--Every shoe should have the form of the hoof for which it is
intended, provided the hoof retains its proper shape; but for every hoof
that has undergone change of form we must endeavor to give the shoe that
form which the hoof originally possessed. Front shoes and hind shoes,
rights and lefts, should be distinctly different and easily
distinguishable.

_Width._--All shoes should be wider at the toe than at the ends of the
branches. The average width should be about double the thickness of the
wall at the toe.

_Thickness._--The thickness should be sufficient to make the shoe last
about four weeks and should be uniform except in special cases.

_Length._--This will depend upon the obliquity of the hoof viewed in
profile. The acute-angled hoof (fig. 5a) has long overhanging heels,
and a considerable proportion of the weight borne by the leg falls in
the posterior half of the hoof. For such a hoof the branches of the shoe
should extend back of the buttresses to a distance nearly double the
thickness of the shoe. For a hoof of the regular form (figs. 5b and 8)
the branches should project an amount equal to the thickness of the
shoe. In a stumpy hoof (fig. 5c) the shoe need not project more than
one-eighth of an inch. In all cases the shoe should cover the entire
"bearing surface" of the wall.

_Surfaces._--The surface that is turned toward the hoof is known as the
"upper," or "hoof surface," of the shoe. That part of the hoof surface
which is in actual contact with the horn is called the "bearing surface"
of the shoe. The "bearing surface" should be perfectly horizontal from
side to side, and wide enough to support the full thickness of the wall,
the white line, and about an eighth of an inch of the margin of the
sole. The bearing surface should also be perfectly flat, except that it
may be turned up at the toe ("rolling-motion" shoe, fig. 5 a, b,
c.) The surface between the bearing surface and the inner edge of the
shoe is often beaten down or concaved to prevent pressure too far inward
upon the sole. This "concaving," or "seating," should be deeper or
shallower as the horny sole is less or more concave. As a rule, strongly
"cupped" soles require no concaving (hind hoofs, narrow fore hoofs).

_Borders._--The entire outer border should be beveled under the foot.
Such a shoe is not so readily loosened, nor is it so apt to lead to
interfering.

_Fullering._--This is a groove in the ground surface of the shoe. It
shoul