The liability induced by removal of the natural covering exemplifies the folly of those practices which have lately become so very fashionable as at the present time to be almost universal. But there has always appeared to exist in the human mind a restless desire to improve the beauty of the horse. Now the tail has been docked; then the ears have been cut. A short space prior to these amendments, the skin was tampered with to produce a star, as a white spot upon the forehead was termed. At the passing hour almost every man who owns a horse must have the body clipped or singed. The length of hair is given in this climate as a necessary provision. Nature never forms anything without its use; though man in his ignorance may not always be able to comprehend her intention. Were finer coats desired, it would probably be wiser to obtain them by warming the stable, increasing the clothing, and avoiding those long stagnations during which the animal has to remain motionless before street doors. A long coat is a defense against a cold winter; and unless man provides against the consequences of our climate, it is evidently flagrantly wrong to deprive a dumb creature of the protection which nature has bestowed.
Shortening the coat, if anywhere justifiable, is certainly most pardonable among hunters. Animals used for this purpose always have, or should have, plenty of attendance; these creatures also are mostly required during the autumn and early winter. Removing the coat certainly does stimulate the body. The horse assuredly is capable of greater exertion immediately after the deprivation. At the same time, however, a greater susceptibility to disease is engendered, and often the deprived animal falls a victim to man's fancy, notwithstanding all the care and attention which the hunting-stable can command. A burst and then a check, when a piercing wind blows from the northeast, invariably produces sad effects among the horses, especially at the commencement of the season. A gentleman who prizes the animal he rides should take it to "the meet" unclipped; and, perhaps, should the run be long, the quadruped may hold a better place at the death than horses adorned after the prevailing fashion.
The folly of the custom is shown in the animals attached to London vehicles. These horses are mostly wanted for spring service. The stimulant of the autumn is purchased at the cost of debility during the spring. The coat is shed the later because of the previous deprivation. When the summer hair is growing, the creature presents a very uneven and ragged appearance in consequence of the points of the new and the roots of the old coat being of opposite colors. The gentleman who, therefore, has his nag and carriage horses shorn of their natural coverings at the time when hunters are thrown up, beholds the objects of his pride deficient in animation and beggarly in aspect, while the animal that has been allowed to wear its native garments dashes past him in all the briskness of the season and the smartness of new apparel.
The question of clipping and of singeing is simply this. Do you require your servant's services all the year round, or do you want its utmost exertions for a comparatively short space immediately subsequent to the removal of the outer hair; and, at how great a hazard are you prepared to purchase your wish?
Were the legs of horses allowed to retain that adornment which nature gave, and were the parts not shorn of their shaggy beauty—were men not inclined to confound the different breeds of horses, and, because the thorough-bred has clean legs, to imagine the cart-horse can be artificially made to display members equally fine—were masters more resolute in resisting the selfish suggestions of lazy grooms, who love to have the bushy heels clipped—were the stable-keeper not afraid of doing his duty, but would go down upon his knees and rub the fetlocks dry, instead of drenching them with water, and then leaving them to chap in moisture and in cold,—were these things attended to, there is no reason why cracked heels should not speedily become a thing which has been, but no longer is.
However, if animals are exposed throughout the wintry season, under the pretense of being placed in a straw-yard, the proprietor must expect to take the creatures up with some defect. The worst case of cracked heels the author ever looked upon, was produced after the last-mentioned method; the skin was much thickened and deeply marked by fissures. In places it had sloughed, and where the integument was absent fearfully deep ulceration was established. Fortunately, the absorbing process had reached none of those important structures which are situated about the heel of the horse; and the animal, after lengthened treatment, was cured.
For cracked heels, if bad, the animal must rest, at all events till the parts are improved. When slight, always wash them with tepid water and mild soap, upon the animal's return to the stable; dry them thoroughly with a soft leather; then damp them with the following:—
Wash for Cracked Heels.
| Animal glycerin | Half a pint. |
| Chloride of zinc | Two drachms. |
| Strong solution of oak-bark | One pint. |
| Dissolve the zinc in water, then mix, and use thrice daily. |