WASHING THE HOESE. 85 



membranes of the digestive and respiratory organs will 

 tend to participate. 



The skin of the well-groomed horse will be in the 

 best possible condition to play its allotted part, when the 

 system is called upon to perform violent exertion ; but 

 not to resist the continued effect of cold during a state 

 of inactivity. Hence, such an animal should, when he 

 is at rest, be provided with an adequate supply of warm 

 clothing to make up for the loss of the protection which 

 was afforded by the scaly part of the outer skin, and by 

 the increased amount of hair possessed by him in an 

 ungroomed condition. 



Washing the Horse. This practice is, as a rule, 

 injurious ; for it not alone removes the natural oil from 

 the skin, thereby rendering the coat dull, but is also 

 apt to produce chill, which, I need hardly say, is the 

 fruitful source of many equine ailments. In a warm 

 atmosphere, a horse that is heated and perspiring, can 

 take no harm from being washed, provided he is quickly 

 dried. Owing, however, to the large surface of the 

 body, and the presence of hair over it, it is difficult to 

 dry a horse thoroughly in time to prevent the chance 

 of his catching cold ; and, then, to apply sufficient 

 friction to stimulate the oil-glands to renew the gloss 

 his coat lost from the washing. If it is imperative to 

 wash, and there is not sufficient assistance to have the 

 animal rubbed dry without loss of time, we may, after 

 scraping and rubbing him over, put on a good supply 

 of warm clothing, bandage his legs, and leave him, 

 thus, to dry under his rugs, which he will do in an hour 

 or less. He should, after that, be exercised, or warmly 

 stabled, so as to prevent him becoming chilled. 



