WATER. 181 



alluded to, or by being deprived of his proper allowance of it at 

 regular intervals. Nothing is more easy for the master to detect, 

 when he visits his stable (as he should do at uncertain hours), 

 than a state of thirst. Few horses are allowed as much corn as 

 they will eat, and the rattling of the sieve or bin will make every 

 occupant of a stall place himself in an attitude of expectation. 

 But if the lifting of a bucket produces the same eager look, and 

 especially at any hour but the usual time of watering, it may at 

 once be concluded that the horse is not regularly and sufficiently 

 supplied with fluid, and it will generally be found that his condi- 

 tion suffers accordingly. It is astonishing how little water will 

 suffice if it is given at regular intervals, and it is the neglect of 

 this periodical supply which produces the craving that leads to 

 dangerous repletion. If it is decided to adopt the tank, provision 

 should also be made for emptying it readily, without calling upon 

 the groom to bale it out with a teacup, which I have actually seen 

 done in one particular stable, the owner of which prided himself 

 on the perfection of his arrangements. If the water only came 

 into contact with the iron, no great harm would ensue, because 

 the oxyde formed by the union of the oxygen in the water with 

 the metal itself, in the shape of common rust, is by no means pre- 

 judicial to health. But no iron manger containing water will long 

 remain free from decomposing vegetable matter, unless it is regu- 

 larly scrubbed out daily, because the horse, as he holds his head 

 over it during his feeding, drops particles of hay, corn, &c, into 

 the water, and this being raised in temperature to that of the sta- 

 ble, soon dissolves the starch and other ingredients which are 

 prone to decomposition. The consequence is that the sides of the 

 tank become foul, being covered with a thick slime, which not 

 only renders the water nauseous to the horse, but also makes it 

 prejudicial to his health. For this reason a waste-pipe and stop- 

 cock are absolutely essential, for by their aid alone can the groom 

 be expected to do his duty. 



The quantity of water which will be imbibed by horses 

 varies even more than that of their solid food, yet ignorant grooms 

 are too apt to give all alike. The most strenuous advocate for the 

 continuous supply would doubtless make an exception at those 

 times when horses are just about to be severely galloped, as in 

 hunting or racing; and on the other hand, almost all grooms who 

 know their business allow their charge to fill themselves at night, 

 and also give them a liberal allowance when they have done their 

 work and are dressed and cooled down after it. I have found in 

 my own stable, in measuring the actual quantity of water drunk 

 by the horses, that even among those which are doing the same 

 amount of work and eating similar food both in quantity and 

 quality, the water will vary from two buckets a day to nearly five. 

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