28 THE HORSE : ITS KEEP AND MANAGEMENT. 



If a horse is very weak or old, there is nothing like 

 stewing a little linseed and mixing it with a little chaff and 

 bran and giving it to the horse, but not too much at a time 

 to make it sloppy. This is very nutritious, and helps the 

 animal very much. The linseed should be stewed so that 

 it is very thick and glutinous. 



Horses w^ill always do well on this, but they ought not 

 to be worked hard or excited when they have it, if so, it is 

 likely to relax the bowels a little too much. When a horse 

 is very costive a better thing could not be given, if a little 

 bran is used with it. Some horses are naturally very 

 costive, so much so that I have seen them pass blood with 

 their motions. When this is the case the animals should 

 always have a little bran given them in every meal. A 

 nervous horse is just the opposite and is almost 

 sure to become relaxed in the bowels. 



Waggon and Garments Horses. 



I do not think it is necessary for me to treat largely 

 on feeding the heavy horses, that are used principally upon 

 the roads, no matter whether they are brewers', millers', 

 merchants' or ordinary carmen's horses, they usually fare 

 better than farmers' horses in a general way, for the simple 

 reason, as a rule they carry a nose bag with them. It does 

 not hurt the horses to work hard if they are fed often. A 

 horse has a much smaller stomach than any other animal, 

 that is according to its size. 



It is said when a horse lies out to grass it usually eats 

 twenty hours out of the twenty-four, but this is exaggerating 



