30 DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 



6. Draining. A gutter or other contrivance for carrying off 

 the urine should always be made in a stable, otherwise it will 

 be foul and damp. It should be conveyed into a tank and care- 

 fully saved as manure. 



7. Radcs and Mangers. These should be so placed that the 

 horse can eat from them with ease. The face of the rack next 

 the horse should be perpendicular, or as nearly so as possible. 

 Sometimes the face is so sloping and the rack so high that the 

 horse has to turn his head almost upside down to get at his food. 



The mangers or troughs from which the horse eats his grain 

 are now sometimes made of cast iron, which we deem a great 

 improvement over wood. The manger should be concave and 

 not flat at the bottom. Mangers are generally placed too low. 

 The bottom should be from three feet and a half to four feet 

 from the ground, according to the height of the horse. 



8. Ventilation of Stables. Impure air, as we have already 

 remarked, is hurtful to the horse as well as to the human being 

 inducing disease and shortening life. To avoid it in our own 

 case, we (sometimes!) ventilate our houses. If we would have 

 our horses healthy we must do the same for the stable. Aper- 

 tures, one for each stall, should be provided for carrying off the 

 impure air. These should be so near the top of the building as 

 practicable. It should be eight or ten inches square. Smaller 

 apertures near the floor or not far from the horse's nostrils will 

 serve to admit fresh air.* 



9. Warmth, etc. If you wish to have your horses thrive 

 and continue healthy, you can not pay too much attention to 

 their comfort. Their stables should be warm in winter and 

 cool in summer. To secure these conditions, they should be 

 properly constructed. [For plans, see " The House."] To keep 

 stables sufficiently warm, no artificial means are required. It 

 is enough that the outside air, except so much as is required 

 for ventilation, be excluded during the coldest weather. Warm 

 blankets should of course be used at the same time. 



* See Chap'er on Barns and Stables, in " The House.' 



