The sun., 1910-06-26
~ DEFENCE or DOCKING.
An Old Question Considered From TIE
nFltlah atAnllnslHt.


BFitish stAndpSIRi
The question of docking u one Of psren-
NAL interest. a. Il Il one Of perennial arRn-
ment. writes n. Newman Davis, who IN
Country Lifs in Amsrica gives the British
view of the matter. Strange to say.
both the advocates and the opponents
Of the practice base their opinions aud
their arguments upon the same triangular
foundation -utilitarian. humanitarian and
Eathetic.
The utilitarian aide Oi the question
presents two aspects. equine and human.
That the removal Of a portion Of the caudal
vertebrs causes a thicksning and cOnse-
quent strengthening Of the rsst Of the
spine seems 20 be admitted by most vster-
mary authorities. The advantages Of thia
additional vertebral strength In heavy
chargers, hunters and all weight carrying
horses are obviously of prOpondsrant
value. and there IL no effective evidence
in rebuttal obtainabls.
Prom the human point of view a long
tail on the leaders of tAndsms or tour-in-
hands is not only nuisance to the driver
but Is also a dangNr 20 the whole turnout.
- any one who has had a leader put his
tail over one rein knows.
This arWiment, Il must bs admitted. ia
not 10 applicable 20 this country a. TO Eng
land. where the horses. being fed on oats
u thirty-hye to thirty-eiEht pounds 20
the bushel. are much more spirited and
high Strung than the American nags. Who
seldom gst oats better than tWenty-si1
TO twenty eight pounds. On the other
hand the low type Of vehicle most in favor
here makes such an accident more probable
IN the case of single or pair driving than Il
is n Europe.
From the humanitarian viewpoint
there ara again two aspects 20 the case
A hunter in a hedge and bank country
Il likely TO get an UNDECIDED tail fire.
uuenily pricked aud torn az his Jumps
and a thorn which has penetrated the
skin and broken oh short il provocative
of considerable pain and trouble
An unlocked hors- turned ont where
there are brlmbles or thorny under
growth - also liable 20 get Disoe under
his tail while rolling. and IN the absence
great deal before u n removed: I have
se-n h1r-e IN pasture driven nearly
frantic hy such an accident, EallOninG
around the feld and increasing HE
discomfort hy pressing down his tail more
.quorum. thu harder AZ he felt the Dricks.
-On the other hand no one with any con
alteration for his animals would dream
e turning dOCked horse out % craze
in mosquito Ridden nfsrnOs like Long
II. III Il
nr in the Nv infested pastures % Florida
I submit. therefore. that on thess grounds
sarh case must be Judged on hs own
merits. and that the question ~ true
humanity ls merely question % en- I
virunment
Now as 90 the operation itself the /
cruelty Of which has been W frequently /,
and eloquently denounced bv It's oppO- |
nents. have seen horses docked and /
have been present at the branding Of I
calves on a large Western ranch. but
while ths latter operation h one n VII hich I
I can never look hack without a shuddsr I
the former. II the work 10 scientifically /
performed. seems 10 me 20 be practically /
painless.
4 have watched horae carefully .
during the operation. and seen him lust
raise his head from his oats az the knife
went through the tail bat there was no
kicking no plunging, and he resumed
his feeding Immediately without the
slightest sign of discomfort % course.
II the old fashioned method Of soaring be .
tssed, there 10 considerable SUFFERING. but
aearing 10 absolutely uiperiuo,m. Il n a
harbaTous anachronism In these days
Of aseptic surgery
The eathstic side of docking is mostly
a matter Of personal taste. while a horse
with fine muscular quarters viii have
these better set on by a short tail a long
one will suit a nag with the defective .
cut out quarters Of the typical trotting 4
horse Of the speedway. 40 the tail coming
below the hooks hides this defect In the
linss Of symmetry 10 q great extent
To sum up. while the pain inflicted by
the operation of docking u practically a
negligible quantity. utilitaTianiam 10 on
the side Of docking. and lhumanitarianism
must BE- guided by the usea 10 which the
hOr-e in 70 be put and the country he is
10 live in"