News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-01-28
THE CARE OF FINE HORSES.
The Trouble Is that Many Rich Owners
TREAT their Horses Unwisely or Allow
others to Do SO-GIuttonOus Maud 8,


"Tho great trouble, f." said Mr.. Robert
Bonner, sis that so many men who are
able to buy fine stock do not know how
their horses should be taken care of,
and are unable to watch and see whether
those whom they employ thoroughly
understand their business.
eff man sits all day at desk and
writes, without taking exercise, he can
not eat half as much as q labOrer who
handles pick and shovel. 1t IS just
the same with horses. You take the
hack horses that run around up at Tar
rytown, going half mile in one direc-
ton, two miles in another, and using up
their strength in climbing over those
hills. They need from twenty to twenty
four quarts of oats day, and they would
eat even more if they could get 1t. But
trotting horses, even in the trottlng sea-
son, will not eat on an average more
than twelve quarts a day; you can't
make them. because the work they dn
does not wear away their strength as
does the slow plodding of the hack
horse. In this season of the year
the trotting horses do almost nothing,
and if allowed to eat what they want to
they take on fat and get themselves into
very bad condition.
Snow, take Maud S., for example
Well, she is glutton, if ever there was
one. As Bair said to me the other day,
she was never known to leave around
mouthful of anything to eat. She would
eat twelve quarts of oats day now if I
would let her, but l give her barely six
1o4 = 10 l. IL
about MY stinginess if she wants to. As
it is, she keeps IN fine condition, just
nice and right. If l let her eat her fill
she would get as fat as porpoise; and
even if nothing worse happened,
should have the hardest kind of work to
get her back into condition when spring
come around again. Of course economy
or any such idea as that has nothing to
do with it. When I give $40, 900 for
a mare don't care how much she eats
If 100 quarts of oats day would do her
any good I'd only be too glad to give it
to her. That is the great trouble with
a man who has fine animal; he is
likely to be too indulgent and kill the
horse with kindness. Firmness is what
a man must have, no matter how much
he may think of his horse.
"Of course, there are exceptions to
every rule; some horses will not get fat,
no matter how much you feed them.
There is Keene jim, a horse that !
bought for 81, 900, and, by the way,
wouldn't look at $40, 900 for him now;
you can't t.that horse fat, no matter
how much you may feed him. He is
kind of horse that won't fatten, just
like some men who are always lean and
lank, no matter how good a cook they
have.
zone thing that may cause the loss of
many valuable horses at this time of
the year is ignorance, or carelessness,
that results in their catching cold.
Horses are exercised too violently, per-
haps, and then allowed to stop and
such treatment is likely to kill man,
and it is just as dangerous for horse.
After my horses are exercised they are
warmly blanketed, and my boys lead
them around my stables more and more
slowly. A horse wants to cool off grad |
lally and slowly, as the air does when
The sun sets, not like bottle of wine |
stuck into a freezer. And then, too,
you can't be too careful in exercising |
md driving horses at this time of the |
year. They should be taken out every |
lay without fail when the weather per-
nits, but be very careful. If you speed |
your horse in the face of cold wind,
III that cold air pouring into his lungs
S likely to injure him very much, and |
rive him lung fever. And even when
t is fine you can't be too careful about |
he surface on which your horse is
rotting. I wouldn't for $4,000 let
Maud s. go out and fly for half mile
It top speed on the hard roads of Cen
raj Park, and yet lots of men send
heir best stock flying over such roads
luily. 4 man Mo lkReSt- an Ala = AND
aw such thing done would take the
horse away from the driver and say he
vas crazy. The best chance you can
ret to drive in winter is on the soft |
now. That won't hurt any horse. Only
,e careful and not drive them too much |
It first. The slipping of their feet be-
ore they become accustomed to the icy
urface is very painful to the legs, and
hey should be worked up to it grad
tally"