River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1890-08-28
1. The perfect foot.

horse should not, under certain condl-
tons, reach his fullest speed at three or
four years. Instead of five or six. A
colt will run Just as fast as he ever will
when matured; we find this in the case
of a runner, and ii is the same, too, with
a trotting gait; when the gift of speed
is present and training is we'll done and
the feet properly attended 20, we can
commence quite early.
l believe the time is coming when
the foot Will be so thoroughly under
stood that we will have only one lame
horse where to-day We have ten. Mr..
BOnner's success in improving the mag
nificent speed of his animals is due to
the fact that he has been among the
first 70 appreciate the value of knowl-
edge Of the foot l never knew an
other man who had made so exhaustive
study of the subject Commodore
Vanderbilt's Mountain Boy was shOd by
my method twenty-three years ago.
The Commodore had a good. common,
hOrse-sense understanding about the
animal; but he had no science of the
feet succeeded in improving Noun
tain Boys speed, and his owner was sat
isfied. The difference between Mr..
Bonner and many lovers of horses is
precisely that which distinguishes the
man who acquires his knowledge BY
persistent personal investigation and
the one who buys il ready made. don't
think the younger generation of Van
derbilts take as keen an interest in
hOrse-fiesh as did the old Commodore.
4 81 \ If srass =
my acquaintance with General Grant,
and how it began about horses. 1t was
about twenty-five years ago that he
made an appointment with me at Wash
ingtOn. We met there three times al
together, and the General proved him.
self not only lover Of the horse, but
to have a pretty good understanding OF
the subject lie brought out a saddle
bay-one of his army chargers-to be
shod and treated for a habit of crossing
his hind legs while in action, and also
when standinr This was quickly re-
dressed, to the great delight of the Gen
eral, who. although he owned horses all
his life, had never supposed that the
formation of the feet was the cause oil
standing in this manner.
When Governor Leland Stanford, Of
California, was in New York, several
years ago, his famous horse Occident
was brought to me to be shod. Occi
dents feet were almost perfect. Even
some of our grandest horses have had
imperfections in their feet at times, and
it has only been by the prompt remedy.
ing of these that their triumDhs have
been made possible.
IL / were asked TO furnish a practical
hint to those who own good horses as 70
the best method of caring for their feet,
/ would say: Trim them early. just as
you would trim young tree TO make il
grow right. Cultivate the hoof If you
want it to be perfect. Shoe them when
they are from six months 10 year old,
once a month if you work them. with
the assurance that you can get the
foot in better shape when it rests on q
metal plate as a base and support than
without it Some have said that the
/ feet of very few horses are perfect, and
my experience goes to show that 9
a great number of those / encounter are
so. Feet like those of Dexter and Sunol
are rare exceptions; but there is little
reason WHY a horse should suffer with
/ his feet, if his owner knows how to take
care of them, and does it. There are
many differences in horses in this re
spect The weak, spongy hoof that af.
ficts some that are pastured on low
ground. giving rise to curves and NAL
formations, needs special attention in
young horses The hoof of the thor
oughbred. and, indeed, of any we'll
cared-for horse, when trimmed properly,
is in straight lines, equally balanced
and well-prOpOrtioned. For this reason
horses that are pastured on high and
dry lands have more uniform feet
Tie rule that applies to the horses
Of the same formation of feet applies to
thOroughbreds as we'll as others. II
should always be kept in view, in the
training of young horse, that a great
deal really depends upon feet as well
as pedigree. The soundness of the ami.
NAL is very largely due TO the manage
ment Of his feet; for even with we'll
formed feet he may go lame unless
properly cared for. a young colt should
have shoes as soon as he is required to
travel over hard roads His feet must
be protected, for horses foot shod can
better be preserved than bare. At one
year there is enough hOof to keep il
properly in place and to the proper
size.
Yet. even with all the care that is
usually bestowed on young horses,
have seen many cases of foot distortion.
OF two brothers of the same breed, one
will have rigid hOof and that OF the
other will be arched. Their again.
/ there will be differences in the feet OF
the same horse; indeed all are mere or
less peculiar that way This is natural
enough; for the feet grow like -four
different trees. some of them straight
others seemingly curved naturally. In
a formation of this description. the
treatment is TO make them grow alike,
and this can only be done by trimming
{ the hoof scientifically, so as 70 restore
the balance Of the foot and relieve the
part on which an unusual strain has
been imposed.
A rangy horse. if he be tidy in his gait
should be shOd like another horse of the
same gait When too long in his gait.
/ ne cuouAu DC SuoA a. Ai- MY a. pUoSloaS
In this way. in the matter Of shOeing,
the gait and other peculiarities of the
| animal should be studied and every thing
/ done to secure his perfect freedom and
/ comfort When We come to shoe horse
| for speed at trotting, there is no ALSO
/ lutte rule as 70 the weight of the shoes
which must be adapted to the horses
requirements On the other hand. when
a horse is to be sbod to work 1t a SLOW
I gait, his shoes should be of uniform
weight for such purpose; but it some
I times happens that horse intended 70
racing has to be shOd differently on eacl
foot, according 10 the condition of thos,
members. In other words, the weigh
and form of the shoes must be deter
mined by circumstances and by the con
{ ditiOn of the horse, and particularly o
I his legs and feet
Z II is not too much TO say that hors'
/