HAY AND FORAGE FOR THE HORSE 



355 



family as clover hay, and meets with similar objections. 

 It is likely to be dusty, especially when grown in regions 

 of considerable rainfall. It seems certain that alfalfa 

 fed in limited quantities will prove as efificient as timothy 

 to the slow-going draft horse. Horses are very fond 

 of alfalfa, and it is necessary to guard against feeding an 

 oversupply. Like clover, there is no better forage for 

 the young and growing colt. 



FIG. 160.— ARABIAN STALLION "NIMR" 



Cereal hay. — Cereal plants, such as oats, barley and 

 wheat, are often harvested before the grain matures and 

 the forage used as hay. Such hay is extensively used 

 on the Pacific Coast, especially in California, where it is 

 held in high esteem as a forage for race horses. Cereal 

 hay may often be advantageously employed for horse 

 feeding in the eastern United States. When timothy 

 commands a very high price, many successful farmers 

 sell their timothy and raise oat hay for their work horses. 



