28 HORSE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA 



observations made by practical men in other countries, 

 prove that, although horses readily take to maize as a 

 food, digest it, and on it get fat and acquire glossy coats, 

 they show a marked deficiency in vigour, speed, and 

 stamina to animals fed on oats. Professor Bruchmiiller, 

 who conducted a six months' trial of feeding 5200 horses 

 partly on maize, came to the conclusion that it can be 

 used to advantage only with horses that are not required 

 to move out of a walk. 



Hiram Woodruff, the celebrated American trainer, thus 

 writes : '' The grain should be oats of good quality. I do 

 not let colts have corn at all when young ; and even to 

 old horses I think it should be fed very sparingly. . , . 

 Above all, avoid Indian corn in all shapes for young colts. 

 . . . Keep the corn for the bullocks and hogs, and give 

 oats to the horses." 



The experience, however, of horse-owners in South 

 Africa — where Indian corn and oat-hay form the staple 

 food for horses — places the food-value of this grain in 

 a more favourable light. The fact remains that the 

 majority of South African mail-coach horses, which have 

 to do 10 to 12 mile stages over bad ground at a fair 

 rate of speed, go through their work well and keep in 

 good condition on nothing but maize and oat or wheat 

 chaff. At the same time, it is well recognized by those 

 in charge of these and other horses in that country, that 

 the addition of a few pounds of oats or of oat-hay to the 

 daily allowance of maize and chaff is very useful for 

 imparting additional vigour to these animals. These coach 

 horses — which are hardy, light-built animals of an average 

 height of about 14 hs. 2 in. — get about 18 lbs. of 



