Fitting Horses for Show and Sale 347 
to put on, there is profit in fattening horses for market 
from the standpoint of weight. The draft horse market 
is a peculiar one, in that weight is one of the more impor- 
tant factors in determining the price. 
In fattening draft horses, it is 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, 
