34 



with moderate work. This is not in accord with commonly accepted 

 theories, for it is generally conceded that horses at severe work 

 require larger rations than those at moderate work. The discrep- 

 ancy may be explained in part perhaps by the fact that the data 

 for the group performing severe work is much less extended than 

 that for the group performing moderate work. There is ever}^ reason 

 to suppose that the truck and draft horses received rations sufficient 

 for their needs, as the firms owning them are known to make the 

 efltort to maintain their horses in good condition. Such truck and 

 draft animals are often emplo5^ed at work which is performed at a slow 

 pace, and undoubtedly this has a bearing on the fact that they were 

 able to perform a large amount of work on a comparativel}^ small 

 ration, as the speed at which work is performed has a marked effect 

 upon the food requirements. 



The average values, representing the amounts which were fed to 

 American horses performing light, moderate, and severe work, differ 

 somewhat from the commonlj^ accepted feeding standards. It would 

 be going too far to propose the adoption of these average values as 

 standards in the place of those which have been commonly accepted. 

 It is undoubtedly true that a feeding standard should be based on other 

 data than the results of feeding experiments; however, in so far as the 

 results represent the average practice of successful feeders they are 

 worthy of consideration, and certainly emphasize the importance of 

 undertaking investigations with a view to revising the standards. It 

 should be remembered that the amounts of digestible nutrients in the 

 rations actually fed were calculated with the aid of coefficients of 

 digestibility obtained with horses and are, therefore, considerably 

 lower than would be the case if average values obtained with ruini- 

 nants had been used, a method of calculation which has been often 

 followed in the past, but which does not seem desirable. 



The number of feeding stuffs used in making up the rations fed was 

 not found to be large, oats and corn being the common grains, and 

 ha}", usually timothy, the common coarse fodder. The amounts of 

 nutrients and energy in the different rations of the horses making up 

 the different groups varied within rather wide limits, which is not sur- 

 prising when it is remembered tliat the horses were fed under many 

 different conditions and by a large number of feeders whose opinions 

 regarding what constituted a proper ration naturallv differed. 



The rations given in Table 2 and those used in calculating the aver- 

 ages there included were believed to be sufficient for the horses' needs 

 either because the animals maintained a practically constant weight, as 

 in the case of the horses fed at the experiment stations, or because the 

 rations had stood the practical test of usage at the hands of express 

 companies, cab companies, etc. Several additional rations follow, 

 which may perhaps serve as a guide in determining the kind and 



170 



