362 FEEDING ANIMALS. 



of horses, and even for colts, but to the latter must be 

 fed very sparingly. Bear in mind, it is chiefly the muscle 

 and the finest quality of springy bone that requires 

 development in the 



COLT. 



As we are now studying the proper development of the 

 colt, let us see what Nature provides for its early growth. 

 It will be seen from the analysis of the mare's milk, which 

 we gave on page 138, that the casein, or muscle-forming 

 element, is 3.40 per cent., butter 2.50, milk sugar 3.52, ash 

 .53 per cent., and water 90.05 per cent. The mare's milk 

 contains a larger percentage of water than cow's milk, but 

 the relative proportion of the food elements is nearly the 

 same. There is 9.95 per cent, of dry matter (food) in 

 mare's milk, and of this the food of respiration and fat 

 production (butter and milk sugar) amount to 6.02 per 

 cent., so the casein amounts to 3.40 per cent., or more 

 than one-third of the whole. This gives a little more 

 than one of nitrogenous to two of carbonaceous elements. 

 The colt thus receives food, in the mother's milk, in the 

 proportion of one of nitrogenous (muscle-forming) to 1.92 

 of carbonaceous elements. This tells us, in the strongest 

 possible language, that the colt requires food rich in 

 muscle- forming elements, and that it is a great mistake to 

 use food rich in starch, such as corn, or even barley, for 

 the young colt. 



For four to six months the colt takes its natural food 

 the milk of the dam. If this is in liberal supply, the colt 

 will be sufficiently nourished with the addition of the grass 

 it will get in pasture. But care must be taken to ascertain 

 whether the dam gives sufficient milk to produce a strong 

 growth. Scanty nourishment at this period is often fatal 

 to full development afterward. The whole system of the 

 young animal is plastic in the hands of the skillful feeder. 



