The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1856-11-26
ssfFromthe Albany Cultivator.
sso50N BEARING COLTS.

much interest, several articles in your
paper in relation to rearing and training
colts, and as I do not consider the sub
ject exhausted, 1 will give you my expe-
rience and practice.
During the past thirty years, since
1925, I have bred and trained quite a
number ofeelts, and have had no difficult
~ in learning them to be kind and gen.
tie in the harness, or under the saddle,
with the treatment I give them.
For brood mare select one that is
sound if you can, but by all means one
that Is kind to work and on a farm she
will do almost as much work while rails
ing a colt as without, and she can be
worked Reasonably up to the time of
foaling; then let her rest two weeks,
and she may again be put to light work,
such az ~cultivating corn, for two or
three hours in a day. And now is the
time to commence training the colt; first
let him become familiar with you by
gently handling him until he is not shy,
but will allow you to lay your hand up
on him without fear or starting, which
viii be in a very short time if you treat
him kindly. Next prepare a halter that
will fit him ; the head-stall should be of
leather, or some fat substance that will
not hurt his head, and the leading-string
q cordsstrong enough to hold him, and
long enough to form a loop large enough
to go around the mare's neck and allow
the colt to suck. Now if you have treat
ed yeur colt as kindly as you should,
you can put the halter on him without
any violence, and after putting the loop
around the mares neck, let some one
lead her off gently, and if the colt at
tsmpts to pull back, just touch him up
with q small switch, and he will natu-
rally follow che dam without much urg-
ing. After one or two lessons of this
kind, you can harness your mare before
thefsingleIwaggon, make the colts halter
fast to the thill strap on the right hand
side ofthe dam, with sufficient length
of rope to allow him to suck, and you
car go to mill or meeting without hay-
ing to chase after a stray colt.
The next important treatment of the
colt is weaving. This can be done best
during the latter part of October or first
of November. or as soon as the nights
are cold enough to require shelter for
young animals. Put your mare and
colt into a stall wide enough for both to
lay down comfortably in make the colt
fast with the halter in such q way that
he cannot reach to suck, but allow him
to eat oats or some other suitable grain
with his mother do this at night only
atr6rst, allowing him to get milk occa-
~sionaily fora few of the first days, which
viii also help the dam about drying up
her milk. Now feed them both regular
lyand literally, and give the colt exer-
else daily in an open yard, and he viii!
not miss his milk or his mother, but he
should by no means lose his sucking
flesh the first winter, and when he comes
to grass the second summer he will grow
finely.
The SO cond winter a colt will do well
in an open yard day times, but should
be provided with a shelter or stable that
be can have access to at night, and Sdu.
ring cold storms, as well as all other farm
stock.
When a colt is coming two years old
1t should take q second lesson in horse.
ozogy.n The bit should be substituted
for the halter a few lessons daily of one
hour each, are all that is necessary in
this branch, before the harness is put on
aud adjusted properly, until he is famil-
Jar with that as we'll as a bit. Let it
be distinctly understood that during all
this training no violence or whipping is
to come into the treatment; patience
and kindness with good language, tell.
ing the colt plainly as you would a per.
son, what you van him to do, and he
will soon learn to do it. AS soon as the
colt il familiar with the bit and harness
you may hitch him up by the side of hi.
mother before a light sleigh or wagon
according to the time of year, and drive
moderately n or two miles for the frs
time, and repeat the operation at future
times as occasion requires, till this les
SON is so well learned that he will al
ways be familiar with it the rest of hi
life.
The colt is now two years old familia,
with the halter, bit, and harness. Shall
It be worked My experience says yes
but only at light work and at short in
tervals, such as is at all times at hanc
on a we'll conducted farm but allow nj
one to drive young colts but yourself
My practice is to give the colt the ad
vantage of its dam on the eyener, to tina
degree that the colt can with ease draw
its share of tho draft, and at the same
time be sure and have no moro loaG
than your team can draw without the
assistance OF the colt. By pursuing thii
course you can work colts and steers suf
fciently to have them perfectly teinoc
1t three years old, and in better healtl
and condition than they otherwise coulC