58 HORSE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA 



to this rule will be: when the horse is in a state of 

 enforced idleness ; when his appetite is in a depraved or 

 abnormal condition ; and when he is required for immediate 

 work. When a horse's powers are fully taxed, he should 

 be allowed as much hay and suitable corn as he chooses 

 to consume. This now leads us to the pertinent question, 

 '' what proportion should the nitrogenous matter in grain 

 bear to the starchy constituents ? " From the teaching 

 of experience, which here can alone direct us, we may 

 learn that, for moderate work, it should not exceed that 

 which is contained in oats, namely, 10 to 47 (about). To 

 find the maximum, we may assume a diet of four parts of 

 oats and one part of beans (as given in ^England to hard- 

 worked animals), which will give us the proportion of 

 10 to 38 (about). 



To determine the maximum amount of nitrogenous 

 food, I think we may safely assume it to be about that 

 contained in 20 lbs. of oats, namely, 2^ lbs. (about). If 

 we are forced, by circumstances, to use a grain, such as 

 gram, or kulthee, which is too rich in nitrogen, we should 

 do so at the expense of the starch, but should, on no 

 account, exceed the amount of nitrogen already laid down ; 

 for if we do so, the excess will tend to produce the derange- 

 ments of the system which have been already mentioned. 



Eespecting the supply of fat, I am unable to say 

 anything more definite than I have done in the previous 

 pages of this chapter. Dr. Parkes' proposition, that "if 

 men are undergoing great exertion, they take more food, 

 and if they can obtain it, the increase is especially in the 

 classes of albuminates and fats," holds equally well with 

 regard to horses. 



