290 



Ha)idbook of Nature-Study 



An excellent horseman once said to me, "The whip may teach a horse 

 to obey the voice, but the voice and hand control the well-broken horse," 

 and this epitomizes the best horse training. He also said, "The horse 

 knows a great deal, but he is too nervous to make use of his knowledge 

 when he needs it most. It is the horse's feelings that I rely on. He 

 always has the use of his feelings and the quick use of them." It is a 

 well-known fact that those men who whip and scold and swear at their 

 horses, are meantime showing to the world that they are fools in this 

 particular business. Many of the qualities which we do not like in our 

 domesticated horses, were most excellent and useful when the horses were 

 wild, for instance, the habit of shying was the wild horse's method of 

 escaping the crouching foe in the grass. This habit as well as many others 



Saddle-Iiorse. 



is best controlled by the voice of the driver instead of a blow from the 

 whip. 



Timothy hay, or hay mixed with clover, form good, bulky food for the 

 horse, and oats and com are the best concentrated food. Oats are best for 

 driving-horses and com for the working team. Dusty hay should not be 

 fed to a horse; but if unavoidable, it should always be dampened before 

 feeding. A horse should be fed with regularity, and should not be used 

 for a short time after having eaten. If the horse is not warm, it should 

 be watered before feeding, and in the winter the water should have the 

 chill taken off. The frozen bit should be warmed before being placed in 

 the horse's mouth; if anyone doubts the wisdom of this, let him put a 

 frozen piece of steel in his own mouth. The tight-drawn, cruel use of the 

 over check-rein should not be permitted, although a moderate check is 

 often needed and is not cruel. When the horse is sweating, it should be 

 blanketed immediately if hitched outside in cold weather; but in the 

 bam, the blanket should not be put on until the perspiration has stopped 

 steaming. The grooming of a horse is a part of its rights, and its legs 

 should receive more attention during this process than its body, a fact 

 not always well understood. 



The breeds of horses may always be classified more or less distinctly as 

 follows: Racers or thoroughbreds, the saddle-horse, or hunter; the 



