What did war horses do?
Horses traveled somedays up to 40 miles in about 15 days! When the horses and calvery men get to the camp diseases start to spread like wildfire. The horses got so sick that some of the calvery men had to strip their rank to take care of the horses or just let their horses die and then steal or trade for new horses. The author has but one rule, horses must be ridden until spurred no further. Acalvery horse when loaded has to carry 225 lbs. When the horses have just a saddle and no rider his/her saddle weighs no less then 50 lbs. The horses are saddled about 15 hours of the 24 hour day! The horses are fed 10 lbs. of grain a day. On average they only eat 8 of those pounds. The horses never get hay! The only other feed they find is during halts. The water they drink is brook water Because of the mud and dirt the water looks like chocolate.Horses after a march get checked to make sure their backs are okay and not too sore. The horses also get a back rub/massage. Lots of horses are put out of commission because of their sore backs! With how badly some of the horses backs were (swelling, bleeding, and oozing puss) the horses usualy had to be ridden till they died. When a calvary troop passed through the fields there would be hundred of dead horses. There ribs would be visible and some even breaking the skin! :(
