The Work Horse 253 



work. Such hays as alfalfa, clover, vetch, or the grain 

 hays furnish a fair amount of net energy but not usually 

 enough to supply the horse when he is working hard. 

 Timothy, wheat, and wild hay furnish but very little 

 net energy and the straws almost none. Among the feeds 

 that are usually high in protein are oil meal, bran, and 

 oats, also alfalfa, clover, and vetch hay. Barley and the 

 cereal hays are rather low in proteinj while timothy hay 

 and corn are very low. The feeds that are high in pro- 

 tein are also usually rather high in mineral matter, which 

 is an important point with young stock. 



The work horse has need for feeds supplying a large 

 amount of energy rather than protein. In order properly 

 to supply this, a horse at heavy work will require from 

 one and one-quarter to one and one-half pounds of con- 

 centrates and from one to one and one-quarter pounds 

 of hay to 100 pounds of live weight. A ration often used 

 for 1600-pound dray horses consists of twenty-two pounds 

 of oats and sixteen pounds of timothy hay a day with 

 two or three pounds of wheat bran and less grain on Satur- 

 day night and Sunday. The grain is cut down and the 

 bran fed on Saturday night and Sunday in order that the 

 horse will be lightly fed when idle and that the bowels 

 may be open so that he will not be so likely to be affected 

 with azoturia when put to work. The amounts listed are 

 about what the horse will consume when the hay is timothy, 

 but with clover or alfalfa the amounts must be limited, 

 since the horse given all he wants will eat entirely too much 

 hay and too little grain! 



FEEDING WHEN IDLE 



In the case of mature horses maintained in idleness, the 

 needs of the body are for maintenance of heat and the gen- 



