9
29. Mirza Shuja Beg of Patti, Lahore District, is going to build a hospital
at Patti, and is also going to supply the necessary instruments and medicines.
Offers of free land for Veterinary Hospitals have been given at Attari in Amrit-
sar District and at Samburial in Sialkot District.
30. In the Jullundur District a hospital will be built by public subscrip-
tion at Alawalpur during the coming year; the land for the hospital has been
given by Sardar Ichhru Singh.
31. In Gujranwala District Chowdri Hussain Khan is prepared to
build a hospital at Kolutarar.
82. The best Veterinary Hospital in the Province has been built during
the year at Sialkot. The Chief Superintendent has to thank Mr. Abbott,
Deputy Commissioner of Sialkot, for the great interest he takes in the work
of the Department, and the help he has afforded the Chief Superintendent.
Table V.
33. Cases 317,802 in number were treated at the Veterinary Hospitals
against 301,847 during the past year. Considering the
shortage of Veterinary Assistants owing to the war the
work done is very satisfactory.
Part III.—Breeding Operations.
Horse-breeding.
34. At the close of the year there were 67 horse stallions and 78 donkey
stallions at work in the non-selected districts in the Province. There were
4 casualties and 2 replacements in horses and 3 and 6 in donkeys. The former
have been replaced by purchase by the Quartermaster-General, and the latter
by the Hissar Farm.
35. If the Province can breed its own Arab stallions the Punjabwill be
supplying all its own requirements for breeding. The Chief Superintendent has
mentioned the possibility of breeding Arabs at Hissar to General Broome the
Director General, Army Remount Department, who has very kindly consented
to let the Hissar Farm have two Arab mares per year from the Ahmadnagar
Depôt. It is hoped that when the scheme is put before Government it will
agree, because it must be remembered that the Arab market is not what it used
to be, and prices are rising. The Hissar climate approaches very nearly the
conditions in Arabia, and the Chief Superintendent is of the opinion that the
scheme is worth trying.
If the scheme is sanctioned the Punjab will be able to supply all its
own requirements from the Hissar Farm and be the most independent province
in India regarding breeding operations. At present jacks, bulls, ¾ and ½
bred merino tups are being supplied.
36. The produce of District Board stallions is good, but the owners
of the mares have a great deal to learn regarding the management and feeding
of young stock. The Department is doing a great deal to enlighten the owners
of stock regarding these matters.
37. Covering registers are still very incomplete. The Chief Superin-
tendent has carefully gone into the matter and finds that owners of mares are
generally too lazy to report foalings. The mares which do not hold are brought
again to the stallion and the Veterinary Assistant in charge is thus able to
write up the mares which have not held. Again mares change hands: very
often they are sold when in foal. Often the owner of a mare takes the animal
with a foal at foot to a stallion in a different portion of the district, or to a differ-
ent district, and never reports the foaling. Orders have been issued to the staff
to make enquiries when mares with foal at foot are brought to be covered,
and to report to the Veterinary Inspector of the district, that a certain mare
has a foal by a certain stallion not in his charge. The matter is a difficult
one to deal with.
38. The Chief Superintendent is of the opinion that the most important
feature is not the keeping of the registers, but the necessity for enlightening