Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1873-11-21
Condition OF the Horse.

SETTING aside fluctuations as to horse
being lame or i'll, or sound and well, no
circumstance in ordinary occurrences
raises or lowers the temporary value of
horse so much as condition the want of
it reduces beauty to plainness; while high
condition, or, in this instance, we should
rather say flesh, hides numberless faults
of form, and gives freshness of appear
ance to comparative age, and compara-
tive freshness to age ITSELF If you are
going to buy horse on your own hook.
you should therefore be satisfied you are
very good judge before you select very
lusty horse, or reject one in low condi
ton; for spare man playing Falstaff,
whose sides we see shake as he walks on
the stage, is not less altered when stripped
of his stuffed garments than are some fat
horses when stripped of their flesh. The
head that looked a fair shaped and sized
one, when compared with a high crest
and bulky body, when that bulk is gone
looks like coal-scuttle, hanging on the
arm of clothes beating horse The body
that looks round and plump when fat, if
stripped, shows that fat, not rotundity of
rib, caused its barrel form, and the ribs
may show flat as q grid-iron, and, posi-
bly,, the back not so long. The quantities
of warm water, mashes and bulky food
accustomed to be taken being diminished,
and oats and work substituted for il, the
carcass, to which probably your attention
had been called, becomes, in front of the
hips, about the size of the lOins of a mon.
key; the bOasted crest of the neck, which
you were doubtless tempted or requested
to feel, becomes soft, shrunken and fac
cid, without more supporting muscles at
its side than a dinner knife. Worst of
al, as the flesh is gone, verify so is the
spirit; no need of your "WhO-ho, Play
boy;" there stand master and horse-One
| in body, both in spirits fiat, stale and
Improbable.
Such-in a mitigated way--is often the
change of fat horse to a thin one, unless
you have an eye to see, and hand to
| feel, what such an animal will be when
his real form becomes developed; and that
is no easy matter to decide on.
Now, if you wish TO buy horse for
| Immediate and constant use, you will find
| by experience that our advice is good,
when we say reject him at price, if
he is fat, fatted for sale, or of plethoric
habit of body; cheap he cannot eventually
be; for If you work him in such a state,
the chances are he will be even worse
than we have above figuratively de-
| scribed for those chances are greatly in
favor of his shortly being dead one.
Let us now look at horse out of con-
dition from the reverse cause-poverty.
There are but few cases in which we
would not buy horse because he was
| poor. The only circumstances where we
should unequivocally reject him would
be, if it was ascertained that all that
could be done to produce proper condi-
| tion had tailed-Of course supposing the
hnrSa IN ha ahg 1,Yta 81
| If, on the contrary, there was any good
cause for the poverty exhibited, and the
horse was a moderate age, finely formed.
sound (enough) and good goer, we saw,
do not be deferred by his present appear.
| ance. Probably he is good and may be
capital speculation. He has several
recommendations over the fat one; you
most likely see him at his worst, and buy
him at his minimum price. If in health
| there is no chance, as with the fat one, of
work injuring, and,by proper care he will
daily improve under your hands; for as
regards work, though total idleness will
conduce to the fatness of the hog, moder-
ate work will not prevent a horse throw
ing up proper flesh, and what does in.
crease will be good. We would, there.
fore, buy such horse, if price was any
object There are, certainly, spare horses,
like spare men, that never get fat; but the
difference between naturally spare habit
and poor horse can be both seen and
felt; the spare horse will look fresh, and
feel in good condition the poor horse will
do neither.
Horses will vary good deal as to ap-
pearance in point of flesh on them, from
difference of formation, and the promn-
ence, or its reverse, of the bones of the
body. Small bones, and those much
rounded, always give well-conditoned
appearance to any animals and, where a
pretty and compact look is admired, such
are the horses TO be selected. Narrow
round hips most particularly give
level look to the horse; but if horse
likely to be a performer is required, such
make is anything bat desirable; 1t is the
wide, independent hip that sends horses
along, enables the trotter to go on, and
gives the bold, sweeping stroke of the
haunch that carries the galloping horse
over racecourse-Cor. Country Gentle
| man