80 TREATMENT OF HORSES 



that degree of heat and costiveness to which 

 some of them are subject on their returning from 

 a summer's running ; therefore, let them take their 

 usual quantity of hay, with the above-mentioned 

 manger food, and they will eat less of their litter, 

 and, from the succulent matter contained in the 

 carrots, will be inclined to drink less water. Oil 

 cake is very nutritious, we allow, and may be 

 very well to fatten oxen upon, but the manger 

 food, above recommended, we consider much more 

 natural for horses. Should any one horse appear 

 more costive than another, a mash of equal parts 

 of scalled bran and oats may be given him once 

 or twice a week, to keep his bowels in a good 

 state. Those sort of horses, kept as we have 

 here advised, will not only put up flesh, but they 

 will be less subject to inflammatory attacks, either 

 local or constitutional. Still, the progress of 

 each horse's putting up flesh should be duly ob- 

 served ; if a horse is found to get very quickly 

 into a plethoric state, it may be advisable to 

 bleed such horse, to the extent of four or five 

 quarts, (depending on his age, size, and constitu- 

 tion), to prevent him from going wrong in any 

 way ; indeed, it was the custom among grooms 

 (when I was a boy) to bleed their horses a fort- 

 night or three weeks after they had been laid by. 



