Stable Management. 61 



be stowed away at one time, as it is liable to become 

 mouldy and musty, and it will then be refused by horses, 

 or, if taken, it will disagree with their stomachs. The 

 quantity which a full-sized horse at strong but moderately 

 slow work will consume, is about 84 lb. per week, or from 

 that to 98 lb., which latter quantity some washy large 

 horses absolutely require to keep them in health. There 

 is a vast difTerence in horses in respect of the weight of 

 hay necessary for their full condition ; some will eat nearly 

 twice as much as others, and yet not be half so strong, or 

 look nearly so fleshy and full of health. I have often had 

 two medium-sized horses in my stable which together lived 

 upon as little as another larger horse in similar condition 

 consumed to his own share. Nevertheless, 12 lb. maybe 

 considered the average for full-sized horses ; but no master 

 should make up his mind that his one horse is sufficiently 

 fed if he has that quantity, for it may very probably happen 

 that he is one of those hungry ones which will require at 

 least 1 cwt. per week, especially if the rack is a high one, 

 and the groom is not very careful to replace the wasted 

 hay. In all racks the hay should be lightly put in, and not 

 pressed down, for if it is, the horse will be sure to pull out 

 more than one mouthful at a time, and if his attention is 

 called to the foot of the stall, he will turn his head round 

 and bring a quantity of loose hay with it, even if the rack 

 is as low as it should be. 



Chaff is hay cut up with straw in a chaff machine, which 

 may be the old box-and-knife used with the hand, or it may 

 consist of any of the various chaff engines which are now 

 sold by the machine-makers, and worked either by the hand 

 or by horse or steam power. The hay used is in most stables 

 the coarse parts of the usual quality employed, which would 

 otherwise be rejected, and sometimes even the hay-bands 

 are cut up in this way. It is arranged in the trough of the 

 machine with alternate layers of straw, so that the char! 

 when cut consists of portions of hay and oat straw about 

 half an inch long, and mixed in equal quantities. Care 

 should be exercised that both are sound and sweet, as 

 inferior food is the reverse of economy as well as subver- 

 sive of good health. Chaff is now the substitute for hay 



