CHAPTER V 



ON WATERING HOESES 



The blood being the source from which the different 

 tissues obtain materials for repair and development, and 

 the vehicle which conveys away the effete products 

 resulting from the constant waste that goes on in the 

 animal economy ; the whole question of nutrition depends 

 on supplying the system with materials suitable for 

 preserving that fluid in a normal and healthy condition. 



The proportion of water in the blood is about 750 

 parts in 1000 ; the variation being dependent on the 

 nature of the animal's work, food, state of health, etc. 

 Its presence is essential to the performance of the various 

 functions. If its supply be curtailed, the secretions that 

 are indispensable to the process of digestion are checked 

 either wholly or in part ; because the glands are unable 

 to obtain a sufficiency of water from the blood. If, on 

 the contrary, more water be drunk than is needed for the 

 requirements of the system, the excess is quickly eliminated 

 by the kidneys, skin, and lungs, without doing any harm. 

 We may conclude, therefore, that a full supply of water, 

 given a short time before feeding, is essential for the 

 proper digestion of food. 



