Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1901-03-14
WEANLiNG COLTS.
Importance of Proper Care During
the First Winter.

The first important item in the care
of colts through their first winter is to
have a good, warm stable, says w. W.
Stevens in The American Agriculturist
1t is not Objectionable to put several
colts in one stable if they have plenty
Of room to move about and lie down at
will Stop all cracks if the barn siding
IS not tight. If there are any timid
ones in the lot that will not assert their
rights and crowd in for their rations.
better stall them to themselves. Have
good water within reach Of colts all the
while and provide a small lot on the
east or south side of the barn where
the little fellows can take exercise and
sun themselves when the weather is
pleasant
The rations Of the colt should be
made up mostly of clover hay, oats, Oil
meal and bran. n few horsemen car
successfully feed considerable corn
where there is blue grass pasture to
turn the colts in when the weather will
permit. But | would not advise a very
liberal use of corn unless the feeder
has had considerable experience. Nev
er feed a colt timothy hay. If you
have sheaf oats, cut up and mix with
bran, making a damp chop in mild
weather and dry mixture in cold SOr-
ghum is good roughness for colts
where it has been provided. Colts will
soon learn to drink skimmilk or kitchen
slOpS, and | know of no more profitable
way Of disposing of same on the farm.
AS to the amount of food to be given
no fixed rule can he laid down. Give
the colt all he will eat three times n
day. Be careful and never allow food
to accumulate and sour in the trough.
Do not allow them to have water that
you would not care to drink yourself.
Always keep salt by them in a box sep
arate from the feed trough. Once a
week give each colt a tablespoonful OF
sulphur in bran. This will keep them
from worms and ward off lice. Exam
inc colts carefully once Il week to see
that they are free of vermin. When a
colt gets lousy, he will do no good until
relieved of the pests.
| would not waste any time grooming
colts during the winter. They need to
be kept we'll bedded with straw, and if
there is not great deal of room in the
stable it should be cleaned out every
few days. Unless the stable is kept
dry the colt is liable to get scratches,
and this is a trouble quite difficult to
get rid of in winter. Handle the colt
often the first winter of his life. This
is the time to gentle him down and
teach him to lead. A colt not halter
broken by the time he is a year old gets
wild, and when handling becomes inn
perative he is as wild as Texas pony.
If when you go into the stable you car
ry an apple, lick of salt or something
of the kind, the colts soon learn to wei.
come your coming. Fillies as q rule
are more shy than the male colts and
need more attention to put them on ia
miIiar terms with the feeder or han
der Never allow older horses to run
with the colts. They crowd them
through doorways, in stalls and corners
and are likely to injure them some way
or other. Older horses do not like to
have colts feed with them and will
kick and injure them. Even the moth
er of a colt does not care to have him
around after lie has been weaned few
weeks.