Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1837-10-12
ON SHOEING HOEES.

diseases 10 horse, eli tending TO disable him
as improper freatInent OF the aniph's feet
Nature had never taken greater pans 10 form
an exquisite anatomical specimenli me- chan
zeal power than when il fvrinedRhe foot q.
inc horse and TO this beautiful, &lcaic, and
comP'icaied Formations, does he owe his pow :
Ier u speed over most others Of The brute
creation. In a state OF nature, the horses foot
seldom, II ever diseased; in q snte Of dos
hes"ci'y u 10 more or less unsound,i in seven
cases out OF ten. In state of nature. Tie
loot, being unencumbered by shot. is no,
prevented from assuming that position on
inc ground which Keeps il in sound cond-
ZION, ana enables each vi its component paris
10 discharge their several functions. In a
state OF donesticity, the animal; is Obliged 10
wear a shoe, for tho purpose of pro,.cang its
hooi from the oughness Of harsh roads; and
this shoe IS generally SO constructed ssIo in
hct considerable INJURY upon tho iod, by
lncaPacitating ito several componen parts
from performing thoir functions, thereby pro-
ducing slate Of disease. Contracteoho
ndcracks, thrush, grease. stiffness 10 the
heXor tendon OF the leg, weakness in be pas
tern and knee joints, aud tendency t,genu-
heXian, are some among the various Gstur-
Dances produced by improperly shoing o
horse, SO as to impede any Of the necessary
actions Of the foot.-And vet most 4 the
London farriers, totally ignorant of the,nat-
omy Of the horses foot and of the ysious
uses OF It's several parts, apply the shoe 20 as
always 10 produce the effects we have lust
endesvored TO describe. Having often bdore
observed that we nowhere find such bad
Workmanship as in the London parks-we
| may here add that whenever " see an NV k.
ward fellow gallop, riding upon his curb, and
allowing his snatfie rein 10 hang loosely upon
the horses neck, we are sure, ON furlhe, ex>
amination, 10 find the poor animal sulftt ing
from bad shoeing. Ignorance in riding seems
always the concomitant of ignorance in treat
ment OF the horse aud he who takes 10 trou-
BILE 10 learn 10 do the fermer with the least
possible inconvenience TO the animal, will
pay little or no attention 10 the latter.
One Of the most important organs Of the
loot OF horse Is that portion which svery
body knows under the designation OF The frog
Upon the health OF this organ depends that Uf
The whole foot and yet the ignorant farrier
seems 10 have conceived so violent an antip-
| athy 10 This frog, that he always endsavors To
cat as much OF II away as he possibly can,
, without actually wounding the animal and
as from the mode Of shoeing generally adopt-
cd great portion Of the frog is eiten dried
upand decayee, the blacksmith finds no grea
dIihcully IN paring il away TO almost noihing
| The consequence Of this we ehall entieavor
to explain, by describing the use OF the frog.
This organ is seated at the heel, just be-
meath the heof, and behind its bars. II forms
a sort OF case for the end ol the hexpr ten,
don, which il covers like bulb. itlikewise
sscretes an unctious liquor, which serves 10
keep the horn of the huof moist and to pres
vent il from cracking. The frog is also an
elastic wedge, which contracts aud expands
with the hoot, snd when this wedge receives
its due pressure as the animal walks, il keep.
the bars IN their proper state OF expansion
and counteracts any tendency in the h0oi Il
permanent contraction. Thus, then, its iunc.
tiens are indispensable TO keep the foot sound
for il it were destroyed, the bottom of ih,
tiexor tendon OF the leg would be exposed &c
disease again ii il did not secrete oil 10 keep
the hoot moist, The latter would crack, as j,
often the case lastly, if it were dried up ant
deprived OF its elastic power, the foot woulC
become permanently contracted, and The
horse lame wv hich is a matter ofvety common
occurrence.
Tive things ore evident from what we
have just stated IL The secretion, elias
ITCHY, and mechanical action Of the frog, ar,
absolutely necessary 10 keep The TOO, Of III,
horse in a sound state. 9. If, from impro
perly placing the shoe, or from any oihe
cause, the frog should be deprived of tn,
stimulus necessary 10 enable il 10 carry OF
Its action, the foot must fall into state O
disease. With reference 10 this latter, from
the position OF the foot, and The resource
provided by nature, il can occur but yer,
seldom that any accidental Cause deprive
The frog of lis power OF action and as il j
an undoublsd fact that Tie shoe, when i'm
properly put on Gas il is in seven cases out G
temp produces this effect, by raising the hee
and preventing the frog from receiving III
slightest pTesSure-and the necessary pres
suTe can alone give the proper stimuius--i
is reasonable 10 conclude that, in most case
T OF diseased feet in horses. the diseased actor
is the effect Of bad shoeing.
II the farTier would observe the horse IN
state OF aature-ii he would examine The We
uDbroken, and consequently unshodden colt
he would find that the broad, circular low
pressed fully on the ground, the frog receive
as the animal walks; at each elastic re
,, bound caused by the play of the pas;erh,
slight pressure agaiDs, the ground, ~hic
excites IL, keeps il in healthy action and in
deed preserves the whole foot Grem disease
He would also perceive, after a more minul
observation, that not only is the freq an e1ai
tic body, but that the boof itself, though
horny substance, is elastic, & that il contract
and expands by the action Of the muscles
the sensible foot, of which it is only the cas-
or covering, preserving i; from injury, bt
: yielding to all its impulses. He would lher
> il be were not dolt, reason upon what he ha
observed, and infer that for a horse to
sound upon its feet, il must walk in that G,
. act position which nature designed for il M
i that any deviation from that position is unn,
tursl, and depriyes the horse of a portion
G iis power. He would also think that nalur
by placing the animal firmly on its heeIs, az
s not on the front edge of it's hooi as most hoTs
u stand when imnrouerly shod did sn fear SON