The Treatment of Foals. 61 



the bottle, that the milk does not flow too freely and cause 

 coughing and choking. Repeat the meal every quarter of 

 an hour, and unless there is something radically amiss, the 

 foal will soon gain strength enough to scramble to its feet 

 and forage for itself. It sometimes happens that the foal 

 when born is so weak and its vitality so low, that it makes 

 no efforts to rise and cannot be coaxed to suck. There is 

 nothing for it then but to pour the milk down its throat, 

 about a dessertspoonful at a time, to prevent choking. The 

 addition of a little whiskey or good port wine to the milk 

 will be beneficial in these cases. 



A MAIDEN MARE'S OFFSPRING. 



The idea that " maiden " mares, that is mares foaling 

 for the first time, are very apt to injure their foals, is a 

 prevalent one. The author can only state that in a rather 

 lengthened experience he has only known of two instances in 

 which his intervention was necessary to prevent an accident. 

 The trouble is generally caused by the attendant's apprehen- 

 sion, which converts a remote possibility into a certainty. 

 One has only intelligently to watch a mare when foaling for 

 the first time to realise this. Even the first pangs of labour 

 seem to puzzle and worry her by their novelty. When at 

 last the foal is delivered and dragged round to her head, her 

 distended eyeballs and gingerly out-stretched nose unmis- 

 takably denote fear and wonderment. Having overcome her 

 momentary fear, and touched and smelt her offspring, the 

 maternal instinct leaps into being, and she lovingly licks its 

 wet quivering body, the first quick movement of which 

 causes her sharply to withdraw her head as if she half 

 expected to be bitten. As the foal gathers strength and the 

 use of its limbs, so, too, do the mare's confidence and 

 maternal instincts gradually increase, till at length, when 



