THE CARE OF HORSES. 293 
and horses have even less affinity than dogs for 
dampness. Dryness of climate, says a recent writer, 
“is the great factor in producing not only sound feet, 
but sound limbs, tendons, and bone.” However, it is 
time to look a little closer at our stalls, and to see 
what they contain in the way of 
BEDDING. 
Here is a gamy-looking black mare standing on a 
deep bed of dark brown stuff which might be, and 
indeed has been, mistaken by the unsophisticated for 
a muck-heap. I need hardly say that it is peat-moss. 
It is not nice to look at, and one would rather see his 
horses knee deep in golden straw; butit has this 
great advantage: it cannot be eaten even by the most 
voracious animal, and consequently it is suitable for 
horses that devour their bedding and get too fat. 
Moreover, it keeps the feet soft. No horse bedded 
with peat-moss ever requires to have his feet stopped ; 
and it is invaluable in cases where the hoof is defect- 
ive or deficient, and needs to be “grown out.” Fur- 
ther, it is free from odor, and incombustible. Some- 
times peat-moss renders the frog too soft, so that the 
horse, especially if he be used unshod, is apt to be- 
come foot-sore, but this bad effect might always be 
avoided by a frequent renewal of the peat-moss. 
And this brings us to the question of expense. ‘The 
material costs about $2.50 per bale, and each bale will 
supply one box stall or two straight stalls. The peat- 
moss should be forked over every day to mix the wet 
and the dry. But how long does it last? That de- 
pends almost entirely upon the habit of the particular 
horse in eating his hay; if he eats it up clean, the 
