Part 13

Feeds should also be of a more laxative nature when the horse is to stand for several days.

MUSTY OR MOLDY FEEDS.--Above all things, avoid feeding musty or moldy feeds. They are very frequent causes of disease of different kinds. Lung trouble, such as bronchitis and "heaves," often follows their use. The digestive organs always suffer from moldy or musty feeds. Musty hay is generally considered to produce disorder of the kidneys, and all know of the danger from feeding pregnant animals upon ergotized grasses or grains. It has often been said to produce that peculiar disease known variously as cerebrospinal meningitis, putrid sore throat, or choking distemper.

HAY.--The best hay for horses is timothy. It should be about one year old, of a greenish color, crisp, clean, fresh, and possessing a sweet, pleasant aroma. Even this good hay, if kept too long, loses part of its nourishment, and, while it may not be positively injurious, it is hard, dry, and indigestible. New hay is difficult to digest, produces much salivation (slobbering), and occasional purging and irritation of the skin. If fed at all it should be mixed with old hay.

Second crop, or aftermath.--This is not considered good hay for horses, but it is prized by some farmers as good for milch cows, the claim being made that it increases the flow of milk. The value of hay depends upon the time of cutting, as well as care in the curing. Hay should be cut when in full flower, but before the seeds fall; if left longer it becomes dry, woody, and lacks in nutrition. An essential point in making hay is that when the crop is cut it should remain in the field as short a time as possible. If left too long in the sun it loses color, flavor, and dries or wastes. Smith asserts that one hour more than is necessary in the sun causes a loss of 15 to 20 per cent in the feeding value of hay. It is impossible to state any fixed time that hay must have to cure, this depending, of course, upon the weather, thickness of the crop, and many other circumstances; but it is well known that in order to preserve the color and aroma of hay it should be turned or tedded frequently and cured as quickly as possible. On the other hand, hay spoils in the mow if harvested too green or when not sufficiently dried. Mow-burnt hay produces disorder of the kidneys and bowels and causes the horse to fall off in condition.

The average horse on grain should be allowed from 10 to 12 pounds of good hay a day. It is a mistake of many to think that horses at light work can be kept entirely on hay. Such horses soon become potbellied, fall off in flesh, and do not thrive. The same is true of colts; unless the latter are fed with some grain they grow up to be long, lean, gawky creatures, and never make so good horses as those accustomed to grain with, or in addition to, their hay.

STRAW.--The straws are not extensively fed in this country, and when used at all they should be cut and mixed with hay and ground or crushed grain. Wheat, rye, and oat straw are the ones most used; of these, oat straw is most easily digested and contains the most nourishment. Pea and bean straw are occasionally fed to horses, the pea being preferable, according to most writers.

CHAFF.--Wheat and rye chaff should never be used as a feed for horses. The beards frequently become lodged in the mouth or throat and are productive of more or less serious trouble. In the stomach and intestines they often serve as the nucleus of the "soft concretions," which are to be described when treating of obstructions of the digestive tract.

Oat chaff, if fed in small quantities and mixed with cut hay or corn fodder, is very much relished by horses. It is not to be given in large quantities, as I have repeatedly witnessed a troublesome and sometimes fatal diarrhea following the practice of allowing horses or cattle free access to a pile of oat chaff.

GRAINS.--Oats take precedence of all grains as a feed for horses, as the ingredients necessary for the complete nutrition of the body exist in them in the best proportions. Oats are, besides, more easily digested and a larger proportion absorbed and converted into the various tissues of the body. Care must be taken in selecting oats. According to Stewart, the best oats are one year old, plump, short, hard, clean, bright, and sweet. New oats are indigestible. Kiln-dried oats are to be refused, as a rule, for even though originally good this drying process injures them. Oats that have sprouted or fermented are injurious and should never be fed. Oats are to be given either whole or crushed--whole in the majority of instances; crushed to old horses and those having defective teeth. Horses that bolt their feed are also best fed upon crushed oats and out of a manger large enough to permit of spreading the grain in a thin layer.

In addition to the allowance of hay above mentioned, the average horse requires about 12 quarts of good oats daily. The best oats are those cut about one week before they are fully ripe. Not only is the grain richer in nutritive materials at this time, but there is also less waste from "scattering" than if left to become dead ripe. Moldy oats, like hay and straw, not only produce serious digestive disorders but have been the undoubted cause of outbreaks of that dread disease in horses, already referred to, characterized by inability to eat or drink, sudden paralysis, and death.

WHEAT AND RYE.--These grains are not to be used for horses except in small quantities, bruised or crushed, and fed mixed with other grains or hay. If fed alone, in any considerable quantities, they are almost certain to produce digestive disorders, laminitis (founder), and similar troubles. They should never constitute more than one-fourth the grain allowance, and should always be ground or crushed.

BRAN.--The bran of wheat is the one most used, and its value as a feeding stuff is variously estimated. It is not to be depended upon if given alone, but may be fed with other grains. It serves to keep the bowels open. Sour bran is not to be given, for it disorders the stomach and intestines and may even produce serious results.

MAIZE (CORN).--This grain is not suitable as an exclusive feed for young horses, as it is deficient in salts. It is fed whole or ground. Corn on the cob is commonly used for horses affected with "lampas." If the corn is old and is to be fed in this manner it should be soaked in pure, clean water for 10 or 12 hours. Corn is better given ground, and fed in quantities of from 1 to 2 quarts at a meal, mixed with crushed oats or wheat bran. Great care should be taken in giving corn to a horse that is not accustomed to its use. It must be commenced in small quantities and very gradually increased. I know of no grain more liable to produce what is called acute indigestion than corn if these directions are not observed.

LINSEED.--Ground linseed is occasionally fed with other feeds to keep the bowels open and to improve the condition of the skin. It is of particular service during convalescence, when the bowels are sluggish in their action. Linseed tea is very often given in irritable or inflamed conditions of the digestive organs.

POTATOES.--These are used as an article of feed for the horse in many sections. If fed raw and in large quantities they often produce indigestion. Their digestibility is increased by steaming or boiling. They possess, in common with other roots, slight laxative properties.

BEETS.--These are not much used as feed for horses.

CARROTS.--These make a most excellent feed, particularly during sickness. They improve the appetite and slightly increase the action of the bowels and kidneys. They possess also certain alterative properties, making the coat smooth and glossy. Some veterinary writers assert that chronic cough is cured by giving carrots for some time. The roots may be considered, then, as an adjunct to the regular regimen, and if fed in small quantities are highly beneficial.

GRASSES.--Grass is the natural food of horses. It is composed of a great variety of plants, differing widely as to the amount of nourishment contained, some being almost entirely without value and only eaten when nothing else is obtainable, while others are positively injurious, or even poisonous. None of the grasses are sufficient to keep the horse in condition for work. Horses thus fed are "soft," sweat easily, purge, and soon tire on the road or when at hard work. Grass is indispensable to growing stock, and there is little or no doubt that it acts as an alterative when given to horses accustomed to grain and hay. It must be given to such horses in small quantities at first. The stomach and intestines undergo rest, and recuperate if the horse is turned to grass for a time each year. It is also certain that during febrile diseases grass acts almost as a medicine, lessening the fever and favoring recovery. Wounds heal more rapidly than when the horse is on grain, and some chronic disorders (chronic cough, for instance) disappear entirely when at grass. In my experience, grass does more good when the horse crops it himself. This may be due to the sense of freedom he enjoys at pasture, to the rest to his feet and limbs, and for many other similar reasons. When cut for him it should be fed fresh or when but slightly wilted.

SILAGE.--Regarding silage as a feed for horses, Rommel in Farmers' Bulletin 578 writes as follows:

Silage has not been generally fed to horses, partly on account of a certain amount of danger which attends its use for this purpose, but still more, perhaps, on account of prejudice. In many cases horses have been killed by eating moldy silage, and the careless person who fed it at once blamed the silage itself, rather than his own carelessness and the mold which really was the cause of the trouble. Horses are peculiarly susceptible to the effects of molds, and under certain conditions certain molds grow on silage which are deadly poisons to both horses and mules. Molds must have air to grow, and therefore silage which is packed air-tight and fed out rapidly will not become moldy. If the feeder watches the silage carefully as the weather warms up he can soon detect the presence of mold. When mold appears, feeding to horses or mules should stop immediately.

It is also unsafe to feed horses frozen silage on account of the danger of colic. * * *

To summarize, silage is safe to feed to horses and mules only when it is made from fairly mature corn, properly stored in the silo. When it is properly stored and is not allowed to mold, no feed exceeds it as a cheap winter ration. It is most valuable for horses and mules which are not at heavy work, such as brood mares and work horses during the slack season. With plenty of grain on the cornstalks, horses will keep in good condition on a ration of 20 pounds of silage and 10 pounds of hay for each 1,000 pounds of live weight.

PREPARATION OF FEEDS.

Feed is prepared for any of the following reasons: To render it more easily eaten; to make it more digestible; to economize in amount; to give it some new property; and to preserve it. We have already spoken of the preparation of drying, and need not revert to this again, as it only serves to preserve the different feeds. Drying does, however, change some of the properties of feed, i. e., removes the laxative tendency of most of them.

The different grains are more easily eaten when ground, crushed, or even boiled. Rye or wheat should never be given whole, and even of corn it is found that there is less waste when ground, and, in common with all other grains, it is more easily digested than when fed whole.

Hay and fodder are economized when cut in short pieces. Not only will the horse eat the necessary quantity in a shorter time, but it will be found that there is less waste, and the mastication of the grains (whole or crushed) fed with them is insured.

Reference has already been made to those horses that bolt their feed, and we need only remark here that the consequences of such ravenous eating may be prevented if the grains are fed with cut hay, straw, or fodder. Long or uncut hay should also be fed, even though a certain quantity of hay or straw is cut and fed mixed with grain.

One objection to feeding cut hay mixed with ground or crushed grains, and wetted, must not be overlooked during the hot months. Such feed is liable to undergo fermentation if not fed directly after it is mixed; even the mixing trough, unless frequently scalded and cleaned, becomes sour and enough of its scrapings are given with the feed to produce flatulent (wind) colic. A small quantity of salt should always be mixed with such feed. Bad hay should never be cut simply because it insures a greater consumption of it; bad feeds are dear at any price, and should never be fed.