To assist in this important duty of home life, which so often falls
to the supervision of woman, the following information is prepared
through the kindness of one of the editors of a prominent, widely
known, agricultural paper.
Domestic animals are very apt to catch the spirit and temper of their
masters. A surly man will be very likely to have a cross dog and a
biting horse. A passionate man will keep all his animals in moral fear
of him, making them, snappish, and liable to hurt those of whom they
are not afraid.
It is, therefore, most important that all animals should be treated
uniformly with kindness. They are all capable of returning affection,
and will show it very pleasantly if we manifest affection for them.
They also have intuitive perceptions of our emotions which we can not
conceal. A sharp, ugly dog will rarely bite a person who has no fear
of him. A horse knows the moment a man mounts or takes the reins whether
he is afraid or not; and so it is with other animals.
If live stock can not be well fed, they ought not to be kept. One well
wintered horse is worth as much, as two that drag through on straw,
and by browsing the hedgerows.
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