Put half a pint of linseed in a two-quart pan with an even edge; pour on it one quart of boiling water, cover it close, and leave to soak for four hours.
At the same time moisten half a bucket of bran with a gallon of water. When the linseed has soaked for four hours, a hole must be made in the middle of the bran, and the linseed mass mixed into the bran mass. The whole forms one feed. Should time be an object, boil slowly half a pint of linseed in two quarts of water, and add it to half a bucket of bran which had been previously steeped for half an hour or an hour in a gallon of water.
If a cold is present, or an animal is delicate, the bran can be saturated with boiling water, of which a little more can be added to warm it when given.
Carrots, when a horse is delicate, will be found acceptable, and are both nutritious and wholesome as food. In spring and summer, when vetches or other green food can be had, an occasional treat of that sort conduces to health where the work is sufficiently moderate to admit of soft feeding. When horses are coating in spring or autumn, or weak from fatigue or delicacy, the addition to their food of a little more nutriment may be found beneficial. The English white pea is milder and not so heating as beans, and may be given half a pint twice daily, mixed with the ordinary feeding, for from one to three or four weeks, as may be deemed advisable.
When an animal is “off his feed,” as it is called, attention should be immediately directed to his manger, which is often found to be shamefully neglected, the bottom of it covered with gravel, or perhaps the ends and corners full of foul matter, such as the sour remains of the last bran-mash and other half-masticated leavings.
The introduction of any greasy or fetid matter into a horse’s food will effectually prevent this dainty creature from touching it. It used to be a common practice at hostelries in the olden time, to rub the teeth of a traveller’s horse with a tallow candle or a little oil; thus causing the poor beast to leave his food untouched for the benefit of his unfeeling attendant.
Again, the oats or hay may be found, on close examination, to be musty, which causes them to be rejected by the beast.
Where no palpable cause for loss of appetite can be discovered, reference should be made to a qualified veterinary surgeon, who will examine the animal’s mouth, teeth, and general state of health, and probably report that the lining of the cheeks is highly inflamed in some part, owing to undue angularity or decay of the teeth, and he will know how to act accordingly.
When horses are on a journey, or a long ride home after hunting, some people recommend the use of gruel; but, from experience, I prefer giving a handful of wetted hay in half a bucket of tepid water, or ale or porter.—[See page 37.]