The Madisonian. (Virginia City, Mont.) 1873-1915, 1895-03-30
FOR THE RACING SEASON.

trainers SnOulu 10 perIeCC
arrangements to get the horses they are
to campaign as early in the year as pos
sible. This practice, it is needless to
say, enables the driver to become ac-
quainted with the peculiarities and dis
positions of his charges and to do a great
many things with them that take up
much valuable time when the spring
opens and track work commences. When
the horses arrive, it is often we'll to adj
minister an oleate purgative and cleanse
the system, for frequently little atten-
ton has been paid to diet during the
rest given the horses in the early win
ter. Though this is really a trivial mat
ter, the best results may just as we'll be
obtained, as it takes no more time to. do
it right than to do it in a slipshod way
that is productive of only moderate ben
eft.
Let the animal do without oats for a
couple of days, feeding instead bran
mashes, and at the end of the second
day give him from the drenching bottle
a pint and a half of raw linseed oil.
The third day feed only bran mashes in
rather light quantities, and on the even
ing of that day give another pint. Feed
lightly for the next two or three days,
and at the end of the week it will be
found that the medicine will have done
what was required of it, and that the
horse is a good deal better in conse-
quence. During the treatment walking
exercise should be given twice or thrice
a day, half an hour at a time. The next
thing to be done is to make a careful
examination Of the animals. If they have
been wintered roughly, run the clippers
over them, but if they have been blank
eted and we'll stabbed their coats will be
short enough to render the clipping IN
necessary. Jogging work should be now
begun Oh the roads in order to get a
good supply of hard muscle on hand be-
fore the regular training season arrives.
The Journeys should be short at first,
say four or five miles a day, gradually
lengthening out to 10 or 10 miles at a
sharp trot. The roads are generally bad
at this time of the year, and therefore a
keen lookout should be kept to see that
rough or stony places are avoided. 1t is
an easy matter to knock out a good horse.
IL lh1IC Will IL JILL A1UuAO il
sure time on his hand at this season, and
it can be best utilized by good, solid
brain work, planning for the ensuing
campaign and in exchanging views with
track managers, breeder and the turf
press.
One thing a trainer should by all
means do is to think out and establish
some simple and accurate way Of keep
ing his own and his patrons accounts.
Of course all cannot afford topemploy a
regular bookkeeper, but nevertheless, if
there is to be any satisfaction at all
when the horses are sent home for the
winter, there must be a regularly kept
set Of accounts showing how much mon
ey has been paid out, the dates it was
paid on and the article for which it was
paid. If several ownerships are repre-
sented in one stable, a separate account
should be kept for each, and if anything
is paid out it should be properly charged
up to the horse instead of the owner.
When an elaborate set of books can be
kept. the usual mercantile course is
we are dealing it will be found much
more simple just to charge each indi-
vidual horse with whatever expense is
undertaken on his account, credit him
with whatever he may win, and if pos
sible effect a settlement each week with
his owner. "Short ~reckonings make
long friends" is more true of the racing
business than of any other. More espe-
cially does this apply also to the weeks
in which the camDaipn ia cOn6uCtod IT,
is better for all concerned that the own
er pay the expenses and take the win
nings of his horses, giving, of course, a
certain percentage Of purses and stakes
won to the driver, and consequently the
owner is entitled to his share each week.
A reasonable working balance should be
left in the trainers hands to meet cur
rent expenses. The more simply and
clearly the accounts are kept and the
more frequently they are rendered and
settled the less trouble there will be at
the final round up of the season and the
more satisfaction will be given to all
concerned.
On general principles it must be
maintained that the more friendly the
relations are between the trainer and
owner the greater will be the success Of
the combination. If a horse of which
the owner has great expectations is not
improving as he should, the owner will
naturally enough be disappointed, but
will be far better satisfied with a plain
statement of the facts as soon as they
become apparent than he will if he is
told that the horse is doing nicely and