The management and treatment of the horse in the stable, field, and ...

In the Stable, Field, and on the Road. 05
progeny is sure to inherit its mother's failings. If,
on the other hand, the mare has fiat legs, good feet (if
rather large it is a good fault), if the sole is not flat,
deep chested, a good oblique shoulder, rather long in
the back, with powerful loins, the fore limbs standing
well forward, and of six or seven years of age (not
under six or over twelve), you may come to the
conclusion that you have a chance for a good foal.
But look back to her ancestors and try and find out
if any of them were screws, for the best mares will
sometimes throw back for five or six generations. It
is a noticeable fact that the best horses of the present age
were the progeny of sires and dams of moderate pre-
tension ; for instance, Queen Mary, the mother of Blink
Bonny, was only called a fourth-class mare, and before
breeding Blink Bonny was sold for £20. Then, again,
we find the dam of Eobert the Devil only a miserable
plater, yet both these mares were of sound pedigree, no
screws being found among their ancestors. The mare
having been decided on as a fit subject for the honour of
brood mare, we must look for the horse best adapted
for getting hunters. When speaking of unsound mares,
I mean mares with hereditary failings. A mare may
only have three legs, and yet be fit for breeding purposes'
if her lameness is the result of an accident and not of
hereditary causes, the mare may be considered sound.
The horse should be sixteen hands in height, of a good
colour, with lofty fore-hand, a neck as light as possible
(yet short-necked horses are generally clear-winded),
clear wide jaws and nostrils, large and thin shoulders,
strong and muscular thighs, deep chest, and short backs