FEEDING HORSES AND MULES 287 
to give carrots sliced longitudinally, so that they may not stick 
in the animal’s gullet and thus choke him” (Hayes). ‘Roots, espe- 
cially carrots, are greatly relished by horses, and are fed quite ex- 
tensively in Europe. Sliced potatoes, 10 to 12 pounds as a maxi- 
mum feed, may also be given, preferably mixed with cut hay or 
straw. 
Concentrates.—Among the concentrates oats are, in general, 
considered of a higher value in feeding horses than any other grain 
feed. They are eminently adapted for this purpose, and are relished 
better by horses than other cereals. Oats can be fed safely to horses, 
since the digestive tract of these animals does not hold a sufficient 
quantity to produce serious disorders. Owing to the presence of 
the hull, oats form a light and loose mass in the stomach, which 
makes it easy for the digestive fluids to permeate the mass and 
insures a more complete digestion. Oats should be fed whole to 
horses, or, at least, crushed or rolled, except in the case of old 
horses with poor teeth. If corn and oats are fed, as is a common 
practice in the East and central States, the feed should be coarsely 
ground, as it may otherwise give rise to colic and indigestion when 
swallowed fast by hungry animals. While oats form the common 
cereal fed to horses in most parts of the country, other grains are 
used in different sections and countries: Indian corn largely in the 
corn belt and the southern States, barley on the Pacific coast, in 
European countries, and North Africa. Barley is the common horse 
feed in Arabia, world-famous for its fine breed of horses. 
Corn is the main substitute for oats as a horse feed; a large 
number of stations'® have studied the question of the relative value 
of the two grains for this purpose. The general result of this work is 
to the effect that corn is a safe and satisfactory horse feed, and that 
the best method of feeding is to give a mixture of the two grains. 
This gives better results than corn alone and, in general, makes a 
cheaper ration than oats as a sole concentrate. In discussing concen- 
trates for horses, Gay says:1* “ When its general use in the corn belt 
States is considered, much of the prejudice of the eastern feeders 
loses weight. The average Iowa horse, for instance, is produced by 
a dam which was raised on corn, and had no other grain during the 
period of carrying and suckling her foal. The foal receives a little 
cracked corn or even cob corn for his first bite, with the amount 
4% Qhio Bulletin 195; Kansas Bulletin 186; N. Dakota Bulletin 45; 
Missouri Bulletin 114; also Exp. Sta. Rec., vol. 12, p. 4: E. Lavalard, 
* Notes on Horse Feeding.” 
4“ Productive Horse Husbandry,” p. 235. 
