270 Feeds and Feeding. 



as a horse feed is now so well established that instead of ignoring it 

 we should know its place and possibilities and use it accordingly. 



413. Barley. — This grain is extensively employed for horse feed- 

 ing in Europe, especially in Italy, Spain, and Algiers. In this coun- 

 try it is used on the Pacific Coast, especially in California, where it 

 is in general use. At the North Dakota Station^ Shepperd fed about 

 12 lbs. of oats or whole barley to each farm horse daily with timothy 

 hay. The oat-fed horses gained somewhat in weight, while those get- 

 ting barley lost. The conclusion was that hard-worked horses can- 

 not be quite so well supported on barley as on oats. Lavalard- con- 

 cludes after 20 years' experience that to replace oats a slightly 

 greater quantity of barley must be fed, and this is especially true 

 when rations are calculated as closely as they are with army horses. 

 Wliere the horses' teeth are good and their labor not severe, barley 

 may be fed whole, but it is usually best to grind or, better, roll it. 

 Barley meal forms a pasty, unpleasant mass when mixed with the 

 saliva in the mouth. This can be largely avoided by crushing the 

 grain to flattened discs between iron rollers, instead of grinding 

 it. (171) 



414. Wheat. — Shepperd of the North Dakota Station^ found that 

 whole wheat fed alone proved unsatisfactory, while two parts of 

 ground wheat mixed with one part of wheat bran, by weight, gave 

 good results, Lavalard* states that wheat may cause irritation of 

 the skin so that horses suffer greatly. He also speaks of accidents 

 following the feeding of wheat. (161) 



415. Rye. — Lavalard'^ reports that the Paris Cab Companies feed 

 rye, especially when cheap, using one part of rye to four parts of 

 oats. Like wheat this grain should be ground or, better, rolled. (177) 



416. Kafir, milo. — In the regions where they flourish, the seeds 

 of the various sorghums are extensively employed for horse feeding, 

 tho somewhat less valuable than corn. Being small and hard, they 

 should be ground or "chopped," and if possible mixed with bran or 

 middlings, as they tend somewhat to constipation. These grains may 

 also be fed unthreshed in the heads along with the forage. INIorrow 

 of the Oklahoma Station'^ reports the successful feeding of kafir to 

 farm mules. (183-4) 



417. Northern field pea. — In the northern portion of the corn 

 belt and farther north the field pea flourishes and furnishes a val- 

 uable concentrate for the nourishment of the horse. It should always 



' Bui. 45. =• Bui. 45. " Loc. cit. 



' Expt. Sta. Eec, 12. " Expt. Sta. Eec, 12. « Ept. 1898. 



