Fitting Jlor.ies for Show and Sale 1347 



to put on, tlierc is profit in fattening liorses for market 

 from the standpoint of weight. The draft horse market 

 is a peculiar one, in tliat weiglit is one of the more impor- 

 tant factors in determining the price. 



In fattening draft Iiorses, it i.s common to stall-feed. 

 The reason for stall-feeding rather than lot-feeding is 

 because the horses when highly fed will often kick and 

 injure one another to some extent. The horses will 

 also make quicker gains when kept up than when allowed 

 to exercise as much as they naturally would. The horses 

 are put in the barn and started on feed gradually. Great 

 care must be exercised for the first few days not to put 

 them on feed too rapidly, as they are somewhat susceptible 

 to colic. A common method in the larger feeding estab- 

 lishments is to feed them three times a day at first, and 

 gradually increase to a full ration and five feeds a day. 

 The reason for feeding so many times a day is because 

 the horse has a small stomach and so he needs food in 

 smaller quantities and more often. Hay is kept before 

 the horses practically all the time, and is usually fed 

 immediately after the grain so as to cause the horse to 

 eat all the grain possible. The horse should have all 

 the water he can possibly drink, and preferably before 

 he has the regular feed, so as not to hinder digestion by 

 drinking a large amount. Oats, rolled barley, wheat 

 bran, and oil meal make up the larger portion of the grain 

 feed. Farther east, corn is used to a large extent. A 

 mixture of rolled oats and barley of equal parts, together 

 with from two to three pounds of wheat bran a day, will 

 make a very satisfactory ration. The amount of bran 

 or oil meal fed will need to be regulated according to the 

 condition of the horse, as some will eat more bran than 

 others. Bran is somewhat laxative in its general nature. 



