CARE OF CAPTIVE ANIMALS — ^WALKER 329 



examined to ascertain what proportion of it is not acceptable to them, 

 and if the proportion seems unduly high, efforts should be made to 

 obtain a different mixture. 



It is very important that hay should not be moldy or musty, and 

 that it does not contain the so-called foxtail and other grasses and 

 grasslike plants {Eordeum, Bromus, and others) that have seeds bear- 

 ing barbed awns that penetrate the mouths of the animals, causing bad 

 sores which frequently lead to serious ulcers, and occasionally permit 

 infectious organisms to enter through the injuries. 



The custodian of animals that will eat any green food should be 

 constantly alert to obtain the wide variety that is available through- 

 out the year. In this category are lawn clippings, comprised mostly 

 of grass and clovers, weeds from vacant lots, roadsides, and fields, 

 leaves, twigs, and small branches of woody plants. Small branches 

 are particularly desirable during the winter, when grass, clover, 

 weeds, and leaves are not readily available. It should be borne in 

 mind that great numbers of animals browse and make such coarse 

 vegetation a considerable portion of their diet. 



Root crops such as beets (red and sugar), sweet potatoes, and yams 

 (raw and cooked), carrots, potatoes, parsnips, and others are valuable 

 foods and constitute a convenient means of supplying almost all 

 animals with fresh green food that they like. 



Cabbage, lettuce, kale, spinach, celery, and other such garden prod- 

 ucts are good, and can usually be obtained. 



A food mixture that meets the requirements of many animals is 

 composed of chopped vegetables such as beets, carrots, sweet potatoes, 

 cabbage, kale, crushed oats, and bread. 



In the Tropics there are many fruits, vegetables, leaves, and stems, 

 insects and other animals that are readily available. Such are not 

 mentioned herein because few of them can be obtained in the Tem- 

 perate Zones where most captive animals are kept. 



Persons who have access to the seacoasts might well try out some 

 of the algae (such as the so-called sea lettuce and the coarser kelps) 

 as elements in food mixtures calling for green food. This material 

 is found in the stomachs of many animals, and the extent to which 

 it is taken intentionally is not known. It is known, however, that 

 sea lettuce is used by aborigines. The seaweeds are rich in iodine, 

 a good preventative of thyroid disturbances. 



Water, fresh, clean, and pure, should with few exceptions always 

 be accessible. Various animals in the wild have developed many 

 different ways of satisfying their requirements for water. Some 

 can and will drink freely from pans of water; others might die for 

 lack of water, even when there was plenty in their pans. Certain 

 lizards, for example, take water through their skin, and need to be 



