Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1898-07-28
go 81. I.
1!4S|a!g!:
a@eA|lss
Cost of Training Carriage Horses.

NSSR
Cost of TrainiqE Carriage Horses.
The question is now quite frequently |
asked, how much does it cost to train
a carriage horse and get him ready for
the market? Indeed, the idea seems to
prevail in some quarters that a regu-
lar, expensive course of training is re-
quired with the coach and carriage
horse as it is with the trotter, says
Farm and Home. The belief quoted is
entirely erroneous. No expensive sys-
tenn Of training is necessary, no boots,
no hopl nor other costly parapher-
MALTA. The NO.. s.,st be we'll broken,
we'll groomed and we'll conditioned;
that is all. OF course the better broken
a horse Is and the more accustomed to
the sights and sounds of urban life, the
better he will sell; but even II he new
er saw an electric car, let alone passed
under an L road with its trains 'thun-
dering over his head, he will bring
long price, providing his action. and
conformation are all they should be.
Wonderful stories are going the rounds
sabout contrivances necessary to give
park horse the proper action, and va
i rious devices, ranging in scope from
spectacles, or goggles, with greatly
magnifying lenses, to complicated
spring "contraptions" to fasten on the
forelegs and so educate" the horse to
fold his knee, but all such are hollow
mockeries. Unless the horse has the
right conformation he will never ac-
quire the action, and if he has the
action his conformation is, as rule,
of the kind required. There are very
high-acting horses that are not of the
right stamp, but they are few. There
is no doubt that a horse with naturally
high action may be made to go higher
and more showily by proper treatment.
For instance, when first taken up he
should never be driven to the point Of
great fatigue, he should always be kept
feeling we'll and in prime condition.
Then he will delight to bound along,
pulling up his knees and hooks and
proudly showing himself off. No
amount of fixing" will put action not
properly formed. and it must never be
forgotten that there is as much differ
ence in high action as there is between
the proverbial chalk and cheese. The
horse that doubles his knees up quick
ly and slams his feet down hard, will
not sell in the same class with the
horse whose forefoot is picked up and
put down as though following the cir
| %1a nocfnr
springing quickly when the foot
touches, not strikes, the ground, and
is picked up again gracefully to per-
form the circling motion once more.
The horse with the latter way of going
will outwear two or three of the 9TH
ers, and though any kind of high ac-
ton will sell to advantage, the more
graceful sort described is the kind
that should be sought. It goes with
the conformation of shoulders, head
neck, loin, quarters and hook that is
most desired, and is in all ways in
finitely the most preferable. Given the
sires and dams that will produce Off
spring with this action and conforma
ton, all the training that will be founc
necessary is very slight. The horse
must be taught to drive on a loose
rein; puller will never sell to ad
vantage, as no gentleman will bother
with one for moment. When thor
oughly broken on the farm to do al
kinds of light work, the education o.
the colt should be continued as far a.
!, possible in the nearest village. III
should be thoroughly accustomed II
; stand unmoved when express train:
and electric cars dash by him, and nj
, should be accustomed to as mucf
! town life" as possible. He shoul(
never be made to draw a heavy load
nor as a colt made to pull load ou
Of a bad place when his last ounce @
, strength is required, for that spo1l
his mouth 60, stiffens his shoulder
, and sours his temper. None but llgh
driving or other work should be De
| manded of him. AS noted already, n
should be kept as sleek and fat as pos
; sible, feeling as gay as lark, an(
, when the time comes to sell him NJ
should be as fat as an eel, sound AM
. cheerful, with his name, foretop AM
tail as nature made them, and all al
, clean and fresh looking as hands cal
2 make them. This is all the training
r required for carriage horse by tn
breeder. It involves no expenditure
money, nothing but common intelll
gence. patience and the exercis"
about as much sense as the horse ha
himself. To get such carriage horse
, stations must have the qualities re
ouired by right of inheritance, and tn
, more of these the mares possess tn
better. but no matter how the horse
: are produced, the profits in the bust
, ness are large and the expenses small
Plugs or Good Horses.-This is wha
is said by dealer who has had man.
~f