6 
THE PERCHERON REVIEW 
Money in Draft-Horse Breeding 
There seems to be a diversity of opinion as to 
whether or not the breeding of good draft horses 
from the practical standpoint is a profitable propo- 
sition. Speaking from a personal standpoint and as 
one experienced in horse breeding, I believe I am in a 
position to discuss this subject from the practical or 
profitable standpoint of a farmer. 
By way of illustrating the feasibility of the horse 
breeding proposition, I recently sold to a Boston 
shipper four grade Percheron geldings for $1,000. 
These geldings coming four and five year olds, our 
own breeding and feeding, are of the heavy draft 
type. 
They are the embodiment of symmetry, quality, 
and weight. While these horses have not reached 
full maturity or been fed out, nevertheless the four 
head weighed 7,200 pounds, making an average 
weight of 1,800 pounds. 
These colts have been regular workers on the 
farm and because of this fact the cost of breeding, 
feeding, and care has been amply remunerated by 
their service as farm power. The selling price 
is therefore our profit accruing from the horse breed- 
ing industry. 
The essential factors of horse raising, the factors 
that will tend to make an industry of this character 
profitable, are first good foundation breeding stock, 
and second, intelligent feeding. Intelligent feeding 
is a big factor in the horse breeding industry and it 
is the one essential factor that is seriously neglected 
by 80 per cent of the American farmers. 
It is an impossibility to produce colts weighing 
1,900 pounds at three years by feeding cornstalks and 
dry straw and having a barbed wire fence for shelter. 
Some farmers seem to believe that to give grain to 
young growing colts is an extravagant waste of feed. 
But it is a mistaken idea of economy to try to grow 
good draft horses with no other feed during the long. 
cold winter months than stalks in the fields, with 
possibly also access to a straw stack. Furthermore, 
if they wade the snow all winter, face cold blasts of 
wind, drink icewater, it is no surprise at all that they 
become frozen through and through and never thaw 
out till the middle of the following summer. 
Some people foolishly think that this is the way to 
raise tough horses, but abuse is not a part of good 
horse breeding. A colt once allowed to chill from 
exposure or the lack of sufficiently nourishing food 
will never make the same horse that he would had he 
been given the proper care and feed. 
Our colts on the Notre Dame farm are all haltered 
and stalled at night during the winter months and are 
fed plenty of good, bright alfalfa hay, with a mix- 
ture of shelled corn and oats. They are given a 
light feeding of these mixed grains twice a day. As 
a general rule, we feed, in addition to the grain 
mixture, a small amount of ensilage and a little oil 
meal or molasses. There is a regular access to water 
and plenty of exercise during the day. They are 
turned into a lot where they have constant access 
to a straw stack. 
Alfalfa is the one big factor which makes horse 
breeding profitable, but alfalfa alone is not sufficient 
to grow early maturing heavy draft horses with 
bone and quality. These must be fed grain — oats, 
bran, and some corn. The corn ration should be 
limited. 
Corn is a poor feed for growing animals of any 
breed. It produces fat, but will not make bone or 
muscle. We mix corn with oats in proper pro- 
portions to make a balanced ration for the growing 
colt. One of our full blooded Percheron studs 
weighed 2,190 pounds when he was only two years 
and ten months old. This gives evidence of the 
fact that it is not necessary for the American farmer 
to go to Europe for good draft horses. Just as good 
