Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-09-14
Grooming and Feeding Driving Horses.

warmly and protect from the cold such |
horses as are driven so rapidly as to cause |
profuse perspiration. Horses CT slow vorA
and coarse blood are generally furnished
with very thick, warm coat OF hair, end
readily become accustomed to endure the
cold without a blanket. A horse, how
ever, looks much better and requites less
food when blanketcd, and considering the
variableness and severity of our climate,
the use Of some artificial covering is, On
the whole, to be recommended.
Whenever horse is cleaned, q careful
groom will inspect his feet 20 see that his
shoes are tight, that there are no project,
ing clinches to wound his fetlocks, and
that there be nothing wedged into the foot
between the heels of the shoe, or between
the shoe aud the frog, which would do In
jury to the sole of the foot. He win also
with his pick (Which is simply short
piece of iron, with a thin, pointed hook
upon one end) thoroughly clean out tie
gravel and dirt lodged between the shoe
and the sole, and examine the sides and
cleft of the freq to be sure II is all right
The feet of well-bred horses, kept con-
stantly in the stable, would become I'M
naturally dry, hard and contracted, unless
some means were taken to, moisten and
soften them. The best method Of doing
this is TO fasten into the foot by strips OF
thin hoop-ifon, pieces of thick felt cut to
fit the inside of the shoe, and cover the
entire sole. These pieces of felt Tor they
may be made of several thicknesses OF
woollen cloth are wet and laid into the
foot and the strips of iron pressed in be-
tween the shoe and the felt Sometimes
The feet are " stopped /" or filed with oil
cake meal, or with cow.dung, or with
clay, but the same result Is more con-
venienily attained by the first method. In
dry, hot weather, fast working horses un-
less they have fiat feet and weak soles
should have the feet stuffed every night.
| 1t is thought by many to be an excellent
| plan to apply occasionally to all parts OF
| the feet OF horses an ointment consisting
of the equal parts of tar, lard, and bees
wax, ana it is probable that the boof thus
protected dries less rapidly and is rendered
less brittle.
Finally, the good groom will see to it
that his horse is so fed and exercised as to
be in the best possible condition for his
work. Neither horses nor men Can be
preserved in perfect health without sun.
shine, fresh air and exercise, and many
! enc animals are ruined by irregular work
nm. n highly stimulating food Whenever
a borso is not employed in his usual daily
t.sk No ,.hould be exercised at slow pace
nv his groom, or at least be allowed TO run
az ar Sour or twp in clean, roomy yard
Rv s,am ling day after day in his stable the
horse acn umulates fat, his blood becomes
heated an,' impure, and his tendons and
muscles sof I and unfit for violent e2ertion
| At the snns time he becomes FESTIVE FOL
want of exerc, Sc, and with his belly fuii o
food is liable To injnre himself whenevel
he il taken out, even though he have
driver sufficiently careful to restrain HIM
which is not often the case.
In this country it "a customary 10 lect
horses three times dur. ng the cay, anu u
most cases it is better 10 give ieIu !. ~
grain or roots at noon Il. IN 10 o.hl, y
| The stomach of the horse Is small anu u
| natural state he eats the gre "el PAL.
the time, laying down but seldol 1AceP: I.
few hours az night, and requiring pue Nv
| tie sleep. In domcsiication, bowey> !, y
receives more concentrated food, ana le
quires less time for eating; and he ex>
cises more and consequently denandl
more repose. Horses which perform ir-
regular, light work, like those employed
by physicians, may be kept in excellent
condition If properly fed morning and
evening; but those which engage in con.
slant severe labor for several hourj after
the food has passed from the stomach, are
very apt to eat too greedily when fed, and
| to have attacks of collie and other disor
ders of the digestive system.
! The amount and kind of food given 10 a
horse should correspond somewhat to the
work required of him, and yet he must eat
though he do nothing. Coarse, hardy
horses may live, and work after sort,
upon hay and grass but high bred animals
| will scarcely subsist upon such bulky 10.
nutritious food, aud Of course should never
be expected to do any thing more. IL is
now generally conceded that valuable
horses ought to receive some grain OF roots
every day, whether at work or not, a. 1T is
well known that it requires careful train.
ing for several months, TO restore hsrse
which has been running in pasture for
some weeks, to condition. Still it must be
remembered that horse can no more be
kept in perfect trim for the fastest work
all the time, than bow can always be
bent without losing It's elasticity. The
importance Of occasional relaxation from
hard labor for both man and horse is too
| often overlooked or postponed, until dis
ease renders it Indispensable. With a
proper regard to variety in food and to
the real health and ability of the animal,
now frequently neglected, SO long as the
daily work il done, the horse would not
only look and feel much better, but would
last much longer in complete soundness
than he now does.
Sudden changes from green food to dry,
or the contrary, must be made with great
caution, and there is more need Of men
tioning it In this country, because fortu.
nately the almost universal Englsh habit
of giving physic to horses once, twice, or
three times, when such changes are made,
is nearly unknown here In most cases
simple ioosening Of the bowels by means
of bran mashes and changing the food
gradually, will be sufficient to prevent In
jury to the horse, provided be BIC exercised
prudently after bling some time at grass.
The rapid drying up Of his fluids By the
use of hard food, the heating OF his legs
and feet in the stable, and the relaxed con-
dition 70 his joints and muscles, all render
him very liable TO inhammations and
strains at the time.
The preparation Of fast trotters or road
sters for matches, or for rapid driving,
consists in removing superfuous fat, which
obstructs the action Of the lungs and heart
he snht md In