196 HOW TO FEED SILAGE. 



Silage for Horses. 



Silage has been fed to horses and colts for a number of years 

 with excellent results. These points should be kept in mind 

 however: Never feed moldy silag-e; it is poisonous to horses. 

 Avoid sour silage made from immature corn. Feed regularly, 

 once or twice a day, starting in with a light feed and gradually 

 increasing as the animals become accustomed to the food. 



The succulence of silage produces as good an effect on horses 

 in the winter months as do the fresh spring pastures. Some 

 farmers feed it mixed with cut straw, two thirds of straw and 

 one-third of silage, and feed all the horses will eat of this 

 mixed feed. Some horses object to silage at first on account of 

 its peculiar odor, but by sprinkling some oats or bran on top 

 of the silage and feeding only very small amounts to begin with, 

 they soon learn to eat and relish it. Other horses take it 

 willingly from the beginning. Horses not working may be fed 

 larger quantities than work horses, but in neither case should 

 the silage form more than a portion of the coarse feed given 

 the horses. Silage-fed horses will look well and come out in the 

 spring in better condition than when fed almost any other food. 



Professor Cook says in regard to silage as a horse food: 

 "It has been suggested by even men of high scientific attainments 

 that silage is pre-eminently the food for cattle and not for othe^r 

 farm stock. This is certainly a mistake. If we raise fall colts, 

 which I find very profitable, then silage is just what we need, 

 and will enable us to produce colts as excellent as though 

 dropped in the spring. This gives us our brood mares in first- 

 class trim for the hard summer's work. I find silage just as 

 good for young colts and other horses." 



An extensive Michigan farmer and horse breeder gives his 

 experience in regard to silage for horses as follows: 



"Last year we had nearly two hundred horses, including 

 Clydesdales, standard-bred trotters, and Shetland ponies. They 

 were wintered entirely upon straw and corn silage, and this in 

 face of the fact that I had read a long article in a prominent 

 horse journal cautioning farmers from the use of silage, and 

 citing instances where many animals had died, and brood mares 

 had aborted from the liberal use of corn silage. 



