OVERFED STOCK.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 939, 1 November 1879, Page 2

OVERFED STOCK.

[To the Editor of the Herald.] Sib, — Referring to a letter that appeared m your paper a short time ago, signed " E.V.L." with leference to overfed animals for stud purposes, it might not be out of place to note the following, which is an extract taken from a letter m The Field of a recent date, under the heading " Overfed Animals at Cattle Shows." "In the prize list of the Yorkshire Society issued prior to the cattle entries for the Show at Leeds, a special paragraph relating to class 1 was inserted m these works, ' As the object of the Council of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society m offering prizes for families of Shorthorn* is to induce breeders to show their animals m a natural breeding state, and not made up for Exhibition, the judges will be instructed to disqualifiy any family wherein any animal has been forced into an unnatural condition." One can easily understand exhibitors of cattle erring on the side of overfattening their animals, but m the matter of horses, obesity is most assuredly without excuse. There was exhibited, a day or so ago, at a Show not 100 miles from Poverty Bay, a remarkably fine draught entire, which for fatness could well have competed with a prize Ox. In fact the animal was so overfed, that even to the uninitiated eye his overfatness was apparent, and the groom m charge was repeatedly chaffed on the subject. It is beyond dispute that for stud purposes a too-highly fed over-pampered animal cannot with like results serve the same number of mares, as one that is m his natural condition. Again, we have on the other hand underfeeding, and the results m the Bay of stock-getting m this case are, if not worse, at least equal to, that of overfeeding. We have had both overfed and underfed entires m this Bay, and the results have not been happy. There are certain laws of nature that must be observed, for if neglected, nature will avenge herself. There might be a good deal said as to the care of mares when m the charge of the stud grooms. There are many owners of mares, no doubt, here as elsewhere, who do not know very much about horseflesh, but there is no one not able to say whether his mare has been properly cared for or not, while under such charge, and " once bitten twice ahy." We cannot afford m these dull times to have our mares returned to us unstinted. We strongly object to pay £4 or £5 for one month's grazing for an animal that would have been of use to us during that time either m cart or saddle, and it is most earnestly to be desired that we hear of fewer unstinted mares next year than we do this. Yours, &c, X.Y.Z.