MODERN HORSE MANAGEMENT 



[CHAP. 



made much of when inside so as to encourage 

 him next time. Backing him in is unnatural, 

 and therefore should not be done. We must try 

 to associate entering a train with pleasant sensa- 

 tions at all costs. 



On board ship foothold should be obtained 

 by spreading sand, ashes, litter, etc., in the gang- 

 ways and in the stalls. This should also be done 

 in railway cars. The sight of a bale of hay will 

 encourage many a refuser to change his mind. 

 Some horses may have to be blindfolded before 

 they will go on to a ship or train. Another 

 method is to pass a thick cord under the tail, and 

 to pull it gently on each side ; one man on each 

 Bide is sufficient, care being taken not to rub the 

 tail. 



182. Harness and saddlery will be stored in 

 separate places, except on short journeys of a 

 few hours in the train, when a horse may travel 

 saddled up or with its harness on ; but girths 

 must be loosened. It is always better to un- 

 saddle and to put a blanket on the horse. A 

 horse's legs should be bandaged, preferably with 

 cotton-wool inside ; and it is advisable to 

 bandage the tail either with a flannel or cotton 

 bandage, or to use a special leather tail-guard 

 sold for the purpose, to prevent the tail becom- 

 ing rubbed. (See P. 24e.) 



Stalls and horse-boxes should be kept as clean 

 as possible, and every opportunity taken to exer- 

 cise horses. Great care must be taken to ensure 

 proper ventilation on a ship or train ; sickness 

 on board is usually the result of great heat and 

 bad smells, due to lack of ventilation. Stalls, 

 decks, and horse-cars should be whitewashed 

 before a horse is placed in or on the same. 



If weather permits and there is deck space, 

 horses should have an hour's walking exercise 

 every day. When on the railway they should 

 be taken out daily, and if possible walked about 

 for half to one hour. They should be watered 

 on such occasions if it is possible. Feeding will 

 be carried on in the train with nosebags en route, 

 unless halts are long and the horses can be taken 

 out. Nosebags will be filled in the forage cars 

 and put on the horses at a convenient stop. 

 Great precaution should be taken against fire, 

 and therefore no hay or straw will be allowed 

 in the horse-cars as bedding. When mangers 

 are supplied, only a little hay will be placed in 

 them at a time. The risk of fire on board ship 

 is considerably less than in a car, where it may 

 be impossible to reach it. 



Except on very small ships that roll very 

 much, horses as a rule are quite safe in a wide 

 stall (say, 4 ft. 6 in. in width), so that they can 

 lie down in calm weather (they will seldom do 

 so in rough). In a vessel of, say, 7,000 gross 

 tonnage, in a rough sea, there is absolutely no 

 need to sling a horse unless it is sick. The law 

 should compel all horses to be allowed at least 

 4 ft. width, also require a passage along behind 



each horse, so that the stalls can be properly 

 cleaned out every day. Horses should not be 

 allowed in any part of a ship where there are 

 no port-holes, except on short journeys of one 

 or two days. 



The front of each stall should be movable, to 

 allow each horse to be taken out for exercise. 

 Passages should be wide enough to allow for 

 exercising. The partitions between stalls must 

 reach to within one inch of the floor. If there 

 is more space than this, the not uncommon 

 occurrence of a horse getting a leg under the 

 partition, and being unable to get up, will 

 follow. The partitions must reach to a height 

 of 5 ft. 6 in. to prevent horses biting at one 

 another, which is a common trick learnt on 

 board ship. The partitions should be made of 

 timber 2 in. by 6 in., with a space of 6 in. 

 between each piece to allow for free ventilation. 

 Straw must be spread thickly on the floor of the 

 stalls. Each stall should be arranged so that, in 

 the event of the sling being used, an extra par- 

 tition can be added to make the stall sufficiently 

 narrow. 



183. On board ship horses are generally re- 

 ceiving at the most only light exercise, and their 

 usual ration varies, according to size and condi- 

 tion of the horse : 3 to 5 Ib. of oats, 5 to 6 Ib. 

 of bran, 10 to 12 Ib. of hay, per day. 



Oats should be crushed if possible, and great 

 care taken that every horse is kept free in his 

 movements, any sign of constipation being 

 checked by gruel and mashes, and not by 

 medicine. Carrots or other roots, about one 

 pound a day, should be given, and rock salt as 

 well, or in lieu of part of the oats. 



The system of keeping the stomach full while 

 on board ship does not apply to a horse, as 

 normally he cannot vomit. I have only once 

 seen a horse vomit like a human being ; then 

 his stomach was ruptured, and he died in ten 

 minutes. 



During rough weather men should remain 

 with their horses. On the railway horses are 

 generally placed either in proper horse-cars fitted 

 up or else in long box-cars ; in the latter they 

 should be placed as close as possible to one 

 another, with heads untied, and facing away 

 from the other track. Quiet horses will be led 

 in and placed at opposite ends, and the car 

 filled up to the centre. Great care must be taken 

 to see that all doors are properly closed and that 

 the gangway is safe and attached securely before 

 horses are allowed to cross it. The finest horse- 

 cars that I have ever seen are those of the 

 Canadian Pacific Railway. P. 896 shows one 

 of the latest types, which holds sixteen horses of 

 moderate size, or twelve large draught horses, 

 the partitions being movable so that they can 

 be placed in any position ; mangers and water- 

 ing-troughs are provided. These cars are rightly 

 called palace horse-cars. 



