a2 
FARM, 
Tie 
Care of Horses. 
Good farm horses cost money, and no 
one can afford to injure any expensive 
chattel. Horses are the farmer’s willing 
slaves, and if they are treated kindly, fed 
well and judiciously, not over-worked, 
their strength not unduly taxed, there is 
nothing in reason they will not willingly 
do Why beat and starve a horse? Why 
work him until he is ready to drop with 
heat and thirst? Why leave him standing 
alongside the plough in the blazing sun, or 
bleak, cutting wind, whilst you or your 
man go the house for dinner and a h_.ur’s 
comfortable rest?. Of all cruelties to a 
horse, one of the most inhuman is to work 
the animal from early morning till noon 
without being allowed a spell or a drink 
unless the ploughman wants a spell him- 
self. ‘Ihe horses may or may not have 
had a drink before going to work, yet at 
noon they get a feed of dry lucerne hay 
and a little corn; then, mad with thirst 
they are taken toa creek or waterhole, and 
allowed to drink all they can 
with no 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
thought of the possible bad effect of the 
cold water on an overheated system. 
Horses require water at frequent in- 
tervals, To let an animal drink at 7 a.m. 
and then work it till noon without any 
refreshment, is cruelty. If those in charge 
of horses would only pause and think of 
the effect of a drink on themselves, per- 
chaps they would have more consideration 
for the patient horses. The man_ feels 
thirsty afer following the harrow in the 
dust for an hour, and quenches his thirst 
from the water-bag. It is not long how- 
ever, before he again feels he must have 
arefresher, Why can he not consider 
that the same causes produce the same 
effect on his horses? There would be little 
time lost if they were allowed a drink 
every two hours, and they would work all 
the better for it, 
Tt has been found that a horse drinks 
less water in a given time if he has con- 
tinual access to it in the stable than when 
A horse should 
always be allowed to quench his thirst on 
cowing from work, even if he is hot. <A 
very general opinion exists that it is in- 
jurious to water,horses when in such a 
state of heat, and they are therefore, in 
many instances, not watered until they 
have somewhat cooled down; this opinion 
_is wrong, as it does not hurt horses to 
drink cold water directly they return 
from work. It is, however, hurtful to 
let a horse drink after he is partly conled 
watered at lo~g intervals. 
down, and this practice is very liable to 
cause a chill to the system. It may often 
be noticed that horses that have come in 
hot, and are not watered directly, but 
some time after \ard8 comme ce to shiver. 
OODNESS Sake Use 
) stance. 
July 1, 1909 
atter drinking, a bucketful of water, 
whereas, if a horse is allowed to drink 
before the blood has cooled down, he will. 
not do so, 
entering the body, absorbs a certain 
amount of heat from the system, in order 
to bring its temperature up to the internal’ 
temperature of the animal drinking it. 
In the case of a horse in a hot state, the 
loss of heat is not felt, as there is sufficient. 
heat to spare, whereas, in a horse which 
has already partly cooled down, and whose: 
system has begun to flag, the sudden. 
further loss of heat occasioned by the cold 
water entering the body, and absorbing: 
heat causes the to become 
chilled. 
Now, as to feeding horses. THe animal's: 
constitution must be studied. One horse 
will have a good appetite, eat up all his 
dinner, and be ready for the afternoon’s 
work in a reasonable time, whilst a horse 
with a poor appetite will take more titie,. 
and pick out the best parts, This is no: 
fault of the horse. He wants some: 
appetising medicine, Give him Ssothe- 
thing less in quantity but better in 
quality—a little bran or pollard, for in- 
This will enable the 
horse to keep up to his work, Old horses: 
must have more attention than young 
ones in the matter of food, It is un- 
reasonable to expect old horses to do the 
same amount of work as younger ones on 
the same kind and amount of food, Re- 
system 
_member that horses have small stomachs,. 
so they should not be fed too much at one 
time, If you allow a horse to gorge him- 
self, he will get indigestion. 
eee et 
The explanation of this, no 
doubt, is as follows:—Cold water, on. 
weaker 
ee 
j 
