Feeds for the Horse. 



295 



plying each animal about fourteen pounds daily. These horses 

 averaged nine hours' work daily for all the working days of the 

 month. The horses gained in weight during the trial. Concern- 

 ing wheat as a horse feed Shepperd writes: "It was with difft- 

 culty that they (the horses) were kept from getting ' off feed ' 

 and otherwise deranged in digestion, when fed this ration of pure 

 wheat. A large proportion of the kernels were passed through 

 the alimentary tract unbroken, while other grains were broken 

 but only partially digested. . . . The test demonstrated clearly 

 that it is not advisable to use wheat alone sm a grain ration for 

 horses, and the less expert the feeder the greater the risk. ' ' (166-9) 

 463. Bran and shorts compared with oats. — Shepperd ^ com- 

 pared bran and oats as a feed for work horses and mules in sum- 

 mer, eight horses and four mules being used. The animals were 

 divided into two even lots, aJl receiving good prairie hay for 

 roughage. . To one lot was fed oats, while the other received a 

 mixture of bran and shorts, equal parts by weight. The horses 

 averaged somewhat more than seven hours work per day, the 

 labor being quite severe. 



Bran and shorts, equal parts by weight, compared with oats — North 



Dakota Station. 



Grain 

 eaten. 



Gain or loss 

 in weight. 



Work 

 done. 



Feeding bran and shorts. 



Total, equal to 876 horses one day 



Weekly average, per horse 



Feeding oats. 



Total, equal to 792 horses one day. 



Weekly average, per horse 



Lbs. 



12,910 

 103 



11,838 

 105 



Lbs. 



Loss 10 

 Loss 1- 



12 



Gain 10 

 Gain 1-12 



Hours. 



5,705 

 46 



4,796 

 42 



It is shown that the horses fed bran and shorts ate somewhat 

 less concentrates per week, lost a little in weight, but did three 

 and one-half hours more work per week each than those fed oats. 

 Upon the whole, bran and shorts proved of equal worth to oats 

 for feeding horses and mules. (174-5) 



464. Bran, whoie wheat and shorts versus bran and shorts. — 

 Shepperd ^ also compared the value of a mixture of bran, wheat 



1 Loc. cit 



' Loo. cit 



