FARM HORSES

Shannon News, 18 September 1928, Page 4

FARM HORSES

CASE AND ATTENTION NECESSARY.

In a paper on this subject read at a meeting, of the Rapid Bay branch of the South Australian Agricultural Bureau, Mr. G, Stacey expressed the opinion that the Clydesdale was the Oiost suitable horse for. farm work. He recommended a galvanised iron stable with wood-blocked doors. The stable should be cleaned out every morning and a clean bed of straw provided each night. The mangers should be built of. jarrah and flooring boards and be, placed about 4ft from the back of tho stable, so that when feeding the chaff could be passed down in front of the horses. The chaffhouse should bo built on the end of the stable. The chaff should be cut from good oaten hay and passed through a screen to take out any large straws. If the oaten hay was of good quality it would not be necessary to give bran and oats with every feed. When working the team it would be necessary to give the horses bran and oats. The nosebags of the midday meal should consist of a libera] allowance of bran and oats in addition to chaff. Tho oats should be crushed j and mixed with the bran in u bin and measured out with a pan so that each j horse would receive an equal amount, i The mangers should be divided into compartments each large enough to accommodate about three horses. It i$J a good plan to occasionally add a packet or two of Epsom salts to the feed. It is important that a good supply of elean water be close handy to the stable, or a trough be placed in the ' stable-yard. In the mornings the horses should be watered before being fed. Where convenient, the team should also be watered before feeding at dinner time. After a day's work the horses •should be unharnessed, watered and fed, and then fed about 8 o 'clock in the evening. Before harnessing up the team each morning the animate should be well groomed. It was most essential that all dirt and -sweat should be removed from the shoulders beforo putting on the collars. When approaching the horses to groom and harness them a word of warning should always be spoken, and thcr*. would then not be very much danger of the person in charge of the team being kieked. The harness should fit in every detail, the winkers correctly adjusted so that tho eye pads were opposite the .eyes/-"the nose band about below the cheekbone and the bit in the right? position in the mouth. The collar should not be tight-fitting on the horse because of the danger of "choking down" on a heavy pull. The draught of the harness should be fixed so that it would not be so low as to pull the collar on to the windpipe, When working the plough or cultivator, use leather traces, because they are not likely to chafe the sides of the horse as chains, and with the former there is not the necessity for wide swings. If the use of chains cannot be avoided a very good substitute is to procure an old garden hose, tin cad about 4ft. of it to each chain, and tie it; securely to the end that fastened on the harness. If a marc suckling a foal has to be worked tho foal should be shut up in the loose box and not allowed to drink from its mother if she came in hot and sweating from the paddoek.