Matching Farm Horses.

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 107, 12 November 1908, Page 4

Matching Farm Horses.

Horses on aie so in < worked in tiiat it is very ni'a^ary they should be well matched. iyy th:s it iss not infant tiiut the tc:;m .should I'o closely alike in colour, s'v/.e, rind gejivrui appearance, it is Ucjirabie that they should he so. bi.it that is only one and by no means the most important part of the matching. It requires a good deal of skill and judgment to bring together a pair of horses that resemble each other in all characteristics sufficiently to work in harmony, and action comes first in this connection. Style is required in the action of any class of horse, and a team, each of which stands up to the bit in about the same way, is attractive to buyers, and pleasing to the man who drives it. A team ill-matched in regard to action, strength, and staging powers is a liberal source of irritation, no matter how nearly alike in colour the horses may be.. Proper action, that is, strong, clean, vigorous movement of feet and legs, is highly desirable, and if it can be combined with general conformation colour, so much the better. Size to a certain extent, may be sacrificed for strength jt'and conformation, but only within certain limits. In discussing tliis.-subject, the "Farmers' Advocate"" says"A difference of a huhdred pounds or so in weight doesn't matter' greatly when a pair is being matched up, but if much more than that, the difference in size will be so clear as to detract from the value of the team. Size is important,. but it comes after strength, just as strength and conformation follow action in relative importance. Colour comes last of all in the major points to be considered. A difference in colour, however marked, is among the least objectionable features in a team. Yet, strangely, some men consider it the. all-important con iideration, and will match up horses so unlike in action and temperament that one whiffletree is always scouring the waggon-wheel, while the other is drawing ahead keen and strong to the bit, so unlike in strength and conformation that one is fagged out hours before the other shows fatigue; but if the two stand about the same in height, weigh up very nearly alike, and resembl ? each other in colour and markings, they are rated as a well-matched team. In reality, they are anything but wellmatched."