d pass through two-thirds of the thickness of the shoe, be clean,
and of uniform width. It is of advantage in that it makes the shoe
lighter in proportion to its width and, by making the ground surface
somewhat rough, tends to prevent slipping.

_Nail holes._--The shoe must be so "punched" that the nail holes will
fall directly on the white line. They should be confined to the fore
half of front shoes, but may occupy the anterior two-thirds of hind
shoes. For a medium-weight shoe three nail holes in each branch are
sufficient, but for heavier shoes, especially those provided with long
calks, eight holes are about right, though three on the inside and four
on the outside may do.

_Clips._--These are half-circular ears drawn up from the outer edge of
the shoe either at the toe or opposite the side wall. The height of a
clip should equal the thickness of the shoe, though they should be even
higher on hind shoes and when a leather sole is interposed between the
shoe and hoof. Clips secure the shoe against shifting. A side clip
should always be drawn up on that branch of the shoe that first meets
the ground in locomotion.

SPECIAL FEATURES AND FITTING THE SHOES.

_A shoe for a regular hoof_ (figs. 7 and 8) fits when its outer border
follows the wall closely in the region of the nail holes and from the
last nail to the end of the branch gradually projects beyond the surface
of the wall to an eighth of an inch and extends back of the buttresses
an amount equal to the thickness of the shoe. The shoe must be straight,
firm, air-tight, its nail holes directly over the white line, and its
branches far enough from the branches of the frog to permit the passage
of a foot pick. Branches of the shoe must be of equal length.

In fitting a shoe to a hoof of regular form we follow the form of the
hoof, but in base-wide and base-narrow hoofs, which are of irregular
form, we must pay attention not only to the form of the hoof but also to
the direction of the pasterns and the consequent distribution of weight
in the hoof, because where the most weight falls the surface of support
of the foot must be widened, and where the least weight falls (opposite
side of the hoof) the surface of support should be narrowed. In this way
the improper distribution of weight within the hoof is evenly
distributed over the surface of support.

[Illustration: FIG. 7.--Left fore hoof of regular form, shod with a
plain "fullered" shoe. Note the distributi