DRAUGHT HORSE BREEDING.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 73, 2 May 1914, Page 2

DRAUGHT HORSE BREEDING.

SUGGESTIONS FOR BEGINNERS

In selecting a brood more, the character, symmetry, style, constitution, soundness and type are of even greater importance than pedigree. It is well to have? a type of perfection in one's ey.esand to get as near that as possible. It is a matter of controversy which is the -most'important of all these points; some breeders seem to lay more stress On haying one point right, and some another., /We remember<upne_ successful old breeder who would, sacrifice almost any other point to have feet and fetlocks right. WHAT A BROOD MARE SHOULD BE. In a brood mare a strong," healthy constitution is of the -utmost importance, . >The long, low; wide sort, with well-sprung ribs and plenty of middle, room to carry ; a good Tlinner bag, wide id.chest, and thick through the heart, affording ainyle, room for heart and lungs, .plenty " s&l widtli in hips and thighs/ also essential In a brood mare, are some of points which indicate a good' qMfetitution: ',.;. •, ' %^V'hc ,;: ;

and legs are mdst important it is well to begin our 'examination.-, there. The : feet must be strong. rojiiul; the coronet (of course, free from ring bone, side bone, sand crack, thrush,' corns, or canker), wide at the beels, hard in the hoof, and a wide open.coneave sole; set, true, and straight her; pigeon-toed or splay-footed mares are very objectionable. The fetlocks should be' nicely sloped, andof nieditfm length; if too long there is a tendency to weakness,"and if too short the action is stiff and wanting in spring. Very upright ,p.asterns are objectionable, as they db'jibfr stand the wear and tear of the hard road, and very flat, low-set fetlocks are wantingiin strength when hard pulling is required. The bone under the knee should be dense in character) flat in form, and as big as it can be got, although size of bone is perhaps not so important in the. mare as in the stallion. The knee should be prominent, big and strong, not set back at all; the hock of great width when looking broadside at the mare, and clean* and narrow when .taking a hind view,, also set well together. Hocks set wide apart should be avoided. The muscle

of the forearm and thighs should be strong aiid well developed. THE HIND* LEGT ; """"T'

A correct curve of the hiud leg is an important jjoint. Cowhocks are always weak at and very straight hocks arcyipt to|||evelop,;spjavins. The feather shfuld belong and|- silkyf frep 1 rom 'hardness (fc curlMgv v 3 „ vi The,- ; and eygsj should broken* docility, Ifc t v ianyone can acquire the art of recognising character in a mare % Jfp of._d.escriptiy,e writing can'teach one'" how to judge these characteristics in horse or in man. The loin,* of course, should be strong, and the tail set well up in line with the back, not drooping. Such is a description of the style of animal to have in one's «ye aiid to aim to get as near it as can be, but, of course, bearing iu mind .that there is no such thing as a perfect horse. As for size, a mare standing 16 hands high and built in proportion is big enough. .Colour may be selected according to taste, but a brown' or bay-coloured animal is always more saleable than a black or any of the lighter colours. w WHERE TO. FJND THE MARE.

If a prospective buyer knows of such an animal being on sale in Lis own neighbourhood and can acquire all information about its character, breeding, defects and weaknesses, it is by far the better plan to adopt to make a bargain

by private treaty than to risk a purchase ixif an auction sale. Of course, every precaution should be taken to ensure is, absence of all hereditary . dis&Rse —and a few pounds extra should not prevent a bargain being made if the mare approaches anywhere near the, ideal just described* It is a very risky business to buy at auetioiveven if backed by all the necessary skill, judgment, caution, and aptitude for bargaining. No voting beginner should try the experinjieriti or he may have to pay dearly learning. It is an old saying man is honest in selling a horse, 's -and•"the moment a man has a hqrss-jiro, sell he becomes a suspiciouscharacter^' ; / v ..-■ ' '.■ ~ •■■;>'•:.■■. ...■- ;■ ;■

THE SIRE.

The next object to aim at-when we have acquired the proper marejpr mares is to find the right sort of mate to mMe Avith them. A man who intends to breed on- a large scale will doubtless take steps tq procure a horse of his own. But the rank and file of farmers, who really are the breeders of horses, cannot afford to invest money in stallions. A few do so, and depend on' the fees for service obtained from their' neighbours to pay for the cost of the keep of' the stallion. A great benefit to a district is the presence'' of* a private stud. Such a studj .in'which' are: stallions of fdiffei-ent i ages,' varying type, and- different- sijj% gives a much better o-ppprtunity; of mating, the mares with suitable; stallions, and is of incalculable service to,/breeders in the, district. Eyjery who has such" a "choice should' keep one or more mares, and rear young horses of the : best sort. The old-fashioned of beating down the price of service fee to the lowest possible pitch, thereby encouraging the travelling of cheap, unsound, or worthless stallions, is a penny-wise-

pound-foolish system. Stallion owners of enterprise, who keep horses of good sorts, deserve encouragement, and farmers should uofc hesitate to pay a fair price for the use of a good sire. CONSIDEE THE MARE.

In selecting the sire, the weaker points of the mare must be recognised, and a horse selected that is particularly good in these points. We cannot expect a good colt if we put a small, lightboned mare to a horse of the same description. We cannot expect a colt with excellent feet if both parents are deficient in these points. If the mare is weak in her hocks or her knees or fetlocks, we must try to . get % horse particularly strong in those points

which the mare is deficient in. Therein lies the benefit of having a choice of sires.

Pedigree, in a sire is of the utmost importance. It is not always the bestlooking horses that prove the most valuable sires. How often do we see the prize-winners in the show-ring prove disappointing at the stud! It is a safe rule to put a filly to as good a horse of mature age as can be had to x sire her first foal. We haveknown good fillies spoiled for life by being stinted to an inferior horse for the first time. Sometimes it is also necessary to send an old mare to a colt to get her to conceive.

AGE FOR BREEDING

The advisability of putting two-year-old-fillies to the stud is.a matter of controversy. If a filly is. well grown, and is not required for work, it is certainly the best plan to begin her to the business of her life: as early as possible. The chances are that she will then become a more regular breeder and make a better mother than she do if allowed to continue a maiden .life.-for a year or two longer. The' practice ,of working brood mares niust be settled by the circumstances, of the farm. Most" farmers cannot weli afford to keep the mares idle, especially at busy seasons, and working on the land will not do them any harm if they are carefully handled. Farms that are mostly under grass do N not find so much work horses, so that the brood mares may be turned out, allowed to pick up their own living, and rear their foals with but little, extra food beyond the grass in summer, and hay in winter, Many large breeders pursue this plan, and allege that the mares are generally more healthy, foal more luckily, arid rear the foal better than mares that are kept indoors on expensive food.—G.M. in "Farmer arid Stockbreeder."