THE HORSE : ITS KEEP AND MANAGEMENT. 35 



case, and even then too much should not be given them 

 at a time, because the horses rehsh it so much better if it 

 is given them fresh. 



Perhaps it will be as well to remark here that 

 horses used by merchants, millers, brewers, and for other 

 waggon purposes should not be subjected to the treatment 

 described m this chapter. 



A few years ago farmers were more accustomed 

 to give their horses loose hay than they are at 

 the present day. They seldom cut anything up, but 

 this idea of feeding is fast dying out. When the horse 

 had corn it used to be put in the manger without anything 

 else. When this is the case the horses eat it up greedily 

 and do not masticate it properly. Consequently, much of 

 it passes through them not digested, and the horses lose 

 the nutriment of the corn, and so get robbed of its 

 strength, and not only so, but when everything is cut it is 

 much more economical. If farmers feed their horses on 

 hay they must be at a loss to a certain extent through 

 waste, as the animals are bound to pull it under their feet 

 and trample it in the manure. 



Where there are twelve horses kept on a farm, and they 

 are fed in the old fashioned way, viz., on the hay and loose 

 corn thrown in the manger, there is a sufficient quantity of 

 food wasted for two horses, so that with careful feeding, 

 fourteen horses might be fed and kept on the same amount 

 of food that twelve are. And it is not only the waste, but 

 the horses do not look so well, nor are they able to do the 

 work they could if their fodder is cut up for them. 



C2 



