CHAPTEK IX. 



THE PREPARATION OF FOOD. 



Having purchased good quality foodstuffs, it is necessary 

 to consider whether they shall be subjected to any 

 special preparation before being placed in the manger. 

 The various processes by which food is cut, crushed, 

 sifted, cleaned, and mixed, add considerably to its cost, 

 first, by reason of the capital expenditure on plant, and, 

 secondly, in payment of the labour involved. Thus, 

 unless the saving effected is demonstrably in excess of 

 the expenditure, this food preparation is an uneconomical 

 process. 



Some horse-owners, mostly those whose animals are 

 not kept for commercial purposes, feed them on whole 

 oats, bran, and long hay, and on such a diet they 

 undoubtedly do well. This simple method is, however, 

 not applied to working horses for reasons which will 

 appear later. It is often urged that the horse's teeth are 

 veritable grinding machines, and that the food should be 

 given, without any preparation, in its natural state. But 

 the working horse is not by any means under purely 

 natural conditions, and although well adapted to domesti- 

 cation. Nature cannot be invoked in support of this con- 

 tention. Practical experience proves that it is necessary 

 and advisable to resort to methods of preparation to 

 counteract the evils of domestication. A large amount of 



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