8 The Diseases of Animals 
as then he is less likely to gorge himself on the new 
diet. Fresh grass usually acts very beneficially on 
an animal, improving the tone of the whole system. 
A variety of foods generally gives the best results. 
Animals at severe work rarely keep up in flesh if fed 
chiefly on green succulent food. Palatability of food,— 
that is, agreeable taste,—is also very important. 
Common salt is essential to practically all domestic 
animals, and it should be given to them frequently. 
If animals are allowed free access to salt they eat 
only what nature requires; but to animals not ac- 
customed to it, salt must be supplied very gradually, 
or they will eat too much at first and are likely to 
be overtaken by indigestion or even death. Sheep 
are sometimes poisoned by eating too much salt when 
they are not accustomed to it. Fine or rock salt may 
be used. Every good farmer knows that he must salt 
his sheep often (Fig. 8). 
“Bolting” the food, or gulping it rapidly and 
without sufficient mastication, is always injurious to 
animals. Some horses acquire this as a habit, and it is 
hard to overcome. One of the best methods of prevent- 
ing it is to spread the grain over a large area, as on 
the bottom of a manger, so that the horse cannot 
easily obtain large mouthfuls. There are iron feed- 
boxes, divided into small compartments, that accom- 
plish the same results. Smooth round stones, the 
size of a man’s fist, can be placed in the ordinary 
feed-box, so that the horse is required to nose them 
over in order to get the grain. Animals that bolt 
their food should be given ground feed. 
