64 FATTENING. 



When you commence kind treatment towards a 

 horse that has been cruelly used, let it be with great 

 caution, or you may produce a fo'under or some other 

 injury ; those serviceable animals being too often hard 

 used and half starved. For three or four days, allow- 

 ance a horse you contemplate fattening, to two and 

 a half gallons a day, six or eight bundles of fodder, 

 or an equal quantity of hay ; after which you may 

 keep your rack constantly full of long food, and never 

 permit the manger to be entirely empty : taking care 

 to change the food every day, giving the largest pro- 

 portion of bran, viz. : — bran and hommony, bran and 

 oats, bran and corn, bran alone, oats, corn, hommony, 

 &c. &c. The food moistened occasionally with strong 

 sassafras tea, produces an admirable effect ; it whets 

 the appetite, enriches the blood, and opens the bowels. 

 Whenever a horse is fed, all dust, sour food, &c. 

 should be removed from his manger, which should 

 be washed twice a week with vinegar and salt ; this 

 kind of attention will aid the appetite and keep the 

 manger sweet and clean. If the season of the year 

 you undertake to fatten in, affords green food of any 

 kind, a little about twelve o'clock would assist you 

 much in accomplishing your object. In the bucket in 

 which you water, throw a handful of salt, two or three 

 times a week ; it becomes very grateful to the taste, 

 after a few days' confinement, and will prevent his 

 pawing and eating dirt. If the object is to fatten a 

 horse as speedily as possible, giving to him unusual 

 Hfe and spirits, he should not be brought out of the 

 stable, nor even led to water. But if flesh is to be 

 placed upon a horse to render hard service, I would 

 recommend moderate exercise once every three days, 

 carefully avoiding fretting or alarming him ; more in* 

 jury may be done a horse by fretting him one day, 



