Rensselaer Union, Volume 11, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 September 1879 — Water and Food for Horses. [ARTICLE]

Water and Food for Horses.

Horses and cattle normally require, in round numbers, four pounds of water for each pound of dry substance in the food, while sheep require but about two pounds, or half as much. This estimate, the.result of many careful experiments, includes the water contained in the food as well as that in the drink. The amount of water needed by pigs has not, I think, been accurately determined. With horses we find a different digestive arrangement—onCthat changes the conditions which were suitable for ruminants to a very important extent. Horses have.but one stomach, and that relatively small; it contains, when fully distended, but fifteen to sixteen quarts, and in this condition is too full for the performance of its functions. Usually, when digesting the food, the horse’s stomach does not contain more than ten quarts, and as more food is eaten, some ol the contents pass onward - into the intestines to make room for it In eating a full feed of hay the stomach is filled two or three times, so the part first eaten can remain but a short time tor digestion. Now, here is a point of great importance; the albuminoids of the food are digested in the stomach, and a stomachful of grain contains four to six times as much of these as a stomachful of hay; consequently, for a sufficient quantity of gastric juipe to be mixed with the grain and produce its full effect requires a much longer time than with hay. If, then, we feed oats corn, and immediately afterward hay, we may be very certain that the Kain will be forced from the stomach fore it is perfectly digested; but if we feed the hay first and then, the grain, it is not difficult to understand that the latter can remain in the stomach a sufficient time. ' There is one advantage in mixing oats or ground feed of any kind with cut hay or straw, and that is the more perfect mastication which the animal gives in this case, but it is doubtful if this advantage holds good with cattle, as they do not chew their food perfectly when eaten, but rely on the rumination which follows. In mixing feed for horses we should not put great amount of coarse food with the grain, or wd will givlmore than the stomach will bold, and the last portions eaten Wpl force the first onus, foto th® intea

tines before they are thoroughly impregnated with the gastric juice. Thus, two,pounds of hay arid four pound* of oats ate about as much as should: be fed stance when mixed, and if more oats are given the hay should be decreased; for instanoe, five pounds of oats and one and a half pounds of hay may be given. Now these facts will give us a better understanding of the effect of water on digestion. If, after feeding hay and then oat*, we allow a horse to take a large 'drink of water, h considerable part of the onto Will he carried by the water into | the intestines, and We get little of , the advantage of feeding the o&ts aftej the bay. If such a drink is taken soori after eating hay alone, the effect will not be so injurious, because hay does not heed so long a time for digestion as grain. If only one dr two quarts of water ate allowed, it will pass the food in the stomach without changing its position to any great extenlrJ'When, the stomach has got rid of a considerable part of its contents it jjjfems a difficult matter for it to force out the remainder, and fermentation and colic sometimes result; a drink of water at such a time, by carrying on the substance which has remained long enough, relieves the condition. This probably explains why some horse-car companies have found it advisable to have their horses watered at midnight. —Michigan Farmer.

A Boston boy, recently .returned from the West, tells of a restaurant experience that befell him out beyond the Mississippi. The waiter had brought him something which did not copie up to his expectations. He called the waiter ana complained. * The waiter said he would speak to the proprietor, who soon appeared upon the scene. “.I can’t eat this,” said the guest. The landlord looked at the plate, and then, turning to the young man in a patronizing and sympathizing sort of way, said; ‘‘Well, I ■wouldn’t,” and with that he strode away. But the meal, though left uneaten, had to be paid for just the same Ragout Pickle.—To two gallons of chopped cabbage and green tomatoes mixed put five tablespoonfuls of made mustard, three gills of mustard seed, two tablespoonfuls of allspice, two tablespoonfuls of cloves, one gill of salt, one pound of chopped onions, one pound of brown sugar, celery Seed to your taste, and three quarts of good vinegar. Beil itwdlandstir it well together. The vegetables should be cooked till tender and clear. /Thb reason why medical practitioners do hot hesitate to prescribe Dr. F. Wilhoft’s Anti-Periodic or Fever and Ague Tonic is as follows: Messrs. Wheelock, Finlay <fc Co., of New Orleans, its proprietors, have published its composition, and physicians have approved it because it contains no dangerous drug, and because it Invariably proves successful. It ts for sale by all Druggists. Da.' Judge's Pamphlet on Catarrh, Asthma, '6ft., sent free. Enclose stamp. Dr. J. D. Judge L-A Co.', 79 Beach Street. Boston, Mass Chew Jackson’s Best Sweet Navy Tobacco. Insist on having C. Gilbert’s Starches