To teach him to sit up it is first necessary to make him lie down. Then say, “Get up, sir.” By holding the rope, allow him to get up on the front feet only. Next you wish him to open a box. Get one with hinges and have the lid extend a little over the box. Allow him to eat out of it several times, being sure to close the lid frequently while he is eating. He will see you throw the lid back and in a short time will do so himself, that he may eat the grain. After this be sure to pet him. In a short time you can send him from a distance to the box and he will open the lid. To teach him to kiss you is the easiest of all. If he likes candy, as all pets do, place a piece in your mouth, and he will reach for it. Say, “Kiss me, sir,” and he will attempt to get it. He will become accustomed to the command, after a few times and will obey the order without the candy. Next you wish him to stand on a barrel. Lead him to a box, about five or six inches high, being sure to have it solid so it will not turn. After getting him as close to it as possible, raise one hoof and place it on the box, then raise the other and place it by the first, after which give him the usual reward. As he gets used to this trick increase the height of the box until you have it as high as you wish and he will climb up to get the sugar. Teach him to shake hands by picking up his hoof and, at the same time, giving the command, “Shake hands, sir.” To teach a horse to tell his age or the time of day, or to multiply, subtract or add numbers is the hardest of all and requires a great amount of maneuvering on the part of the trainer. Get him impatient and he will paw the ground with his hoofs. Pat him every time and he soon learns what you want. The hard part is to make him stop at the right number. Of course there is a key to this and an easy method may be used. I stand close to my horse and nudge him with my elbow when I want him to stop. For instance, I ask him to multiply 7 × 2, and he paws 14 times. To have him stop I nudge him just after he paws the thirteenth time, and he stops on the fourteenth. Train him to stop, to turn corners, and to turn around in this way: When driving go the same way a number of times, always turning to go home in the same place and being careful to turn slowly. Say, “Whoa,” and then, “Turn around, sir.” After a little coaxing with the rein he will do this. In a little while he will know what is required of him every time you ask him to turn. Get him used to your gun by driving him with an open bridle and, for the first few times, shooting back from the buggy. By proper handling he will, after a time, stop when you level your gun to shoot or, as my horse does, when he sees anything to shoot at. Teach your horse to play tag, by giving some person his sugar and having him run from the horse. The animal will learn to put his ears back, show his teeth and run for the sugar. This should only be taught horses that are perfectly gentle, as it makes them cross. When they find people are afraid of them they always enjoy frightening them. Many horses are considered of no value because their owner does not know how they should be shod. I shall be pleased to answer any communications from people who wish to know how to shoe horses, how to avoid interfering, forging, or any of the bad habits horses may have. All can be rectified if people only know how. Remember you can only teach a horse through kindness. As soon as you lose patience he will be spoiled.
In driving an animal, if you treat it kindly and do not lash it with the whip when there is no occasion for doing so, it will become attached to you and will cool down in a moment of danger or excitement, as it feels that you are its friend and going to protect it; whereas, if you were in the habit of abusing it you may get into a “tight place” and the horse will get excited and perhaps kill you. This is something that people should understand, and how much more satisfactory it is to have your animals watch for your home-coming and have them run to greet you than to have them afraid and shrink and expect the lash every time you move. Teach your animals to be courageous, and then whatever they do they will go through on their courage and not by the whip. My animal was very fast and I hired a trainer to train him for the track. I gave him instruction not to whip the horse, and being headstrong thought he knew it all, so one day he struck him with the whip and was immediately kicked out of the cart. The horse ran for about fifty yards and stopped. I informed the trainer that he received his just deserts and he never drove him again. In this instance the horse knew more than the man, and I have seen many such instances. It is not right that we abuse animals, and we should not be permitted to do so. They are willing to obey us and will always do so if we give them a chance and I am delighted when I see a horse that will have the courage to resist ill treatment. Some people check their horses up to the skies and never put the check down when they tie them, but leave the poor animals tied to a post for hours with their neck stretched so that they are in constant pain. It would be a good law that would cause such men to suffer the same punishment.
It is a very wrong thing to feed a horse too much hay. It only distends the stomach, and gives the animal an ungainly appearance. Feed him regularly, and four quarts of oats is a good feed for a buggy horse.
When purchasing a horse, stand directly in front of the animal and look at front hoofs. If they toe-in, buy; but if they toe-out, do not accept as a gift, as every time he picks his hoofs up, if he is going fast, he will strike his shin or knee, whereas, if he toes in, he will pick them up from his knees and never interfere and you will not be under the necessity of placing boots on every time you wish to speed him. They should toe out behind and in that case they spread and pass their front hoofs when going fast and will not “forge” or strike their quarters. It is a very common thing for a horse to trot along and by forging you can hear them a block away. The click, click is caused by the hind feet striking the front ones, and is very annoying, and at the same time is very bad for the horse. You can remedy this by shoeing in front with all the weight in the toe, causing him to pick up the hoof quicker and thus getting it out of the way of the hind shoe when it comes along. If he interferes behind, shoe with weight on the outside to spread the hoofs. A horse should be shod every four or five weeks, as the hoof grows and the shoe interferes with its expansion.
No man can be great who does not believe in himself.
EMANCIPATION
