348 THE HORSE. 



the urine ; and the consequence of which will be the rapid putrefaction of 

 the litter that has been moistened by it. Everything hastening to decom- 

 position should be carefully removed where life and health are to be pre- 

 served. Every portion of the litter that has been much wetted, or at all 

 softened by the urine, and is beginning to decay, should be swept away 

 every morning : the greater part of the remainder may then be piled under 

 the manger, a little being left to prevent the painful and injurious pressure 

 of the feet on the hard pavement during the day. The soiled and macerated 

 portion of that which was left should be removed at night. 



No heap of fermenting dung should be suffered to remain during the 

 day in the corner or in any part of the stable. With regard to this, the 

 directions of the master should be peremptory. 



The stable should be so contrived that the urine shall quickly run off, 

 and the offensive and injurious vapour from the decomposing urine and the 

 litter will thus be materially lessened : if, however, the urine be carried away 

 by means of a gutter running along the stable, the floor of the stalls must 

 slant toward that gutter, and the declivity will sometimes be so great as to 

 strain the back sinews, and become an occasional, although unsuspected 

 cause of lameness. Mr. R. Lawrence well observes that ' if the reader 

 will stand for a few minutes with his toes higher than his heels, the pain 

 he will feel in the calves of his legs will soon convince him of the truth 

 of this remark. Hence, when a horse is not eating, he always endeavours 

 to find his level, either by standing across the stall, or else as far back as 

 his halter will permit, so that his hind legs may meet the ascent of the 

 other side of the channel.' 



This direction of the stall is also a frequent cause of contraction of the 

 heels of the foot, by throwing too great a proportion of the weight upon the 

 toe, and removing that pressure on the heels which tends most to keep 

 them open. Care therefore must be taken that the slanting of the floor 

 of the stalls shall be no more than is sufficient to drain off the urine with 

 tolerable rapidity. Stalls of this kind certainly do best for mares ; but for 

 horses we much prefer those with a grating in the centre, and an inclination 

 of the floor on every side towards the middle. A short branch may com- 

 municate with a larger drain, by means of which the urine may be carried 

 off to a reservoir outside the stable. Traps are now contrived, and maybe 

 procured at little expense, by means of which neither any offensive smell 

 nor current of air can pass through the grating. 



The farmer should not lose any of the urine. It is from the dung of the 

 horse that he derives a principal and the most valuable part of his ma- 

 nure. It is that which earliest takes on the process of putrefaction, and 

 forms one of the strongest and most durable dressings. That which is 

 most of all concerned with the rapidity and the perfection of the decompo- 

 sition, is the urine. 



The reasons why the horse should always stand on litter have been 

 given at page 295. Humanity and interest, as well as the appearance of 

 the stable, will induce the general proprietor of the horse to place a mo- 

 derate quantity of litter under him during the day. The farmer who wants 

 to convert every otherwise useless substance into manure will have addi- 

 tional reason for adopting this practice ; especially as he does not confine 

 himself to that to which in towns and in gentlemen's stables custom seems 

 to have limited the bed of the horse. Pea and bean-haum, and potatoe- 

 top, and heath, occupy in the stable of tlie farmer, during a part of the 

 year, the place of wheaten and oaten straw. It should, however, be 

 remembered, that these substances are disposed more easily to ferment and 

 putrefy than straw, and therefore should be more carelully examined, and 

 oftener removed. It is the faulty custom of some farmers to let the bed 



