HOVEL ANI PADDOCK. 119 



also, are never allowed to exceed four in any one paddock, Mr. 

 Martin, the clever and experienced manager of the iBrst-named stud, 

 is of opinion that colts should have room enough to gallop, and 

 thus early accustom their joints and sinews to bear the strains which 

 they must, sometime or other, be subjected to. On the other hand, 

 the argument is held that in a small paddock the foal gallops quite 

 as much as in the larger one, and puts his joints to the strain in 

 stopping himself at the corners, whilst there is less injury from 

 other accidental causes, such as kicks and the jamming of a lot, 

 together in a narrow gateway. On the whole I am inclined to be- 

 lieve that the latter plan is the best, for experience shows that a 

 well-fed foal will gallop daily, for hours together, even in a two 

 acre paddock. 



At foaling time each mare must have a separate hovel or 

 loose-box, but as, practically, it is found that she always gives 

 some few hours' notice of her approaching parturition, it is the 

 custom to bring her into the close neighborhood of the house of 

 the stud -groom at night, so that he may be at hand to render her 

 assistance, if necessary. Any loose-box answers for that purpose, 

 if it does not open to a warm stable, which would render it too 

 hot for an animal which has been for months exposed to the open 

 air. But after foaling the mare will also require a hovel to her- 

 self for six weeks or two months, when the foal will be strong 

 enough to take care of itself in running among other mares. 

 Indeed, at all times, the mares should at night be in separate hovels, 

 even when during the day they run in the same paddock with two 

 or three others. This hovel should be about twelve to fifteen feet 

 long, and not less than ten feet wide. The height may easily be 

 too great, because in the early spring the weather is often so 

 severe that the mare cannot impart sufficient heat to a very large 

 volume of air. From eight to nine feet will therefore be ample, 

 the former being well suited to the larger area which I have given 

 above, and the latter to the smaller. It is a very common plan, 

 when economy is much studied, to build four hovels back to back, 

 at the angles formed by four small runs, by which a saving in the 

 internal walls is effected. This, however, necessitates a northerly 

 or easterly aspect for two out of the four, either of which is objec- 

 tionable. Two hovels may readily be placed side by side :n the 

 most desirable situation, and these may be made to open into 

 separate runs. The walls should be built of brick or stone, which- 

 ever is locally the cheaper material, or where gorse is abundant 

 they may be formed from it, being the cheapest of all. 



In some counties what is called "wattle and dab" is very 

 generally employed for outbuildings of this kind, and when they 

 are roofed with thatch, which carries the water well off the sides, 

 it answers very well. It is composed of common wood quarter- 



