OCR Text |
Show livestock! UNSOUNDNESS IN HORSES. From "Thc Care of Animals" by S. Mayo, a Noted Veterinarian. A horse is considered practically sound when it possesses no disease, deformity or vice that will interfere with its general or special usefulness. Soundness is important, not only to those who deal in horses, but to those who raise and own them, because its soundness, together with the general appearance of thc animal, indicates its relative commercial value. A person per-son who contemplates purchasing a horse, if he is not thoroughly familiar famil-iar with thc subject, will usually find it a matter of economy to employ an expert to assist in the selection, or he will purchase of some well-known dealer whose judgment and whose "word" arc worthy of dependence. Thc ordinary individual is likely to pride himself upon his ability to judge horses and to determine their soundness sound-ness or unsoundness; and. yet there is probably no one .experience in which individuals arc more likely to be 'deceived than in this. Horse dealers deal-ers of wide experience usually make allowances in their judgment of a horse for defects which cannot be determined de-termined by an ordinary -examination, but arc likely to show themselves only after a thorough acquaintance with thc animal. As a general thing, thc purchaser sees a horse- at its very best, as regards appearance, condition, condi-tion, speed and freedom from defects and vices, and should take this into account in .estimating thc value of thc animal. In examining animals as to their soundness, experienced judges, judg-es, do not allow themselves to be misled, mis-led, or their attention to be distracted distract-ed from any part of thc animal, cither cith-er by thc owner or by ibystandcrs. An excellent judge of horses once said, "If the owner or a bystander calls "my attention to a possible defect de-fect about thc horse's head, I always make it ,i point to give the opposite extremity a most thorough examination." exami-nation." It is a trick frequently resorted re-sorted to by unscrupulous dealers to call a mon's attention to a part he knows to be sound in order to attract at-tract his attention from an ijkl-neiS ijkl-neiS in another part. In oonspg statements made by horse dealers, special care should be given not only to the statement, but to thc reasons why thc statement is made. When possible, it is always a good plan to examine horses in thc stable ; under their ordinary conditions, then to take them out where thc light and other conditions arc favorable and go over thoroughly every part of thc horse until one is satisfied of its freedom free-dom fromi unsoundness. After thoroughly manipulating every ev-ery part, thc horse should be tested in his paces for any defect in locomotion locomo-tion or breathing, and afterwards he 1 should be tested as to his ability to cat and drink normally. In examining 1 horses for soundness, it is generally assumed that thc horse has every defect, de-fect, deformity and vice that horseflesh horse-flesh is heir to, and thc presence of .I'b'scncc of these defects is demon- 1 s'ratcd by thorough examinations and 1 tests. Warranty. A person that warrants -a horse sound', cither by a written or verbal , warranty, renders himself liable, and thc purchaser can recover damages sustained. Persons in selling horses should exercise care in warranting a v horse sound, cither directly or by thc use of language that implies a , warranty; for if thc purchaser takes thc horse on thc strength of such representations and thc horse proves to be unsound thc seller is himself responsible. A distinction is usually made bctvech those cases in which a purchaser buys the horse on thc strength of thc representations made by the owner, and those cases in which thc purchaser assumes to know about thc horse, and buys on his own judgment and responsibility. It is usually economy to purchase of a. reliable re-liable person and, if possible, on a ! trial of a week or more. Whether j justly or not, it has come to be pro- W vcrbial that lite horse trader is B "tricky." Examination of Horse in Stable. K In examining thc horse in the 1 stable, do' not disturb him at first, I but watch him closely for a few mo- I ments; he will be likely soon to show I any stable vices that he may possess. Among vices to be looked for is I "weaving," a habit which horses have I of swinging1 the head or body froim t side to side, often for an hour at a 1 ) time,- cspcciallx when not, eating. nbling and-windsufcking arc otiicf vices which should be carefully looked for.' -kicking ill the stall, and'erowd- ing an attendant against the stall arc 4&s. 'Some'.horscs'Miavc the bad habifrof kicking at, the sid of the itiil.C 'Persistant pavViVg is also to be (dolled forf'i The horse should? be madctd "stand over" by gentle pressure pres-sure 'against the hip, when he will frequently fre-quently show signs of chorea, or s'tnng-halt.; A' common symptom of this .disease is the apparent inability iJFlhc horse to lift the foot of the af-. af-. fctcd hind) icg, the foot. is seemingly glued fast to the floor. After a considerable con-siderable effort, the 'horse gets the footloose, lifts it high' and .moves ovcr'with a kind of, straddling hop. TJjc&c, symptoms are not shown when tli'elib'rsc is? made to jump suddenly by ihaut of a whip or slap of the hanjl; therefore such actions about a ho'rsc' should be looked upon with sus-l)iciS" sus-l)iciS" It should also be noticed whether the .horse stands squarely on his feet, "or ''points" a foot to get relief from lameness or sorcncsJMn the part. Halter-pulling is another ! viccHvlnch; it is difficult to detect. A sudden movement about the horse's iiejjd, which startles him, will usually j cauSc him to fly back on the halter, if ho possesses this vice. Horses that arc very strongly tied by ropes or i similar arrangements about the head ! Should be regarded with suspicion. |