FEEDING AND MANAGEMENT OF HORSES.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1202, 15 March 1895, Page 6

FEEDING AND MANAGEMENT OF HORSES.

Principal Williams, Edinburgh, lectured on this subject at West Caider recently under the auspices, of the Western District of Midlothian County Council. The principal said it was not his intention to treat them to a dry scientific lecture, he purposed rather to follow the career of the hoi-se from the moment he was born till he reached mature age, explaining in simple language, as he went along, the various influences which went to secure health and the greatest degree of usefulness. Beginning, then, with the birth of the animal, he might say that the mare gave birth to her offspring quicker than any other animal he knew of. There were authenticated cases of a mare having foaled in the short space of two minutes and being up a*ain feeding sit the end of that time. In some puts of the country it ,vvas the custom to tie the navel string of the foal to prevent bleeding That was a totally unnecessary and even dangerous operation. Nothing was more likely to set up blood poisoning, and even if the youngster escaped that it was always liable to be attacked by joint-ill. In a state of nature the separation of the navel string was _ usually accomplished by the action of the mother in rising, and, as a matter of fact, the safety of the whole operation lay in the irregular tear which took place when this happened. The blood-vessel in the navel string was composed of several coatings, and if they cut it directly through-.an excessive flow of blood was the result. On the other hand, with an irregular tear the various ends came together, the particles of blood got clotted in the vessels and an excessive flow was prevented. There were cases when the foal would bleed from the navel and it might become necessary to tie the navel string. It was far better, however, to twist it, but if they had to apply a ligature he would advise them to just dip it in a little good Scotch whisky, or draw it slightly through a flame. The retaining of the after-birth by the mare was a source of great danger. As a rule it was soon got rid of, but if it did not pass off in a very few hours it was high time skilled advice was called in. No animal was more susceptible to blood poisoning at that stage than a mare, and if once blood poisoning was set up the life of the animal was not worth much more than 24 hours. It was of

the utmost importance to have mares in clean houses when foaling, with all the sanitary conditions as good as possible. He had known of mares dying after foaling in a field which had been recently top-dressed with artificial manures.

Foals should be kept as hardy as possible. In good weather they should run out night and day, and in any case it was a great mistake to feed young animals too well. They got too heavy in their bodies and their legs accordingly went wrong. The remarks as to overfeeding foals also applied to young horses after they had left their dams. Pulped turnips and hay might be given in moderate quantities in addition to vvhat they themselves pick up, but on no account should the diet be over liberal. As the ho.rso approached three years of age a little protit might be made out of him by making him do half a day’s work perhaps three or four times a week. He did not, however, think it a wise thing to work a heavy li'orse regular until he was four years of age. Light horses were put to work very often when they were very young, and by the time they were four half of them had developed splints. The horse was generally shod for weeks, or perhaps for a few months, on the fore-feet before he was shod behind. He considered it gross cruelty to have calkins on the shoes of horses, especially young horses. They should always be shod plain;' Shoes with calkins spoiled the action of the horse, and also had a tendency to develop side bones. A horse should be broken in with the easiest possible bit, as his mouth was either made or marred by the first bitting. The Mexicans and South Americans by the manner in which they handled the mustangs in breaking them had bred in them a fierce temper and a wicked eye. In his opinion the ring snaffle bit .was the best to use. The curb bit should be used with great care, as it produced insensibility. A great saving could be effected and the life of the horse prolonged if the carts used had springs under them ; and he vould also advise the clipping of the coats of work horses in winter. A horse that was clipped always did his work better and more comfortably than one that had his full coat on.

Horses were usually fed on hay, oats, and bran, with occasionally beans Very little bran was wanted. It contained a lot of insoluble phosphates and a good deal of woody fibre. Horses were never intended by nature to eat boiled food. Their food was generally rich in starch, oats containing 53 to 60 per cent, of starch. This starch was insoluble in the stomach, .but it was converted into fluid (sugar) in the mouth, so that digestion really began in the mouth When a horse ate boiled food it swallowed the starchy food undigested, and thus derangement of the stomach and sometimes death was brought about. Wheat was nowadays the cheapest and it was also the best food for horses, but it had to be given with di-cietion. If given cautiously, say about 41b to begin with, '••divided into four feeds, afterwards in creased to Gib, and diminishing the quantity of oats, they would have better feeding at less money if they used oats, and they would also increase the price of wheat, which would benefit,agriculture. Some people objected to wheat because it produced founder, but anything given in excess would produce founder. The price of beans as compared to wheat was much dearer. Peas contained less fleshformers, but more starch, being about equal in value to beans and dearer than wheat. The Arab fed his horse on barley as the staple food, but it did not meet with much favour in this country. A ration consisting of hay,

oats, maize, beans and bran—total 281 b, mixed together—was given by a large firm which he knew. Of this 101 b was hay. The animals were also allowed 171 b long hay, which ..made a daily ration of 451 b weight. This he considered a fair quantity. When : horses bolted their oats it was necessary I to bruise them, and then a small quantity would do. Horses should have water before food. Water when given with food washed the food into the bowels, and as the major portitm of the digestion took place in the stomach, irritation was likely to result. Giving water to horses when warm was said to induce all kinds of diseases, -a t particular times it was, in his opinion, the greatest refresher in the world, but, of course, it had to be given in moderation.