Part 3

Too long a toe acts as a lever and very much increases the tension of the tendons and ligaments that support the fetlocks, rendering them liable to strain, and also increasing the tendency to windgalls.

Too long a toe is also a fertile cause of corns, as it increases very much the pressure on the heels and consequent liability to bruise the quick of the foot at that place, which bruise constitutes a corn.

Besides having the toes too long, the heels are allowed to grow down, taking all the pressure off the frog. Nature intended the frog to bear its proper proportion of weight, and, if it doesn’t do so, it shrinks, the heels contract, and the inner quarter curls in and acts as a wedge between the shoe and the quick, and is thereby another cause of corns. Too long a hoof hastens fatigue, as the increased exertion necessary in raising and advancing the foot in progression augments the expenditure of force. The tendency to “interfere” is also much increased.

This prejudice in favor of keeping the hoofs long has been brought about and encouraged largely by the example and expressed opinions of dealers. A dealer sells a horse with long hoofs, and the purchaser sends him to the forge. The shoer, unless he has been otherwise definitely instructed, and if he understands what is best for the horse’s legs and feet, will reduce the hoofs to their normal proportions. When the owner drives or rides his new purchase again, he finds the action curtailed, and thinks the horse is going sore. He applies to the seller of the horse, who tells him that he has had his feet cut away so much that it has made him sore. This might be the case in exceptional instances, but very rarely.

In addition to reduction of the hoofs in size, the shoes may be lightened, which further lessens the action. What are called “green horses” are very apt to go sore if put abruptly into work, from the fact that their tissues have not been by degrees hardened for work; in other words, they are not in condition, and it will take some weeks before they can be safely put into anything like hard work.

After reading the foregoing, it will naturally be asked: What is the guide in determining the dimensions to which the hoof should be reduced at the time of shoeing? The practised eye of the man who understands the natural poise of the horse’s leg can determine at a glance how much to reduce the hoof so that every part of the leg and foot will approximately bear its due proportion of weight. The direction of the line of weight in the extremities varies in different individuals and nature can be assisted by regulating the direction of this line in order that no part shall be unduly taxed. The horse with the straight pastern and high heel is apt to suffer from the ill-effects of concussion, while the oblique-pasterned horse is more likely to suffer from strain. The ill-consequences of these defects of formation can be neutralized in a measure by regulating the length of hoof according to circumstances. For instance, the disadvantage of long and oblique pasterns can be overcome in a measure by keeping the hoof shortened up as much as possible, thereby reducing the tension on the supporting tissues of the fetlock. In the same way the elasticity of tread can be promoted in a straight-pasterned horse by reasonable length of toe.

Nature in some instances supplies compensations for defects of formation. In the fore extremity, the oblique shoulder, long arm and forearm and smooth flexion of the joints may in a measure counteract the injurious consequences of calf-knees and unduly short and straight pasterns. Added to this there may be that lightness of step, with which some horses are endowed, that has its determining cause in the nervous system, and which so much aids the wearing ability of the legs and feet.

Fleming, who is a justly recognized authority on horseshoeing, gives as a guide to determine the amount a horse’s hoof should be reduced at the time of shoeing, that the hoof should be shortened by the rasp until it is flush with what is called the “white line.” The “white line” is that portion of the hoof that forms the connecting medium between the outer margin of the sole and the inner and lower margin of the wall. Its outline is very clearly defined in a freshly rasped hoof. Fleming, doubtless, assumes that the sole and white line have not been reduced with the knife, but have been allowed to remain, as nature intended them, of their normal thickness.

Just here it may be remarked that the practice of paring away the sole of the foot, or in other words, thinning it, is a pernicious one.

The shoer appears to like to do this, as it cuts very easily and gives, as he thinks, a “neat” appearance to the hoof. The owner appears to endorse this, as he is very careful to have his groom stop the feet, forgetting that he has permitted the shoer to remove a much more efficient stopping than any artificial one in the outer surface of the sole. This is very easy of explanation and illustration if one takes an unmutilated hoof. First of all it must be noted that the outer hard and tough crust, called the wall, grows out indefinitely, unless it is worn or broken off by contact with the ground or reduced by the instruments of the former. This is not the case with the sole, for it is so constituted that after it attains a certain thickness, by a process of nature it exfoliates of its own accord, thus maintaining its normal thickness. These outer scales that keep coming off are nature’s stopping. Why? Because by protecting the inner and deeper layer from the drying effects of the air, they maintain moisture that is necessary in the sole. If, by paring, you cut through and examine a normal sole, you will find that the part next to the quick (the part freshly secreted by the quick) is moist, and as you proceed to the surface of the sole it gradually gets dryer, the outer part being almost entirely free from moisture and admirably adapted to protect the inner and moister part until it is gradually forced outward by fresh growth from within and becomes in its turn a “stopping” for the inner and freshly formed layer of sole. What happens if the knife is used instead of nature being allowed to go on with its own process of desquamation? Why, the deeper parts of the sole become exposed to the action of the air before they are prepared for it by a gradual process of drying, and abruptly dry and contract. This is what causes the sole to become increasedly cupped, and the hoof to become contracted in a great measure. The stopping of horses’ hoofs is not always necessary if the sole is left, as it should be, in an unmutilated condition, unless horses are made to stand a great deal upon dry floors. Much of the fuss and waste of time and material involved in the stopping of horses’ hoofs are based on error. All that is necessary to remove the sole in a normal foot is accomplished when the rasp is flatly applied to the lower surface of the wall in reducing it to its proper dimensions. The thicker the sole the better, provided it does not project below the wall, or receive too much pressure from the shoe. One can readily understand how much more efficient a thick sole is as a protection to the underlying quick, especially on rough, frozen and stony roads, than a comparatively thin one.

Now, if the sole is left thick, as it should be, and in which case the white line would necessarily be, it is a good guide for the shoer, in the majority of cases, to rasp down to the white line. Another error frequently made, though not so common as mutilation of the sole, is cutting away the frog. It does not require a deep student of physiology of the foot to see almost at a glance the function of the frog. Take a normal hoof and examine the frog and you will observe that it is placed at the back of the hoof, where the major portion of the pressure comes. You further find that, unlike either the sole or the wall, it is endowed with elasticity equal to india rubber. It is very evident that it is intended not only to come in contact with the ground, but also to act as a buffer in lessening concussion. Now, what happens if you cut it away and leave the heel so high that it does not come in contact with the ground? Why, it shrinks and becomes as hard as wood, entirely unsuited to stand pressure without bruising the underlying quick, and no longer capable of performing its office of breaking concussion. Not only that, but with a thin, dried-up sole, the shrunken hoof draws the quarters with it, and you have contracted feet or at least contracted heels. After this mischief has been done through ignorance, then the horse must have that curer of all ills of the foot (according to some wise ones), spreaders, to overcome the contraction of the hoof.

Although horses are largely kept under artificial conditions, there is no reason why their hoofs should become contracted if rationally treated, unless some disease of the foot develops, such as navicular disease. Under such circumstances, the contraction is the result of disease, not the cause of it.

Another point that should be carefully watched in preparing the hoof for the reception of the shoe is to have it level. If either inside or outside of the hoof is left too long, it changes the direction of the line of weight and subjects some portion or portions of the extremity to undue strain or pressure and consequent liability to injury.

Horses that are turned out into soft fields or put into box stalls or barnyards, where there is not sufficient attrition to wear the hoof to its normal dimensions, should have it rasped down every month to its proper proportions. This particularly applies to young colts, and neglect of it is the initial step in causing hoofs of defective formation.

CORRECT ACTION IN HORSES

While it is the intention of this article to endeavor to picture ideally good action, by which wear and tear and loss of power are reduced to a minimum, it is not intended to decry the possession for certain purposes, by a horse, of what is usually called high action. To render horses attractive for show and for pleasure purposes it is a highly desirable quality and very much increases their market value. The good horseman would much prefer, however, to sit behind a horse with moderate action, that raises his feet, advances them in a straight line with stride enough to insure desirable progress--yet not so much that the feet cannot be put down squarely--every part bearing its proper proportion of weight and striking the ground lightly, than one with excessive but markedly defective action. High action, like other qualities possessed in a high degree, is very apt to be associated with defects that detract from its perfection and lessen a horse’s wearing quality. The ill-consequences of these defects are intensified in direct ratio to the excessiveness of the action. The craze for high action at any cost is not so rampant as it used to be some years ago. Horse-show promoters became wearied of seeing their premiums for action carried off by acrobatic monstrosities, and it caused them to modify the wording of their prize lists and call for all-around goers with twenty-five per cent. for conformation. The horse that winds his legs about, “straddles,” “points,” “rolls,” “spreads behind,” “waddles,” or drags his hind legs, is no longer in favor with the good judge, no matter how excessive his action.

The character of the action is a very important factor in determining the amount of wear and tear a horse will stand. To become a good judge of action is not such an easy matter as might be imagined. There are many who have a good eye for a horse, and, in fact, are, in a measure, good judges, who cannot intelligently criticize a horse’s action from different standpoints. There are many who are taken with flashy action, which, as a rule, enhances the market value of a horse possessing it, but is very apt to be associated with greater defects from a utilitarian standpoint than that which is less attractive. In estimating the quality of action correctly in different individuals one has to have an ideal. How seldom in sitting behind a horse and closely observing his way of going at the trot and walk, do we find action that comes up to our ideal! Perfect action, as far as usefulness is concerned, is frictionless and light, and the foot is placed on the ground squarely. There is no loss of time or power in progression, or, in other words, the frictionless mover does not labor, neither does the light-stepper experience the ill-effects of concussion, which is the result of bringing the foot to the ground in a pounding manner. What a saving of wear and tear and power the smooth-mover and light-stepper experiences! One is amazed in instances to observe how much work a weak-footed, poor-legged horse will stand and still remain in workable condition. It can be accounted for in many cases by the defects mentioned being compensated for by light action.

It is interesting and instructive to study the numerous and varying conditions that conduce to defective action. Lightness of step appears to be a quality not always dependent upon the conformation of the individual. For instance, length and obliquity of the pasterns are usually said to cause lightness and elasticity of the tread, but do not always do so, for we find many heavy-going horses of this formation. Mechanically, this should conduce to light-stepping, and does in a measure, but the fact that horses with oblique pasterns sometimes pound, leads us to look for another explanation. The statement may be advanced, in explanation, that the elasticity resulting from oblique pasterns may be neutralized by a straight shoulder; but this theory will not hold, as one not infrequently finds straight-shouldered, short-pasterned horses which step lightly. Another explanation must be found. We have to seek elsewhere in the animal economy than in the peculiar arrangement of the bones, muscles, tendons and ligaments of the limbs to account for the light step of some horses.

The endowment with this desirable quality is undoubtedly referable to the nervous system, just as speed is. We cannot determine the degree of a horse’s speed by studying his external form. We have to subject him to a test, and so we have in forming a conclusion as to the degree of lightness or heaviness of his step.

With regard to labored progression, the tendency to it is usually determinable by an inspection of a horse’s conformation. All deviations from the steadily carried top in the trot, in which there is no rolling, jerking or waddling, and from the straight flexion and extension of the forelegs, in which there is no straddling, dishing or winding-in, and from the equally straight and easy flexion of the hock, can, as a rule, be determined by an examination of an individual’s conformation. The horse with thick or loaded shoulders and wide chest is apt to roll; the one that stands with his forefeet placed wide apart, straddles; the knock-kneed one, as well as the one that toes-in, generally dishes, while the horse that toes-out, winds in. The horse with his hocks wide apart and feet close together, “screws” his hocks outwards and usually “plaits.” When the hocks are placed behind instead of under the quarters there is likely to be a dragging movement of the hind legs. It is therefore true that faulty progression is usually determinable by conformation. Defective conformation of the legs shows itself with almost unvarying regularity in its effect upon the action. In order to have straight, undeviating action a horse must flex and extend his legs during progression in a line parallel to the long axis of the body. The knock-kneed, bow-legged, or even calf-kneed horse cannot do this, and consequently experiences the ill-results of loss of time and power in progression.

Apart altogether from the question of the degree of the lightness or heaviness of the step, the manner in which the feet are placed on the ground has a great influence in determining wear and tear, and is consequently an important point to study. The horse that toes-in usually has the inside quarter of his forefeet defectively developed, which becomes more marked if he is not rationally shod. This defect of formation of the inner quarter consists in a slanting off of it from before backwards and outwards and from above downward and toward the centre of the foot, causing this quarter to assume a wedge-like form and literally to act as a wedge between the shoe and the sensitive part of the inner quarter, thus predisposing it to bruising. In addition to this, the horse that “dishes” usually brings his foot down with force on the inner quarter. This manner of planting the foot not only subjects the ligaments to undue tension, but is a fruitful source of troublesome corns.

On the other hand, a horse that toes-out is apt to come down with most force on the outside of his foot. This is a much more defective formation than the former, for it not only causes winding-in and great liability to interfere, but the planting of the foot is usually accomplished in a manner that results in the production of considerable concussion, and also subjects the ligaments to great tension, so that the legs soon begin to show the effects of wear and tear. Some horses come down with most force on their toes, causing them to stub their toes, as it is called. Such a manner of planting the foot is apt to cause stumbling and increases concussion to a marked extent. Short-pasterned, straight-shouldered, and short-gaited horses often show this defect.

Just the opposite manner of planting the foot or coming down with the heel first is not at all uncommon. This defect of action is not only likely to cause bruising of the heels, but subjects the tendons and ligaments at the lower and back portion of the forelegs to excessive strain. Ordinarily this imperfection is only observed in long-gaited horses, but some that plant their feet in a favorable manner when going at a slow pace, when forced to a faster one lengthen their stride, and show this defect, often called “pointing,” to a pronounced degree. Deep and oblique-shouldered horses with little knee action, like thoroughbreds, often go in this way, but its ill-effects are not so great as in those with a considerable amount of knee action.

“Threading” or “plaiting” are terms used to designate the swinging of the elevated foot around the one that is placed on the ground in progression. This ungraceful manner of going, which occasions a loss of power, is most clearly shown in the walk or slow trot.

FORGING, OVER-REACHING AND CLICKING

This Paper Won the Prize Given by The American Veterinary Review for the Best Essay on This Subject

That very disagreeable and annoying fault of striking the forefeet with the hind ones during progression, variously referred to as “clicking,” “over-reaching” and “forging,” is one to which some horses are predisposed; but it is excited by a number of conditions which can, as a rule, be remedied by rational treatment, even in some instances where there is a predisposition. Forging is the result of any cause that prevents a horse from getting his forefeet out of the way of his hind ones, in progression.

Undue shortness of body is a frequent predisposing cause, but one must not fall into the error frequently made of assuming that a short-backed horse is necessarily a short-bodied one. A horse may have a short back but long quarters, causing him to stand over a lot of ground or be what is called “long underneath,” and be anything but short-bodied, and in fact possessing the ideal formation, as far as this point is concerned, and be anything but inclined to forge. Horses with the fore pasterns disproportionately long, when compared to the hind ones, especially if the forefeet are also inclined to unusual length, experience retardation in the flexion and extension of the forelegs, to a degree that renders interference from the hind ones liable.