THEIR FEED AND THEIR FEET. 43 



cines. Injections of hot water and free kneading of 

 the bowels, or percussion, are always safer and more 

 effectual. 



CONCERNING THE USE OF THE BLANKET. 



Blanketing in stables is often favored solely on ac- 

 count of the better appearance of the coat ; the hair 

 does not grow so long, and it keeps smooth and 

 glossy with less grooming. In the absence of the 

 blanket the hair grows long and affords complete 

 protection from cold, and is as much better as it is 

 more natural. Other things equal, the horse that re- 

 ceives the most coddling in the way of blankets, 

 warm stables (especially if warmth be secured by 

 non-ventilation), guarding from wet, cold, etc., will 

 be the least fitted for real service and the most sub- 

 ject to disease. If blanketed and kept in a close 

 stable the horse will shiver in the cold in spite of 

 blankets and extra robes ; v/hile unblanketed and ac- 

 customed to an airy, i.e., a well-ventilated stable — 

 for size alone does not insure pure air — he will stand, 

 even in the most exposed situations on a severe win- 

 ter's day, without any trembling. There are times, 

 of -course, when standing for any great length of time 

 in a bleak location, especially after sweating freely, 

 that some extra protection for the toughest horse 

 even is useful ; but the practice of immediately en- 

 veloping a sweaty horse with blanket or robe, and 

 especially when the halt is to be a brief one, is any- 

 thing but sound. A few minutes' exposure after hot 

 work is an intense relief, even on the coldest day, and 



