to the foot, and it 
becomes our duty either to shape it, or to direct the perform¬ 
ance of that work. 
The relation of the foot to the limb and the different parts 
of the limb to each other, depends entirely upon the shape of 
the shell. This I wish to make plain. 
We know that the possibility of a crooked and flexible col¬ 
umn of bones to support the weight of a horse’s body, depends 
upon the relation of one to the other, and the support they 
receive from the muscles, tendons and ligaments, that enter 
into the formation of the limb. We also know, that if we place 
a column of bones in a vertical position, with the first firmly 
attached to a base, that the relation of the ends of those bones 
to each other will depend upon the shape of the base and its 
position upon the ground, and as the hoof forms the base of this 
complex column of sensitive tissue, we can readily see that any 
alteration of its normal shape can only result in an injury to 
the limb. 
But man has altered all of them. You probably have but 
few normal-shaped hoofs in this city to-day. And the only rea¬ 
son that more horses are not lame is because the work they per¬ 
form does not tax the distorted limb to the limit of its endur¬ 
ance. But whilst it is only reasonable to suppose that the limbs 
were intended to perform work proportionate to the other organs 
—heart, lungs, etc.—yet we know if subjected to violent exer¬ 
cise, such as trotting or running, the legs or feet are the first to 
give out. In fact, it is generally believed by owners of fast 
horses, that their limbs are unequal to the task of performing 
this work. And yet, I do not know of a single injury to the 
