318 ROAD, TRACK, AND STABLE. 
In a cold stable the horse may require in severe 
weather two, or even three and four heavy blankets. 
John Splan sensibly remarks, “If it comes to a cold 
night, and you think you want an extra blanket on 
your own bed, see that the horse has one.” 
Beside these individual blankets the stable should 
contain one or more hoods, and coolers, and a rubber 
blanket for cold rains. The office of the hood I have 
already described. The cooler is a Jong, thin all-wool 
blanket, extending over the neck and fastened by 
safety pins. It is used when the horse comes in 
from work. Horsemen frequently remark, sometimes 
by way of an argument in favor of clipping, that, if 
a horse with a long coat gets thoroughly wet with 
‘sweat, he will not become dry again for hours, — often, 
in fact, will remain wet through the whole night. 
But when this happens, unless in some exceptional 
case, it is because of wrong management. The cus- 
tom is to put on the animal’s heavy clothing at once, 
when he comes in hot, and this causes him to sweat 
profusely and to become unduly heated. The proper 
way is to let him stand for a very short time, three 
or four minutes being the maximum, with no blanket, 
then put on the cooler, his legs and fetlocks being pro- 
tected by the straw, in which he stands knee deep, or 
by bandages, and let him so remain until he is dry, or 
until he feels cool to the hand. Then he may resume 
his ordinary heavy clothing. Of course, judgment must 
be used in this process of cooling; and the time during 
which the cooler is employed should vary, according 
to the temperature of the stable and the nature of the 
horse, from five minutes to an hour or more. I have 
never known a horse to take cold under this method. 
