The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-07-18
DIET AND FOOD OF HORSES IN
tBy consul-General John III. :
dress. Moscow

tBy Consul-General John II. Suet-
dress. Moscow
Oats constitute three-fourths uf tho
food upon which the Russian horse
must exist during the twelve months
of the Year Russian oats. however.
are far superior in sustaining pov.-
to the American cereal. 1t Is ais,
claimed that animals do not become
SO tired of this steady diet as they do
of the hay and corn products m the
United States. This statement is made
by an American with eighteen years
experience in horse breeding and
training in Russia.
Among the upper classes twelve 10
fourteen pounds OF hay are fed daIv
to the carriage and race horses. N
addition TO the twenty quarts OF oats
that are thought necessary for a.
horse during the tWentE-four hours.
In many other sections owners az
horses must be content With the
native marsh grass, which resembles
the American prairie grasses. On the
uplands. however. a good quality of
grass is grown which resembles Ken
lucky blue grass.
The peasant feeds the marsh
grasses to his own stock and sells the
better grades of the uplands, St that
his horses are fed upon the inferior
hay, although regular rations of oats
are provided, if possible. In the cities
the ordinary draft horses are fed upon
a diet similar TO that fed hy the peas
ants, with perhaps less hay. Nose
bags are used.
Straw is also fed in the country. hat
in such an unpalatable condition thar
1t is of little value as a food. IN the
cities there are comparatively few cut
ting machines. so that straw cannot
be mixed with bran or oats and IS
therefore little used.
As a RESULT Of a light hay diet, Rus
sian horses are remarkably free from
the heaves, though a more serious
trouble originates from a continuous
diet Of oats; namely. crackcd sinus
and heels. with open sores. The
writer is Informed by a ~wel-knoWn
horseman that he has many times
seen blood oozing from the shin and
heels Of horses Without any apparent
cause. though an investigation always
proved that a steady diet Of oats was
to blame. The same person stated
that he haG experimental upon horses
afflicted with the disease. and that,
after a few weeks of proper feeding.
the sores and cracks disappeared and
the animals improved in every way.
especially in appetite and endurance.
City horses never taste a spear or
green grass, but appear TO keep in
fairly good condition with practically
no attention from the groomS They
occasionally are fed carrots, but this
does not apply to the average work
horse, driven at all times Of day and
and subjected to Russian win
ters. His endurance is one If the
marvelS of the country.
The feeding of corn. mixed foods. or
prepared diets is unknown in Russia
except among the racing fraternitN,
who have adopted American ideas
from the trainers brought over years
ago from the United States. The race
horses in Moscow, for example. have
a variety of diets. according to the
work they are doing. and the Amerl-
can suggestion of a Saturday evening
hot-bran mash has been adopted. with
the usual good results. They are also
given grOund or cracked cereals. bran
mixed with oats. chopped hay and
oats. n the usual spring treatment
for appetite and improvement Of tho
blood