29 



attack of colic is the result of thoughtlessly giving a horse a seem- 

 ingly small quantity of green grass in early spring time, when he 

 is not accustomed to it, or of carelessly throwing a few small 

 potatoes or specked apples into his manger when they are removed 

 from the cellar at the close of winter. Excluding fatalities from 

 contagious diseases and from accidents and complications, I think 

 it a conservative estimate that four-fifths of all deaths among 

 horses in rural districts are traceable to mistakes either in feeding 

 or watering ; and, considering that the majority of such fatalities 

 are preventable by the exercise of care in feeding or watering, 

 the subject under discussion is certainly deserving of most careful 

 consideration. 



Smith, in his work on "Veterinary Hygiene," says, regarding 

 this subject: "The connection between food and disease as cause 

 and effect is well known. Throughout the whole category of 

 disease-producing causes there is no simple factor which exercises 

 so much influence. The reason of this is not difficult to seek. 

 Men feed their animals as they feed themselves. They are either 

 overfed with highly nutritious food, or underfed with material of 

 bad quality ; or the food given them is at irregular intervals, badly 

 prepared, or unsuited to the digestive organs of the animal. 

 Another reason for the great importance of the subject of food in 

 relation to disease of the lower animals is that it is one of the 

 three tangible causes we can handle." 



The following is a partial list of the diseases of horses which may 

 arise whollj' or in part in connection with an irrational system of 

 alimentation : abortion, heaves, swelled legs, lymphangitis, lamini- 

 tis, scratches, stomatitis, ptyalism, glossitis, urticaria, choking, 

 impaction of the stomach, gastric tympanitis, gastritis, stomach 

 rupture, spasmodic and flatulent colic, intestinal impaction, enteri- 

 tis, constipation, diarrha?a, dysentery, alimentary calculi, hepati- 

 tis and immohilite. Of diseases of the urinary system may be 

 mentioned nephritis, haemaglobinuria, hsematuria and diabetes. 



The subject may be viewed from two different stand-points, — 

 the scientific and the practical. 



Scientific investigation in physiology and chemistry have during 

 recent years brought out many important points relating to the 

 most economical and satisfactory methods of feeding our farm 

 amiraals for specific purposes. Among other things, they have 

 taught us that the animal body is composed of organic and inor- 

 ganic substances, the former consisting of nitrogenous and non- 

 nitrogenous constituents, the first particularly abundant in the 

 muscles and similar tissues, while the non-nitrogenous substances 

 exist largely as fats. Of the inorganic constituents we have the 



