Farriery is the art of shoeing horses, and can only be properly learned by a long practical experience in the shoeing-forge. If the foot of the horse were not a living object perhaps the training obtained in the forge would be all that was necessary for efficient workmanship. As, however, the hoof is constantly growing it is constantly changing its form.

Excerpt from The Art of Horse-Shoeing This little book is written for three classes of readers: for horse-owners who may interest themselves in the subject, for farriers who are open to conviction, and for veterinary students who have to be examined. The method pursued has been, to first describe the form and action of the foot, next the preparation of the foot for shoeing. Then the form of a shoe is treated of and the details to be observed in making it. The selection of shoes for varieties of feet or for special kinds of work follows, and afterwards the fitting and nailing-on are considered. Other chapters are devoted to roughing, shoeing defective feet, accidents, the use of leathers and pads. Throughout an endeavour has been made to be as simple and clear as possible in expression, to lay down correct general principles and to point out the technical details, which are essential to good shoeing. On all these points authorities are not agreed, and I trust those who differ from me will pardon any too dogmatic expressions of opinion in these pages. The illustrations will be of assistance in making clear the text. Some of these are copied from books, some are drawn from models or preparations, and some are diagrammatic. The books I am indebted to are: "Anatomy of the Domestic Animals," by Gamgee and Law; "On the Horse's Foot," by Bracy Clark; Bouley's "Atlas of the Foot," and Goyau's "Marechalerie." Above all, I am indebted to the late Professor Joseph Gamgee, who first gave me an interest in horse-shoeing and to whose teachings and writings I trace whatever ideas I now possess. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.