APPENDIX. 109 



ground food is given it is taken into the stomach 

 withput much' mastication, hence il; is not properly 

 mixed with saliva which is necessary for its sub- 

 sequent digestion. When oats are in process of 

 mastication, four times its bulk of saliva is se- 

 creted in the mouth and this is needed to digest 

 it. Where corn meal is fed, but a quarter of the 

 proper amount of saliva is secreted and so on with 

 the other ground foods." 



The teeth having been attended to, the next 

 thing is to stop bolting of the food, and for this 

 purpose practical horsemen place the feed in an 

 extra large, shallow feed box or put a few cobble 

 stones in the feed box or mix a handful of old, 

 dry, hard shelled corn or field peas among the 

 oats or use one of the patent boxes. 



To stimulate secretion of saliva, rock salt should 

 be kept before the horse at all times, and when 

 this is done he will drink more water and should 

 always have it befot-e but not after feeding. 

 How to Water a Horse. 



The stomach of the horse holds but 3}^ gallons. 

 If he eats his oats, which remain in the stomach 

 for digestion, and then drinks four or five gallons 

 of water, the latter, as explained above, passes 

 through the stomach and lodges in the large- in- 

 testines, and in doing so must of necessity wash 

 out undigested oats into the intestines, where they 

 are not digested, but decompose and set up irrita- 

 tion or give forth gas, which causes colic. 



