310 FEEDING AND WATERING. 



comes as nutritious as any part of the grain, and adds just so much to its food prop- 

 erties. 



3. The entire grain is digested and no portion of it wasted; nor is there any 

 loss in the efforts of the stomach to do the work of the cook and the grist-mill. 



4. The loss in feeding raw grain is changed to gain in the cooked feed, a smaller 

 quantity of the cooked grain giving a larger proportion of animal strength. 



5. The primary cause of much illness and derangement of digestion in ani- 

 mals is removed by the use of properly cooked feed. 



It seems to the writer that cooked feed is especially important 

 to horses having weak digestion, and for old, enfeebled horses. 



When a horse v is " off his feed," by overeating or want of 

 proper exercise, the better way is to reduce his usual quantity of 

 grain one half for three or four days or a week, when he will eat 

 again as well as ever. 



I here give Mr. Bonner's system of feeding : — 



In the morning; at five o'clock in summer and six o'clock in winter, each 

 horse is given two quarts of oats. At nine O'clock two quarts more are given, and 

 the same quantity is given, again at one o'clock. Before feeding, each horse is given 

 all the water he will take, unless he is to be driven, in which case the allowance is 

 cut short a little. At fjve o'clock in the afternoon the allowance of hay is given, 

 usually about ten pounds to each horse ; and none is given at any other time during 

 the twenty-four hours. At nine in the evening each horse is given a warm supper, 

 prepared as follows : For ten horses twenty quarts of oats are put into a large ket- 

 tle and boiled, after which is added about the same quantity of wheat bran by meas- 

 urement, with the proportion -of a teaspoonful of salt to each horse. The whole is 

 thoroughly mixed, and, when sufficiently cool, each is given his share. If not 

 driven, each horse is walked from half an hour to an hour daily, and the greatest 

 care is taken not to expose them needlessly for a moment without blankets. 



The following is the routine pursued with Dexter : — 



At six every morning, Dexter has all the water he wants, and 

 two quarts of oats. After eating, he is " walked " for half an hour or 

 more, then cleaned off, and at nine has two quarts more of oats. If 

 no drive is on the card for afternoon, he is given a half to three 

 quarters of an hour of gentle exercise. At one o'clock he has his 

 oats again, as before, limited to two quarts. 



From three to four he is driven from twelve to fifteen miles ; 

 after which he is cleaned off and rubbed thoroughly dry. 



He has a bare swallow of water, on returning from the drive, 

 but is allowed free access to his only feed of hay, of which he con- 

 sumes from five to six pounds. - 



If the drive has been a particularly sharp one, he is treated, as 

 soon as he gets in, to a quart of oatmeal gruel ; and when thor- 

 oughly cool, has half a pail of water and three quarts of oats, with 

 two quarts of bran moistened with hot water. 



