THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



77 



her to those who differ from us in opinion, 

 rather than breed her. A mare may be mode- 

 rately worked while in foal, until w T ithin a few 

 w r e«ks of the time for dropping it. She should 

 not be too fat, or the foal will be lean and weak 

 at first. She may be moderately worked while 

 suckling. She should be fed on grain in a 

 trough low enough for the colt to learn to eat. 

 It should be handled and learned to lead while 

 suckling, and left in the best condition for wean- 

 ing and standing the winter. It should be well 

 stabled with the privilege of running on a rye 

 field the first winter. If it is suffered to be- 

 come poor, its limbs will twist ; it will become 

 stunted in growth, which no after treatment 

 will fully counteract. Nor should it be kept 

 too fat after the first winter, nor forced to ma- 

 turity too soon, or you may give it a kind of 

 hot-bed growth which will greatly impair its 

 future value. 



There are many fine animals greatly injured 

 (especially in their breeding qualities) by being 

 forced to maturity too soon, to exhibit them at 

 our agricultural fairs. 



BREEDING. 



At two years old the colt should be broke, and 

 may be put to light and moderate work ; to do 

 which, a kind, soothing course should be pur- 

 sued; very much such a course as a judicious 

 parent would pursue with his child — first teach- 

 ing it that you are its friend, and do not wish 

 to hurt it. It will soon love and fear you and 

 as soon as it learns your will, it will obey you. 

 This discipline can be exercised with the bridle 

 and whip, very light applications of the latter 

 generally prove sufficient. Accustom it to, and 

 familiarize it with the saddle before it is mount- 

 ed, and with the harness before it is required to 

 draw. The horse is the most noble and docile 

 of all animals, and with the above coarse of 

 treatment carried out with proper discrimina- 

 tion, there will be but little trouble in making 

 him a pleasant and profitable animal, unless he 

 be one of those vicious exceptions to the gene- 

 ral character of his species — in which case a 

 little more severity will be required. There 

 has been many a fine animal neglected until he 

 was grown and then forced into subjection by 

 cruelty, which -is shocking to humanity, and 

 thus become heart-broken before subdued, and 

 rendered comparatively useless. The colt 

 should not be oppressed with heavy burthen 

 until fully grown. It may be ridden at two 

 years old by a light rider moderately, but if 

 too much weight be put upon it, it may injure 

 its spine, crook its limbs, make it sway- backed 

 and a stumbler. A filly may be put to service 

 much sooner than a colt, as she matures 

 quicker. 



FOOD AND WATER. 



Our rich soil and its products, together with 

 our mode of farming in Kentucky, do not com- 



pel us to resort to the many articles of food 

 which are generally used in Europe, such as 

 beans, barley, roots, chaff, &c, nor does econo- 

 my require it. We prefer selling the barley to 

 the brewer, feeding the groom with the beans, 

 and the chaff, &c, to an inferior class of stock. 

 We think corn, oats, rye, hay, grass and fodder 

 cheapest and best food for horses ; and if pro- 

 perly prepared arid judiciously given are all that 

 the horse requires as food, but the too common 

 practice of feeding corn in the ear as a constant 

 diet is objectionable. It is neither healthy for 

 the horse ; nor is it economical. It is liable to 

 make him feverish and constipated in his bow- 

 els, and predisposes him to scratches and other 

 diseases, while at the same time experience 

 teaches us that eight ears of corn crushed is a 

 better feed and will keep a horse in better con- 

 dition than twelve fed to him without crushing. 

 There is no better feed for the horse that works 

 on the farm than rye meal or crushed corn, 

 mixed with cut rye-straw, or sheaf-oats cut fine, 

 and (if 'not freezing weather) moistened with 

 water. The rye-staw is the most economical, 

 will keep the horses' bowels in better condition 

 than the cut oats, and is but little inferior to it 

 in nutriment. There is no feed that will put 

 flesh on the horse quicker. This feed is objec- 

 tionable for the saddle or harness horse, when 

 quick hard work is required. It distends his 

 stomach too much, causing it to impair the ac- 

 tion of the lungs, making him short-winded and 

 sluggish, impairing digestion and rendering him 

 liable to cholic. For such service feed him on 

 shelled oats, hominy and corn-blades. Horses 

 should be fed regularly, their diet should be 

 often changed, and not more given at a time 

 than they will eat. It is better for thein to 

 quit with appetites than to leave food in their 

 troughs to sour. The work horse, (when 

 stabled), should have his manger always filled 

 with good hay or fodder. Clover hay is best, 

 if properly cured, but a dusty, mouldy article 

 is inferior to rye-straw. Corn-blades is per- 

 haps the best provender that the horse can 

 have and he is fonder of it than any other ; but 

 it requires more labor to save it than comports 

 with good economy unless it be in a season of 

 drought like the present, when the grass has 

 failed. When the horse has to be stabled, it is 

 good to soil him occasionally with clover or 

 or grass, but when practicable w r e prefer his 

 running out at night and selecting for himself. 

 The horse should be regularly watered as 

 . often as he needs it ; he frequently suffers for 

 want of it, especially in winter. Do not turn 

 him out to eat snow, from laziness to water 

 him. It matter not how much, or upon what 

 you feed him, without a bountiful supply of 

 water he will necessarily be in a bad condition. 

 Cistern or pond water, is better than spring or 

 well or any hard water ; he will have a better 

 coat and be less liable to gripes, after using the 

 one, than he would if required to drink the 

 other. 



