WHEN FOALS SHOULD FALL 219 



WHEN FOALS SHOULD FALL 



To regulate the mating of mares so that the foals shall be dropped at 

 a suitable season is a matter of the greatest concern to the breeder of 

 horses. In these days of horse shows, with their numerous and costly 

 prizes, medals, championships, and challenge cups, great temptation is 

 offered to the breeder of pedigree stock to strive after early produce, and 

 resort to a system of forcing and pampering which, while productive of a 

 limited and temporary success, cannot be otherwise than disastrous to the 

 general well-being of the horse. As to the particular month of the year 

 when foals should be encouraged to come, a great deal will depend upon 

 the soil, locality, and climate in which they are to be reared, and, naturally, 

 opinions on this question vary with the variations of experience gained 

 under different local conditions. In a climate so uncertain and trying as 

 ours, early foaling is distinctly prejudicial to the life and health of the 

 offspring, and it is not too much to say that a large share of the loss and 

 disappointment that breeders experience under ordinary conditions is due 

 to this cause. Some consider the advantage of an early colt to be a good 

 set-off against the risk entailed, and the latter part of February or the 

 beginning of March is the time arranged for foaling to commence. "With 

 the prevailing winds from the east or north-east at this season of the year, 

 cold rains and snow-storms, little sunlight, and a scanty supply of rank 

 herbage, both mare and foal must either be subjected to confinement for 

 several weeks, or face the rigours of the season and attendant risks. 

 Nothing conduces so much to the health and well-being of the dam, and 

 to the growth and stability of the foal in the first period of its life, as an 

 abundance of spring grass and the vivifying influence of the solar rays. 



These desiderata cannot be hoped for as a settled condition until the 

 month of April has well advanced, and it is from this time onward, through 

 May and June, that the best and strongest foals will be dropped, and most 

 successfully reared. The best food that can be procured, and the most 

 perfect stable and management that can be designed, are poor substitutes 

 for the liberty, pure air, and rich succulent herbage of advanced spring. 



Foals dropped late in the summer are at an equal disadvantage with 

 those that appear too early. The grass at this time is losing its goodness, 

 and the milk of the dam is indifferent both in quality and quantity. Be- 

 sides, the nights are getting cold and damp, and, worse than everything, 

 the youngster will be shedding its coat at a time when it should possess its 

 winter suit. All this tends to lower the vitality of the individual, to check 

 growth, and enfeeble development. If foals are to grow, and shape, and 



