Singeing, when severe rapid work is done, enables the horse to perform his task with less distress, and when it is over, facilitates his being made comfortable in the shortest possible space of time.
Singeing, if done early in the winter, requires to be repeated lightly three or four times during the season.
Clipping has exactly the same effect as the above, and is preferable to it only in cases where, the animal’s coat being extremely long, extra labour, loss of time, and flame, are avoided by the clipping process. Singeing is best with the lighter coats, but sometimes thin skinned and coated animals are too nervous and excitable to bear the flame near them for this purpose, in which case the cause of alarm ought obviously to be avoided, and clipping resorted to.
It is worth while to employ the best manipulators to perform these operations.
With horses intended for slow and easy work, and liable to continued exposure to the weather, singeing or clipping only the under part of the belly, and the long hairs of the legs, will suffice. Unless neatly and tastily done, this is very unsightly on a gentleman’s horse. Clipping, if not done till the beginning of December, seldom requires repetition.
In stony and rough countries, it is the habit of judicious horsemen to leave the hair on their hunters’ legs from the knees and hocks down, as a protection to them.
HALTERING.
The Head-Stall should fit a horse, and have a proper brow-band; it is ridiculous to suppose that the same sized one can suit all heads. Ordinary head-stalls have only one buckle, which is on the throat-lash near-side; and if the stall be made to fit, that is sufficient. Otherwise there should be three buckles, one on each side of the cheek-straps, besides the one on the throat-lash.
Let the fastening from the head-stall to the log be of rope or leather. Chain fastenings are objectionable, because, besides being heavy, they are very apt to catch in the ring, and they make a fearful noise, especially where there are many horses in the stable. By having rope or leather as a fastener, instead of chain, the log may be lighter (of wood instead of iron), and the less weight there is to drag the creature’s head down, the less the distress to him. Poll-evil ([page 117]), it is said, has frequently resulted from the pressure of the head-stall on the poll, occasioned by heavy pendants.