204 THE PRINCIPLES OF BREEDING 



offers a channel of infection which may admit the most danger- 

 ous bacteria, more care would be taken to prevent such infection. 



During the existence of the colt as a suckling some especial 

 precautions must be taken in addition to those already men- 

 tioned. The milk flow must be maintained by succulent forage, 

 the colt must be fed often, and the dam must at no time be in 

 such a condition as to render the milk injurious to the foal. 



Most breeders advise leaving the colt in the stable while the 

 dam is at work, but others allow the colt to' follow the dam to 

 the field. The objection to the former method is that unless the 

 mare is returned at least once during each half day the colt 

 becomes veiy hungry, and when the mare comes to him sweat- 

 ing he gorges himself on the milk with which the udder is dis- 

 tended. This milk is often rendered injurious by the heated 

 condition of the mare, and it thus becomes a cause of serious 

 digestive disorder, especially when so much is taken. It is a 

 good thing to encourage the colt, as it grows older, to take a 

 few oats, preferably crushed, from its mother's allowance, or a 

 creep may be especially constructed for the foal to feed in. If 

 two mares and foals are allowed together, the youngsters will 

 form an attachment for each other which will prove of great 

 service in reconciling them to the weaning process. 



The Next Breeding. — Observations have shown that a mare 

 may be bred with greater certainty of success on the ninth day 

 after foaling than at any subsequent date. It is also known that 

 mares which have their sexual ardor somewhat suppressed by a 

 moderate degree of fatigue are more apt to conceive than mares 

 in an extremely nervous condition at the time of service. It is 

 for this purpose that the Arab gives his mare a sharp run just 

 prior to service. 



Breeding Two-Year-Old Fillies. — The advisability of 

 breeding fillies at two years of age is an economic question 

 which is frequently considered, and concerning which there 

 is a great deal of difference of opinion. It may be said, in the 

 first place, that it all depends upon the filly. Horses of draft 

 breeding mature much earlier than the hot-blooded sort, so that a 



