HORSES AXD MULES. 267 



purchase a stallion, or raise one among themselves, keeping 

 him for their own breeding. This -coarse has been largely 

 practiced in some communities, and a marked and most profit- 

 able improvement in the stock has been the result. 



Ix THE Choice of the Mare, size, symmetry, and sound- 

 ness, are to be regarded as essentials. ("Beauty from the 

 dam ; temper and disposition, from the sire.") She should 

 have a roomy frame, a little more than the average length 

 from hip to shoulder, sloping hips, wide chest, deep girth, 

 strong quarters, and particularly a wide deep pelvis ; permitting 

 the passage of the foal into the world uninjured. She should 

 be gentle, free from all vicious habits, and from all constitu- 

 tional diseases or deformities, such as diseases of the lungs, 

 Qyes^ or spavins, bad feet, or any bony enlargepients, as 

 she will almost surely transmit these ill shapes, even if 

 she herself is excellent. Never breed from a sulky, baulky, 

 savage, or vicious mare, unless you wish to perpetuate 

 the breed. It is true, these are often overcome by the sire, 

 but the risk is too great to be advisable. Before putting 

 her to the stallion, by careful usage and feeding, get her 

 into the most perfect state of health, not over loaded with 

 fat, but in a first rate condition. Her state at the time of coi- 

 tion, will have a lasting effect upon the foal. Gestation should 

 commence under the most favorable circumstances. There 

 should be mhtual adaptation, between the sire and the dam, 

 in both form, size, and all other important characteristics. The 

 mare should be a little larger than the horse, unless the mare 

 be too low, when she may be bred to a horse a trifle taller, but 

 not of the leggy kind. A low mare to a leggy horse, to pro- 

 duce height, is a mistake. Any great difference in size will 

 usually produce distortions. If either is defective in any 

 point, bo sure the other is perfect in that point. If the colt ie 



