Book V. OPERATIONS FOR THE CARE OF LIVE STOCK. 469 



growth, the approaches of disease, parturition, &c. In almost all cases, mild and gentle 

 treatment ought to be made tlie shie qua non of the herdman's conduct. 



2994. Cleaning cattle is the operation of rubbing, brushing, combing, and washing 

 their bodies and picking their feet. The legs of cattle, when soiled by labor, are com- 

 monly washed by walking them two or three times through a pond, formed on purpose, 

 in or near to farmeries. As soon as they are put in the stable and unharnessed, the legs, 

 and such parts as are wetted, should be powerfully rubbed with dry straw, so as to dry 

 the hair , and tlie same process should be applied to the rest of the body if they have been 

 in a state of copious perspiration. At the same time their feet should be picked, and their 

 hoofs freed from any earth or small stones which may have lodged under the shoe, or in 

 the case of laboring oxen between the hoofs. Combing and brushing can only be per- 

 formed when the hair and skin are perfectly dry, and in farmeries is generally done in 

 the morning when they are first fed, and in the evening when last fed. In general, it 

 may be considered as experimentally decided, that cleaning cattle of every description, 

 cows and oxen, as well as horses, contributes much to their health as well as to their 

 beauty. If swine were cleaned as regularly as horses, there can be no doubt they would 

 be equally benefited by it. Some amateurs have their feeding swine regularly cleaned ; 

 but the greater part of professional agriculturists content themselves with fixing one or 

 more rubbing posts in each stye, with frequent renewing of the litter. 



2995. Feeding or supplying food to cattle, is an operation which, like every other, 

 however simple or humble, requires attention and a principle of action. Food ought to 

 be given at stated times, in such quantities as to satisfy but not glut the animals, and 

 varied in quality so as to keep alive appetite. Water ought to be regularly supplied 

 according to the kind of food, the state of the animal, and the season of the year. Cat- 

 tle, who are fed in part on green food or roots, will require less water than those fed on 

 dry hay, straw, or corn ; and cattle that have been at work and perspiring, will require 

 more water than such as have been idle or at pasture. In summer, cattle fed on dry 

 food obviously require more water than in winter, owing to the increased perspiration. 

 The case of sick animals must be regulated by the nature of their disease, or directed 

 by the veterinary surgeon. In treating of agricultural animals, (Part III.) we shall 

 give the diseases, and treatment of each. 



2996. 2Vie harnessing of cattle requires attention, rst, that the harness be in complete 

 order; and secondly, that it fit the parts of the animal to which it is applied. Collars 

 and saddles are the leading articles, and when they gall or in any way incommode the 

 animal, they are ruinous to his comfort, and soon render him unfit for labor. Even 

 when they fit properly, an improper mode of fixing the collar-blades (hames), and tying 

 the girth of the saddle, may greatly annoy the animal, and render him restive during the 

 whole period he is in yoke. 



2997. The yoking of draught animals requires still more attention than harnessing 

 them. To know when an animal is properly yoked, or placed in proper circumstances 

 to perform the kind of labor assigned to him, it is necessary to have clear ideas as to the 

 kind of power to be exerted by the animal, whether drawing, carrying, pushing, or two, 

 or all of these. The horse and ox draw from their shoulders, carry from their back, and 

 push with their breech. The point of resistance in all weights, or objects to be dragged 

 or pushed along the ground's surface, lies below the centre of gravity ; and in all cases 

 of drawing, a line from this point of resistance to the collar of the animal, should form a 

 right angle with the plane of the collar-bone. Hence the necessity of not suspending 

 the plough chains from the back of the animal by means of the back band, as is some- 

 times done, but of allowing them to hang freely so as to form a straight line from the 

 collar blades through the muzzle of the plough to the point of resistance. Hence also 

 the advantage of yoking two horses in a cart by means of the endless rope or chain already 

 described (2613.). In yoking animals where the labor is principally carrying a weight, 

 as in carting, great care is requisite that the weight be not oppressive, and that the sus- 

 pending chain move freely in the groove of the saddle so as to produce a perfect 

 equipoise. Various opinions are entertained as to the weight which a horse can carry 

 with or without drawing at the same time. According to the practice of experienced 

 carters, if a one-horse cart is loaded with 20 cwt., 5 cwt., but not more, may be 

 allowed to rest on the back of the horse by means of the traces, chain, and saddle. 

 This is meant to apply where the roads are level ; in going up or down hill to admit of 

 the same proportion of weight, the traces, or shafts, or the bearing chain, must be 

 lowered or raised according to circumstances. Yoking animals to push only, is a case 

 that seldom or never occurs ; but it will be useful to mention, that as the line of the 

 breech of animals is nearly perpendicular to the horizon, so the principle being, that the 

 line of exertion should be at right angles to the exerting surface ; so the direction of 

 pushing or backing, as it is commonly called, may be a horizontal line, or a line parallel 

 to the surface on which the animal stands. 



