44 THE COMPLETE HORSEMAN 



should have a good dressing, some hay, which 

 may be given in the form of chop — ^personally 

 I prefer long hay — and at noon they should 

 have another feed of corn. But it will be ap- 

 proaching noon by the time the horses are 

 dressed and the stables are ' set fair/ and I see 

 no objection to giving the corn as soon as these 

 tasks are finished. After all it does not matter 

 so much at what times the horses are fed, pro- 

 vided that they are fed at proper intervals and 

 regularly. 



The horses may now be left till late in the 

 afternoon. It is then advisable to take them 

 out for twenty minutes or half an hour. There 

 is no necessity to put saddles on or even to ride 

 them. They may be led about, care being taken 

 that they are warmly clothed and that they 

 are kept sufficiently far apart that no harm 

 may ensue if some light-hearted one should 

 begin to play up. 



When led out for their afternoon walk the 

 horses should be allowed to nibble a little grass 

 and they will be found very greedy of earth 

 sometimes. This they should be allowed to eat, 

 for in some way that I have never heard satis- 

 factorily explained, it is very beneficial to their 

 health. Col. Meysey Thompson perhaps comes 

 nearest to the mark when he says that it has 

 some beneficial effect on the acid secretions of 

 the stomach. But there can be no doubt of 

 the craving being a natural one, and though 

 it is not noticed when a horse is at grass I have 



