MANAGEMENT OF LIGHT HORSES. 177 



has its risks to health, and also implies waste of forage. The 

 hay and corn market is not so expensive as the horse market, 

 and there is no economy in underfeeding. Bad food makes 

 bad horses, and insufficient food produces weakly ones. 



" Oats and hay should be sound and good. In judging of 

 them for food it is well to remember the characters by which 

 good may be differentiated from bad oats. In the first place, 

 each grain consists of two parts, husk and kernel, the latter 

 possessing considerable alimentary value, and the former 

 scarcely any at all ; so that oats which contain the largest 

 proportion of kernel are those which are most serviceable to 

 the horse. The relative proportions of kernel and husk vary 

 considerably in different kinds of oats. In some samples the 

 husk forms as much as 35 and 40 per cent., while in good grain 

 it may be as low as 20 per cent. It is of importance sometimes 

 to estimate quickly the feeding value of oats, and this can 

 readily be done by separating the kernel from the husk by 

 hand in a number of seeds, and then weighing each. This 

 gives a better and a more practical indication than is afforded 

 by the external appearance of the grains, their colour, or their 

 weight collectively. It may be noted, besides, that oats which 

 have the smallest proportion of husk are those which are most 

 readily and thoroughly digested ; and, as already mentioned, 

 crushed oats are more quickly and perfectly digested than 

 when they are whole. 



" The weight of the oats is not altogether a trustworthy 

 index to their nutritive value, though it is that which is gener- 

 ally adopted ; the thickness of husk and its closeness to the 

 kernel, as well as the dryness of the grain, will influence its 

 density; so that there is often a rather wide diversity in 

 different samples, with regard to their natural weight and 

 nutritive value. The ordinary oats, which weigh only 38 Ibs. 

 to the bushel, are not very economical for feeding, and especially 

 if they come from Sweden or Russia, where their quality 

 and particularly that of the Swedish oats is rather low. It 

 is better to give a smaller quantity of heavier thin-skinned 

 oats. 

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