The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1894-09-28
FEED AND CARE OF THE HORSE.

Prof. Williams, of the Edinburgh
veterinary college. recently. delivered
lecture before a number Of Scotch
farmers on the above subject. Among
other things he said:
1t is my intention to deal with the
horse from the moment it is born until
Dlaturity. The mare gives birth to
her offspring quicker than any animal
we know of. We have known a mare
to foal In two minutes, and at the
end of that time to be up and feeding.
1t is the custom in some parts of the
country to tie the naval string to pre-
| vent bleeding. This is not according
| to nature, and is a very dangerous
practice. The naval string is usually
| torn by the act of the dam in rising.
and this, prev ents the danger of bleed
Ing. The naval string is composed of
a number of different coatings, which,
| being irregularly torn, prevents bleed
| ing. Those who are in the habit of
tying it often pay the penalty, as there
Is great danger of blood poisoning
Very often it gives rise to jointill. or
| q swelling or enlargement of the
| Joints, which means the death of the
colt before maturity. Other evil con-
sequences often intervene; the colt
becomes sickly and dull, then begins
to purge and dies in from a week to
| ten days. This is certainly the cause
of the loss OF a great many fOals in
some parts of the country land he
might have said in all countries)
There may be a few cases where the
foal might bleed from the naval, but
il it does it is best to twist the naval
string instead of tying it. If any
thing be applied on it let it be good
/ fnl, II; ;elr =
ter is applied first pass it through the
flame to destroy the germs. AS a
rule the after-birth is soon disposed of
II it is retained long it is a source of
great danger, as it commences to
purify and blood poisoning of the
mare follows, fever and inflammation
Set in, and the animal often dies in
! the course of twenty-fOur to thirty
| hours. If the mare does not clean
in two hours send for the veterinary
surgeon at once. There is no anima.
SD susceptible to blood poison as a
mare at that stage.
After the mare has fOaled and the
young is all right and out with its
mother on the grass the farmer has
nothing to do save to notice that the
nights are not too cold. The foai
should be made as hardy as possible.
1t Is a great mistake to feed young
colts heavily. If they are hand fed
their bodies become too heavy for
their legs and their limbs swell 1t is
of the utmost Importance to have
mares in clean houses when fOaling
and all the sanitary conditions as
perfect as possible. When the colt
reaches two and a half years it is
about time to handle him. to halter.
lead him about, lift his leg, etc The
| foot should be kept to the proper size
by the use of the rasp. When coming
three years old he might do q half
days work three or four times a week
but should not be worked regularly
until four. / consider it the greatest
piece of cruelty ever invented for tho
young horse to have calkings on his
shoes. He should be shod plain. Shoes
with calkings spoil the action of the
horse and develop side bones. The
veterinary surgeon should examine all
horses shown for prizes, and no ami
NAL afflicted with side bone should
receive premium. If this were fol
lowed side bone would disappear in
ten years. The frog of the foot is
sufficient to prevent a horse from
| slipping. When q horse Shod with
calkers makes a mistake he loses all
command of himself. Horses should
not be fed with boiled food for the
reason that they bolt it: indigestion
follows. collie and other ills. Wheat
is the best all round food for horses
given with discretion. SiXty-two
pounds of wheat sells at the same
price as fortytwo pounds of oats. Ac-
cording to analysis it is the more
valuable food. pound for pound, but is
too stimulating unless given very
cautiously. The farmer might begin
with four pounds of wheat per day
coarsely ground, increasing it to six
pounds and in this way help to raise
the price of the article as well as de-
/ crease the cost of feeding the horses
Water should be given before feeding
and, if in moderation when the horse
Is warm. is, the greatest body refresh
er in the world.