Page:Horse shoes and horse shoeing.djvu/496

 But smiths, to prevent this, pierce their shoes too near the edge, which will in time ruin the foot.

'The fourth rule is to make the lightest shoes you can, according to the size of your horse, because heavy shoes spoil the back-sinews and weary the horse; and if he happens to overreach, the shoes being heavy are more easily pulled off.' 'Those who think it frugality to shoe with thick and heavy shoes, and seldom, are deceived, for they lose more by it than they gain, for thereby they not only spoil the back-sinews but lose more shoes than if they had been light.'

Excessive paring with the 'butteris' seems to have been in vogue then as at a later day, for in recommending a certain method of shoeing he remarks: 'Do not pare your horses' feet almost to the quick, as some people do, who think thereby to prevent the so frequent shoeing of their horses. But if you know that your horses' hoofs are smooth and tough, you may with the more confidence pare his soles reasonably near.'

This old hippiatrist, in fact, gives a few excellent directions for the management of the horse's feet, and evidently far beyond the usual practice of his age; though mixed with many which are bad. He condemns heavy and high calkins, and admits that horses are much better without them altogether. Though the rasp was in use, he does not advise its being put to the outer surface of the wall, and only speaks of paring the frog when the heels are flat or low, and that part of the foot is likely to come in contact with the ground. For the cure of these flat feet, too, he recommends the barbarous operation of barrinig (ligaturing) the pastern veins, 'so that you may put a stop to the super-