Rensselaer Union, Volume 9, Number 36, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 May 1877 — How Horses are Made Balky. [ARTICLE]

How Horses are Made Balky.

An active, high-spirited horse will start quickly and strike a trot at the first step. A timid driver is alarmed, fearing that the horse, will run away. He will jerk up the horse suddenly and violently. This irritates the horse, and he will not proceed. Then some annoyances are recommended to start him that would not have been required had he been used gently, and drawn up quietly, and spoken to in a mild voice. I once had a horse of this spirit, that I could start or stop in his best speed by the voice, and in so low a tone that a person riding at my side would not notice that I had spoken. Again, a horse of such disposition may be harnessed with a “slow poke.” They cannot start together; this Irritates the spirited horse, and will make him balk, as I have often seen in city cars. Let a man who is very active be compelled to walk for some time behind one who is very slow. He will find it a trial to his temper. A horse may be put to a heavy load with a tight collar, making the skin wrinkle and pinching him severely, or being greatly overloaded he is obliged to jerk violently to drtart his load, thereby bruising the flesh, and perhaps the next day, on being put to light work, the “ unreasonable” horse will" balk merely because his shoulders have been bruised the day before. I once had a mare that would balk from such causes; but by being careful to avoid them, found her a most valuable animal, and never had any Difficulty with her. I have seen horses whipped shamefully in long teams before starting. They would be flurried, no two pulling at the same time. It would require fifteen or twenty minutes to get them to their work. Now, how are they cured ? I saw such a team driven by a boy. He called to them to start, but no movement was made at first. He called out, “ Take your time,” and jumped on the car. In a few seconds each horse was feeling his collar, and in much less time than would be required to whip them they were drawing their load. For horses that are confirmed balkers, probablj’ an examination would show some such cause as I have named, and by removing the cause, the horse could probably be cured of his habit. — Our Dumb Animale.