364 FEEDING ANIMALS. 



always at hand in cow's milk. A little practice will soon 

 teach the young colt to take cow's milk with a relish. New 

 milk may be given at first, but soon replaced with skim- 

 milk, which, possessing so large a proportion of casein, or 

 muscle-forming food, and phosphate of lime, is exactly 

 adapted to the growth of muscle and bone. This is also 

 so cheap that vigorous growth may be kept up at very 

 small cost. For colts one or two months old, one quart of 

 milk given morning and evening will be sufficient. It may 

 be sweetened a little at first to render it more palatable. 

 Colts, like children, are fond of sweets ; but sugar should 

 only be added as a temptation in teaching them to eat, for 

 it is a fattening food and improper to be given as a diet. 

 This use of cow's milk in growing colts is not a mere 

 theory with the author, he has tested it in many in- 

 stances, and found it admirably adapted to the purpose. 

 He remembers two colts that were fed a little skinvmilk 

 after two months old till weaned, and then continued in 

 larger quantity after weaning and through the first winter. 

 They were given from four to six quarts of milk each, per 

 day, with hay and one quart of oats, till one year old. 

 These colts grew very steadily, developing all parts of the 

 body evenly, and made horses 100 Ibs. heavier than either 

 sire or dam. They were much inclined to exercise, and 

 test comparative speed, at all periods during growth, and 

 more muscular horses, of their inches, are seldom seen. 

 We once purchased some colts six months old, of a good 

 breed, that had been kept on insufficient food, and not 

 properly developed for that age. To make amends for 

 this want of care and food, four quarts of skim-milk was 

 given to each colt for one month and then increased to six 

 quarts, which ration, with jbwo quarts of oats per day, was 

 continued for six months, or till one year old. This pro- 

 duced a development which no grain ration could have 

 done. The advantage of the milk ration over a like amount 



