GROWTH OF FOALS. 369 



mixed food. The weight of each on the 15th day of May, 

 was, No. 1, 634 Ibs., a gain of 1.3 Ibs. per day; No. 2, 616 

 Ibs., a gain of 1.14 Ibs. per day; No. 3, 630 Ibs., a gain of 

 1.33 Ibs. per day; being an average gain of 1.26 Ibs. per 

 head per day, during the cold season, on 11 Ibs. of mixed 

 food. This gives a pound live weight for 8.72 Ibs., of 

 mixed food. European feeders* are much accustomed to 

 estimate all foods on the basis of hay; thus the 11 Ibs. of 

 oats and other grain would be equal to 17 Ibs. of hay, 

 making the whole ration equal to 39 Ibs. for the three colts, 

 or 13 Ibs. per head. This would make a pound gain in live 

 weight cost 10.31 Ibs. of hay. 



Boussingault mentions that he tested the quantity of 

 provender consumed by foals in full growth by taking Nos. 

 2, 4 and 5 when their united weight was 1,106 Ibs., or their 

 average weight 368. 6 Ibs., and found that they consumed 

 19.8 Ibs. of hay and 7 Ibs. of oats, which he calls equal to 

 11 Ibs. of hay all equal to 30.8 Ibs. of hay, or 10.26 Ibs. 

 each. On this they made an average gain of 1.2 Ibs. per 

 day. This was doing slightly better than our three colts ; 

 but he does not state how long this experiment continued, 

 and we are left to infer that it was not long. Both of 

 these cases show that the colt utilizes his food as well, and 

 adds a pound live weight from about the same food as the 

 calf. If we take the united weight (1,200 Ibs.) of our three 

 colts on the 16th of November, and their united weight 

 (1,880 Ibs.) on the 15th of May, we shall find that their 

 average weight during that 180 days was 1,540 Ibs., or 519 

 Ibs. each ; and if we call the ration 13 Ibs. of hay, it gives 

 2K per cent, of their live weight as an average ration. If 

 we estimate the cost of this ration, we shall find the cost of 

 putting a pound live weight upon a foal under full feeding, 



22 Ibs. of hay, at % cent '. 11 cts. 



6 " oats, at 1^ cents 1% " 



3 " bran, at % cent 2# " 



2 " oil-meal, at 2 cents 4 " 



Cost of 3.79 Ibs. of gain 24% cts. 



