F. C. MINETT
3
Segregation. In 1924 there were three main
segregation blocks, known as A, B and C, each
quite separate from the other and in fact one to
two miles apart. Each block was enclosed by
wire and was divided up by wire fencing into
small paddocks. 'A' block, for example, had
some 16 dry paddocks, each of about three to
four acres, and into one of these as many as 20-40
fresh purchases might be placed. Each block
had its own strangles hospital and convalescent
paddock where animals were put for one to two
months prior to removal to another part of the
segregation area. Major W. N. Rowston, R. A.
V. C., has stated that in 1924 young stock horses on
arrival were first put into block A and, when this
was full, blocks B and C were brought into
occupation. At a later date, it appears that block
C was reserved for mules. It is also stated that,
when the numbers of horses in a paddock were
depleted by strangles, it was the practice to fill
up with young mules. It is recounted that some
of the reception paddocks had a feeding chappar,
while others had none, feed-troughs made of
dried mud being placed around the bases of trees.
Actually, there is now little shelter in these
paddocks, as many trees have been injured
by waterlogging of the soil.
At the present
time, 'A' block alone remains, while other
arrangements have been made for the segregation
of mules. Plate [I, figs. 6 and 7 show the type of
reception paddock and hospital accommodation at
present existing.
Stud Farms
Information on the subject of this paper has
also been received from four Stud Farms, partly
maintained for Army Remount purposes, viz.
those at Probynabad, Coleyana and Renala in
the Punjab and that at Ahmednagar in Bombay.
In passing, it should be made clear that the
rearing of horses for army purposes is not confined
to stud farms, that is farms managed under the
Horse-breeding Grantee Scheme.
Considerable
numbers of horses are also produced in villages of
the Punjab under an 'area-breeding' scheme,
where people may keep only one or two mares.
On the other hand, some of the stud farms are of
considerable size. Coleyana and Renala Estates,
for instance, having about 7,500 acres of canal-
irrigated land and maintaining some 170-200
brood mares and 100-150 young stock (birth to
four to five years), in addition to thorough-bred
stock which are raised under private enterprise.
Under the conditions of the horse-breeding grant,
brood mares are approved by the Army Remount
Department, are mated with stallions similarly
approved, and the offspring offered at fixed
prices to the Army from 12-18 months of age.
If accepted, they are transferred to Mona or
Sargodha, otherwise they are sold privately or in
the case of suitable fillies retained for breeding
purposes. At Ahmednagar, which was closed in
1940, it was the practice to keep selected stock to
four to five years old and then send them direct to
units. Table IV shows the distribution of young
stock by age groups for two of the farms, Pro-
bynabad and Coleyana. At the former stud
those in the age groups of one, two and three
years are in roughly the same proportion, while at
Coleyana the proportion of yearlings is higher than
at later ages.
The animal husbandry procedures at the diff-
erent stud farms no doubt vary in detail according
to the will of the owner. According to the general
plan, mares foal chiefly in February to June and
smaller number in September to November, foals
are weaned at six or seven months, drafted into
batches of 10-15 and after some time the sexes
are separated. Stock are turned into grazing
(shaftal, lucerne) or exercise paddocks during the
day time and are sometimes brought into small
enclosures at night. On the Estates the agricul-
tural unit is the 'square' or 'rectangle', which
covers 25 acres. At Renala there are 44 such
squares, and most of these are subdivided into
four six-acre paddocks for rotational grazing,
with a centrally situated dry paddock with feed
chappar and trees for shelter (Plate II, fig. 8).
Each such square accommodates 10-12 animals.
At Coleyana, the stud area is divided into pad-
docks intended for exercise, grazing or for growing
fodder crops. This area is changed over about
once in five years, and a similar area which has
been under crops is taken over for the stud. At
present, the squares are being step by step
divided up into paddocks of five acres each for
rotational grazing or for purposes of exercise.
An open-air system is adopted on this estate, the
mares foal in the open, and as a general rule the
stock remain out at night, with trees and hedges
as the sole protection. The only exception to this
is that, after weaning, the animals are kept in half-
acre mud-wall enclosures (Plate II, fig. 9) for
about a month, so that they may be broken to
handling. Stocks are also brought into the yards
twice daily for grain feeding and rough grooming.
Watering is from troughs connected with small
tube-wells. For hot weather, ponds are provided
for stock to cool themselves.
CASE INCIDENCE OF STRANGLES BY YEARS
Remount Depots. Up to 1933, the figures avail-
able are for financial years (April to March),
and subsequently for 'strangles years' (Sept-
ember to August). It would have been difficult to
bring the figures on to a common basis, but for a