NEUROTOMY ON TROTTING HORSES. 
299 
gait, it destroys and makes it impossible, and subsequent to the 
operation the animal is worthless as a trotter until reunion of the 
nerves has taken place and sensibility has been restored to the 
feet. In such cases the action of the limbs is so altered that the 
animal, by hitting his legs and feet in some maimer, is forced to 
falter, and “ breaks,” ambles and “ mixes his gait ” in a way 
which will prove anything but encouraging and agreeable to the 
driver. 
One shudders to think of the abuse which some trotting 
horses receive. In the hands of intemperate and ignorant drivers 
their lot is indeed a hard one. Thrice blessed is the half-fed, 
slow working horse in comparison. A “ trotter ” is traded and 
sold much oftener than a slow horse, and as long as he improves 
in speed he usually receives good care and kind treatment. When 
lie begins to deteriorate he becomes a victim of circumstances, 
and is ill-used forever after. 
These remarks apply to the clean-gaited, smooth-going horse, 
which may be said to be gifted; but heaven help those poor 
wretches which, by imperfection in gait and conformation, or be¬ 
cause of other imperfections, are able to trot fast only under fa¬ 
vorable conditions, which in their cases do not always exist. 
It would be particularly inhuman and unwise to operate upon 
a “ trotter ” and place him in such a condition that by altering 
his gait he is rendered liable to overreach and become confused 
in action, so that in being passed from one owner to another, 
each one perhaps endeavoring to make him trot and losing pa¬ 
tience in the attempt, he would be whipped, twitched, pulled and 
abused immoderately. It might be considered safe and humane 
to refuse to operate at all on an animal required for fast work. 
It would certainly be so in cases where it was deemed possible 
that the benefit resulting from the operation would be more than 
offset by creating a new source of evil and hardship for the un¬ 
fortunate beast. 
My attention was drawn to the consideration of this matter 
through owning a horse which I prized very highly apart from his 
money value, and which becoming, as it was supposed, incurably 
lame, was neurotomized. He was one of the fastest of road 
