THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



13 



View him in the service of man in every 

 situation, when treated with humanity, 

 and he is always ready and willing with 

 an aspect happy, cheerful and gay. 



If by our report, we can aid in dissemi- 

 nating information to the public in the 

 way of breeding and rafsing this noble 

 animal, the horse, we think we shall have 

 done some. good. The breeding and rais- 

 ing of horses is both an amusing and 

 pleasing task, and is well worth the at- 

 tention of every person whose situation 

 will admit of it. In the first place, be 

 particular in selecting a good stock to 

 breed from in order to raise a beautiful 

 and good horse ; a stallion should be made 

 choice of, that will be a good cross and of 

 good blood ; he should not be less than 

 five feet two inches high, but five feet four 

 inches high is a preferable size. He 

 should be well proportioned, elegantly 

 formed, and clear of all defects, particu- 

 larly the spavin and blindness, and should 

 be a sure foal getter. 



A mare should be made choice of not 

 less than five feet high, five feet four inches 

 is preferable, with a delicate head and 

 neck, great length of body, large belly ; 

 her thighs long, large, full and bulging ; 

 her fore arm large and swelling towards 

 her breast ; hocks broad, strong and bony ; 

 legs of moderate size, thin, flat and si- j 

 newy, pasterns rather long and small than j 

 otherwise. When you commence breed- 

 ing with a mare of the above description, [ 

 you are almost certain of raising a valua- j 

 ble colt. . . 



Indeed, there appears to be a great si- 1 

 milarity in the blood horses to that which I 

 exists in man, as respects their good and j 

 bad qualities, shape, &c. We see vice, f 

 common throughout some families, while 

 we see virtue reigning in others. One 

 breed of horses, under every care and at- j 

 tent ion, will only raise you a coarse horse j 

 or pony ; whilst good blooded horses show j 

 strong marks of beauty, activity and size. 



When a colt is foaled early in the 

 spring, he or she will be under every be- 

 nefit that can be derived from size, strength 

 and age; it would be advisabe, to put a 

 mare to a horse at such time as would 

 produce a colt from the 10th to the 15th 



of April. A mare generally goes with 

 foal eleven months and as many days as 

 she is years old. After your mare has 

 been put to the horse of your choice, she 

 should not be confined only in bad wea- 

 ther, during her being in foal. Mares fre- 

 quently produce colts at the age of fifteen 

 years, and sometimes twenty years of age. 

 They are not apt to produce at the latter 

 age. 



When the mare is near foaling let her 

 be to herself ; and if early to the season, 

 let her have a good roomy stable to foal 

 in ; in good weather, let her and colt be 

 turned into a lot of wheat or barley : do 

 not let them be turned in a lot where there 

 is green oats, it is poisonous to the colt. 

 Wean the colt about the 12th of Septem- 

 ber, or the 1st of October, in a stable, until 

 it is done fretting after its dam, then turn 

 it in a lot ; if you have more than one, 

 they will do best together; stable them 

 at night, and turn them out in the day 

 time, except in bad weather; force them 

 all you can the first winter. After they 

 are one year old, they should not be kept 

 so fat, nor permitted to get poor. A stud 

 colt, which is intended to be kept as such, 

 should be separated from other horses at 

 eleven months or a year old, and stabled 

 of nights, his rack and manger should be 

 so high as to strain him a little to get his 

 food; the windows of the stable should 

 also be high, as he will be looking out at 

 them ; by this means his shoulders will 

 be thrown back and his wethers raised. 

 How graceful it looks for a horse's shoul- 

 ders to be well thrown back, and his we- 

 thers well raised. 



The best plan we have found to in- 

 crease a colt's quarters, enlarge his mus- 

 cles, and other material parts, is to keep 

 him in the stable, frequently for several 

 days altogether, which will animate him, 

 then turn him out in a lot, and encourage 

 him to run and exert himself all you can, 

 as his parts will acquire size and strength 

 in proportion to the use made of them. — 

 When a colt arrives at the age of two or 

 two and one-half years old, it is time that 

 he should be handled and taught the use 

 of the bit. It is of great consequence he 

 should be first gentled by a person who 



