TRAINING FOR RACING, POINT-TO-POINT 367 



linseed oil per diem may help matters, or linseed gruel, or 

 linseed tea ; but very gentle exercise for a month is urgently 

 needed, or if the weather is fine, turning the animal out for 

 a couple of hours daily into a paddock, bare of grass, for at 

 least three weeks. What is required is, in the words of an 

 old and most successful trainer, " To get juice into it again," 

 and the animal will not return to its best form until this 

 is done. 



The droppings of each horse should always be left in the 

 morning in a corner for the head lad or trainer to see, and 

 not be removed until he has been his round, for much may 

 be learned from them regarding the health of each horse. 

 They should be in good-sized rather moist balls, with a 

 glaze upon them, and the colour of gingerbread ; but if so 

 sloppy that they do not ball, or if in little, hard, very dark- 

 coloured balls, the diet needs to be attended to at once. 



A fortnight before the race the horse may probably need 

 a tonic, and what is suitable will depend much upon the 

 state of his skin. If there is a disposition to develop 

 warbles, or a quantity of little pimples are seen — probably 

 urtica (nettle-rash) — tonics for the moment are not required. 

 Instead some sulphur m a handful of mash for a day or two, 

 and sulphate of magnesia powders in the water should be 

 given, and subsequently 30 drops a day of liquor arseni- 

 calis. But if the skin is clean and silky the horse will 

 benefit from the sulphate of iron powders, which have been 

 mentioned earlier in this work. 



The silkiness of the coat largely depends upon the 

 thorough grooming of the horse, as explained under " Stable 

 Management," and this should therefore be actively carried 

 out morning and evening. 



Formerly race-horses were sweated every fourth, fifth, or 

 sixth day, wearing one or more rugs, and one or more hoods, 

 as deemed requisite, the distance varying from three to 

 four miles. The pace was very slow, and the day after- 

 wards only walking exercise was done ; and then on alternate 

 days, after the usual canter, a mile, or thereabouts, was 

 galloped at a fast pace, the same distance being done on the 

 intervening days at a moderate rate of speed. Certainly 



