together has been employed successfully by the author to cure the fault of "making forces," discussed just below, and also to correct the habit of putting the tongue over the bit. In either case, the horse will bite its tongue, and having done this two or three times, will desist forever. Such bites of the tongue are not serious. A little salt or sugar, helped by the saliva, will heal the wound in a day or two.
The corrective of stammering is to complete the progressive work of the flexions. The direct flexion will always reestablish calm in the general organism.
FAIRE DES FORCES
A HORSE is said to "make forces" when it takes a wrong position of the lower jaw and resists the effects of the rider's hand. This may take the form of shutting the lower jaw against the upper at the effect of the bit, of opening the mouth too wide and keeping it thus, or of carrying the jaw to the right or left at the solicitation of snaffle or bit and holding it there against the effect of the rider's hand.
The fault is generally the result of bad conformation of the hind legs or of weakness of the loins. In a well-conformed animal, it arises from incorrect, too severe, or badly adjusted bits, from roughness of hand and irregular gaits, and sometimes from too sharp teeth on one side of the mouth. In this latter case, the only remedy is to have the teeth filed by a dentist.
