268 LIVE STOCK MANAGEMENT. 



sufficient. That is, a horse weighing 1200 does not require 

 more than nine pounds of hay daily. The hay should be 

 pure and free from dust. For grain a mixture of oats, corn 

 and bran, fed in the proportion of about fifty pounds corn, 

 fifty pounds oats and twenty-five pounds bran, makes a very 

 good mixture. Feed about one pound per day for every 100 

 pounds weight of the animal. In some instances, however, 

 it may be necessary to feed somewhat more. 



Boiled or steamed feed, fed two or three times a week, 

 will be found to be very helpful in keeping the animal in 

 good health; also in giving a sleek coat of hair. A little oil 

 meal or flaxseed added to the feed before being steamed 

 will also be found to be very beneficial in this respect. 

 Some carrots or potatoes may also be fed to good advantage. 

 The method of feeding above referred to is especially 

 desirable and applicable to the fitting of light horses. They 

 must be given regular exercise. 



The horse most commonly grown upon the farm and the 

 one which is so often neglected when it comes to preparing 

 him for market, is the draft horse. He should be fattened 

 in a somewhat different way. As previously stated, pounds 

 of flesh are an important factor in determining his market 

 value. This being the case it is very necessary to have 

 him make heavy gains. One of the first points to be con- 

 sidered in fattening a horse is to attend to his teeth. Many 

 horses fail to make good gains, due to the fact that their 

 teeth are not in proper condition. The preparation of the 

 teeth is known as the floating of the teeth. It is best to 

 get a veterinarian to do this, as he has the proper instru- 

 ments, and where there are many to do it can be done more 

 rapidly. Floating the teeth is a point which a great many 

 people overlook and is in many instances the real cause of 

 a horse being out of condition. When a horse has a number 

 of sharp projections on his teeth the gums become raw and 

 sore, so that he does not masticate his food thoroughly, con- 

 sequently indigestion often results and the horse runs down 

 in his condition. In examining a lot of horses recently it 

 was found that a large number of them had sharp projec- 

 tions on the under edge of the grinders. Their mouths 

 were in such a condition that a person would wonder how 

 they could eat at all. But after the teeth had been floated 

 down quite a marked change was noticed. 



