Covering Time. 105 



The mare being now ready, the stallion is brought out. 

 Stallions differ greatly in temperament, some being quiet 

 and tractable, while others are just as excited and noisy. It 

 goes without saying that the quieter the service the better 

 the chance of a satisfactory result. The expenditure of a 

 little extra time and trouble on the tuition of the stallion 

 when he is first introduced to stud duties will be amply 

 repaid in future years; it will mean all the difference 

 between a workman and a bungler. There is a right and a 

 wrong way of doing most things, and as prevention is better 

 than cure, special pains should be taken to instruct the 

 equine novice in the right way. For instance, throwing 

 open the stallion's door and letting him come charging out 

 and straight at and on to the mare might possibly cause 

 no trouble with a very quiet, experienced old mare; but in 

 the case of a young or high-strung nervous mare it might 

 easily be the cause of injury to man or beast, and would 

 certainly turn the business into a " rough and tumble 

 catch-as-catch-can " affair. The stallion must be taught to 

 curb his amorous excitement, and be made to understand 

 that the groom is running the show and not he. 



Bring the stallion out, make him stand three or four 

 yards away from the mare, not in a direct line behind her, 

 but to the near side of her so that mare and horse form two 

 sides of a square. The mare can thus see all the stallion's 

 movements, and when she shows signs of understanding his 

 intentions, let him step forward, wheel and mount. An 

 assistant on the off side pulls the mare's tail towards him 

 with his left hand, and places his right hand on the mare's 

 hip to keep her steady. The stallion man places his left 

 hand on the mare's near hip, and guides the horse's penis 

 into the vagina with his right. The horse being entered, 

 the hold on the mare's head should be relaxed so as to allow 



