STABLE NECESSARIES 107 



caused by using a steel fork to ' bed ' with and 

 one should never be allowed to enter the stable. 

 A shovel is necessary and should not be too heavy. 

 The dungbasket is best made of galvanised iron. 

 The wheelbarrow should be a fairly big one, for 

 the litter in a stable is Hght and there is no neces- 

 sity to waste time over making many journeys 

 where one will do. I prefer wooden buckets for 

 stable use. They are nicer in every respect 

 than the galvanised iron pail and if properly cared 

 for they will last as long or longer. 



A bucket for fomentation is a desirable addi- 

 tion to the stable necessaries. This is deeper and 

 wider than an ordinary bucket. The late Mr. 

 George Lowther had an excellent pattern. It 

 was wider at the top than the bottom and a horse 

 could stand comfortably in it with both feet. The 

 value of fomentation when a horse is beginning 

 to fail on his forelegs has never been generally 

 appreciated at its proper value. As a rule hot 

 water and cold water properly applied are worth 

 all the blistering specifics in a druggist's shop, 

 but they must be applied in time. 



I perhaps cannot do better than give an ex- 

 perience of my own. It was just before the 

 Hunting season began that I was cantering 

 rather sharply along the roadside when I found 

 my mare falter. I thought she had made a false 

 step and paid no further attention to the matter, 

 and when she gave a little limp when I got off her 

 I thought it was the natural consequence of her 

 having hit herself. But next morning there was 



