toe, and is full, round, and solid, with perhaps a few loose shreds in process of exfoliation, and the cleft extending to a very slight depth. In consistence it resembles a piece of india-rubber, if in a moist condition; but if dry, then it is harder and less vulnerable. This is the condition in which the hoof should be studied by every horseman and every farrier; as it is the condition in which it should and can be maintained by careful management and shoeing.
I much regret that I cannot in this work enter more fully into the anatomy and physiology of this important region of the horse's body; to give anything like an adequate idea of these would require a larger space than I now have at my command, and indeed is a proper subject for a special treatise.
As my object here is merely to show the use and abuse of shoeing, I may have said sufficient to show that in the unshod foot of an animal that has not been improperly reared, and has descended from sound stock, we find a perfect organ adapted to meet all natural requirements.
Domestication, and the necessities of man, however, are apt, unless carefully guarded against, to change the character and healthy condition of this and other organs. In our climate and state of civilization, the horse taken from pasture to share in the artificial existence of his master cannot long travel without protection to the hoofs. Travelled for a short distance only on hard roads during wet weather, the crust of the hoof at the toe and quarters is worn and broken away, and the sole becomes diminished in thickness; the frog resists wear better than either.
