332 NAVIX ox THE HORSE. 



CONSTRUCTION OF STABLES. 



Much of the horse's comfort and usefiihiess depends on 

 the condition of his stable and stable management. Proper 

 stabling is as necessary to his health and ability to labor as 

 comfortable housing is to man. In constructing stables, three 

 objects may properly be considered — cost, convenience, and 

 healthfulncss. I shall present a few hints on these subjects, 

 more with a view to calling attention to their importance than 

 o-ivino- a model to be followed in the erection of stables. The 

 man who, through neglect or stinginess, fails to provide com- 

 fortable stables for his horses, is guilty of a crime which merits 

 the contempt of all humane people, if not the punishment of 

 the law. It is cruelty to man's best servant. 



The cost of a stable may be very considerable, or a very 

 small outlay only may be necessary to erect a comfortable, 

 healthy, and convenient one. Stables may be stone, brick, or 

 frame buildings. In this country frame stables are the cheap- 

 est and most common. The frame should be heavy and strong, 

 and placed on a firm rock foundation. It should be sufficiently 

 raised from the ground not to furnish a harbor for rats. 



The principal door should face to the south, and a dry lot, of 

 considerable size, should surround the stable. The weather- 

 boarding should be an inch thick, jointed, placed perpendicu- 

 lar, and the joints covered by strips. The inside of the stable 

 should be ceiled up to the joists. The upper floor should be 

 laid close, so as to prevent dust and hay-seed from falling 

 through on the horses. The floor should be laid with two-and- 

 a-half-inch boards, closely jointed. The part of the floor 

 under the stalls should be laid of oak boards. They should 

 be placed so as to run from the front to the back of the stalls, 

 and the front should be about two inches and a half higher 

 than the back. At the foot of the stall a gutter should be 

 made so that the water will run oif, and not stand in puddles 

 at the horse's heels. The depth from the gutter to the front 

 of the stall should be about nine feet. The partition between 



