The husbandman, farmer and grasier's compleat instructor. Containing choice and approved rules, and directions for breeding, feeding, chusing, buying, selling, well ordering and fatning bulls, cows, calves, rams, ews, lambs, swine, goats, asses, mules, &c. : How to know the several diseases incident to them, by their signs and symptoms, with proper remedies to cure them; : as likewise all griefs, and sorrances what-ever. : Also, a treatise of dogs, and conies, in their breeding, ordering, and curing the distempers they are subject to. : To which is added, The experienced vermine-killer, in particular directions, for taking and destroying all sorts of vermine in houses, out-houses, fields, garden, graneries, and other places. / By A.S. Gent.

A TREATISE OF CONIES Wild and Tame. HOW TO Order, Feed them, and Cure the Diseases.

Of C••nies in gneneral, their Nature and Generation, &••

CONIES, though in former days accou•••• Vermine, are now preserved and much in es•••• for the delicacy of their Flesh and Furs; all •• of these may be kept as well tame, as wild above most other Creatures, delighting in Impriso•••• and Solitariness, to shelter and secure them from the •• Dangers their Fears suggest, as being a very ••imerous ••

••ightful Creature, and naturally subject to Melancholly; ••lighting much in the Earth, and holes in Rocks, and ••her dark Caverns; yet exceeding Lustful, and violent •• the act of Copulation, that when they have performed •• they swoon, and lye in a Trance for a pretty while, as •• they were dead; which they being sensible of, retire ••o the secretest Places to perform their Generation work. ••s for t••e Males, they are very cruelly bent, and would ••ll all the young ones as soon as the Females had kindled; ••d not Nature by instinct, given the Females a cunning to ••de them, and so politickly close up the holes, that ••e Buck Conie cannot, without extraordinary search, find ••em, which he little minds, if they fall not in his way.

The ••oe Conies are great breeders, very wonderful in ••eir e••crease••, bringing forth young ones every Month; ••d therefore, when you keep any tame, you must ••e at ••e trouble to watch them when they kindie, and as soon •• they have done it, put them to the Buck, or else they ••ill mourn, and not regard the bringing up their young ••es.

••o chuse Conies for a profitable breed, to keep tame or in a close Warren.

If you design to keep Conies tame, or to put them to ••eed n••a Warren, or any other convenient Ground; ••he be•••• marks to know a good breed by, is the clearness ••f their Eyes, and the richness of their Furs; as for the ••tter, that is accounted the best and richest, which has ••n equal mixture of white and black hair; yet so that ••e black rather shadows the white, than the white any ••hing it all over-mastering it: For a black Skin with a •••• silver Hairs, is accounted much the Richer, than a ••hite Skin with a few black Hairs; but however, an ••qual and indifferent mixture of both is very acceptable, ••nd will produce a profitable breed: Consider next, that •• be deep, thick, smooth and shining; and a black Coat without Silver Hairs, though it be not so good as that ••hich has, yet is much to be prefered before a py'd, a ••••n, a yeallow or a grey: Let your Hut be very large.

Now as to the profit of the rich Conies, every one •••• them killed from Martilmas until Candlemas, are worth •••• ordinary ones; for they are in body much fatter, and l••¦ger; and when another Skin will yield but two pence, o•• three pence, they are worth two Shillings, or more, ••¦cording to the scarcity of them. And again, they encre•• oftener, and at one kindling, bring forth more than •• wild Conie; and, if you keep them in Boxes, are alw•• ready at hand for your use at every season of the ye•• without any fategue or trouble, charge of Nets, H•• Ferrets, or any other Engines; and their Flesh you h•• for nothing, for the Skins will recompence and over-〈◊〉〈◊〉 your Charges.

How to order your Boxes to keep Conies in.

If you intend to have good success in your•• tame 〈◊〉〈◊〉 you must have things according to accomodate them, th•• they may breed and thrive; and particularly, Boxes •••• of good Wainscot in thin Boards, about two Foot squa•• and one Foot high; and these squares divided into t•••• Rooms, the greater Rooth having open Windows of W•••• through which the Conie may feed at pleasure; and the lesser totally darkened, in which she may lodge, and ••••¦dle; and before them a Trough, to put in the food, 〈◊〉〈◊〉 other necessaries; and these Boxes you may set one upo•• another, for divers stories, where there is not larg•• conveniencies; keeping the Buck Conies by themselv•• and your Does seperate, unless those that have not b•• and with such it is convenient you let a Buck lodge: A•• when your Does kindles one Nest, and then proceed•••• kindle another, take the first from her, and put them to••••¦ther in several Boxes, among the Rabits of suitable a•• but there let them have sufficient room, for if they •• pestered, or as it were stifled up, you must not expect them to thrive.

Of feeding and preserving Conies.

This feeding (the best sort of Conies) may be done with a great deal less cost and trouble than some People pre∣tend to, or at least ways, than the ignorant in ordering them, would make the World believe.

The best Food that you can feed a Conie with, is the shortest, softest, and sweetest Hay; and one Lo••d will serve two hundred Couples a whole Year; and out of this sto••k of two hundred, you may spend in your own House, or dispose among your Friends two hundred, and sell two hundred more in the Market, and nevertheless maintain the Stock good, to answer every ordinary ca∣sualty: Put your Hay into little cloven Sticks, and so place it, that they may easily reach it, and pull it out, yet so as neither to seatter or waste it; in the Troughs under their Boxes, put Oats in their Water; and this may pro∣perly be their ordinary and constant Food; for whatever besides you give them, is properly termed rather Physical than Substantial Food; and is upon changing dyet for a time, conduceing to their health; and it may be so order∣ed, to ••e done twice or thrice in a Fortnight; and such things may properly be given for the cooling of their Bo∣dies, naturally inclinable to heat.

The best Greens you can give them for the purpose, and intentions aforesaid, are Mallows, young fresh Clo∣ver-grass, blades of green Corn, fower Docks, young Turnip tops, Cabage and Colwert-leaves, and the like, all which are very cooling and nourishing; and now and then, yet but rarely, you may give them sweet Grains, but beware you do it not often; for then you will cer∣tainly bring the Rot among them, and sweep them away in a very short time.

In your greens, as Grass, Corn, or the like; see there be no young Hemlock in it, for they will covet to eat it, though all of a sudden, it makes them sicken and dye; being a kind of poyson to them.

The Boxes and Holes must not be neglected to be kept clean, for they above all things abhor••stench and nastiness,

and therefore, they must not be omitted to be cleansed every day.

Of Conies in Warrens, their ordering, feeding, &c.

As for those that are in Warrens, there cannot properly be this care taken of them; however, something is to •• considered, as to let them have Bushes and Shelters, t•• prevent the Hoggard, or wild Hawks, Kites, &c. sei•••• their young, when they bring them out of their Burrough to Air, and teach them to feed; as also sence such ple•••• as may shelter them from the Pole-Cats, that haunts the•• when they are out a feeding, on Moon-shiny Nights, •••• other things that disturb them; and in Winter, when 〈◊〉〈◊〉 weather is hard, and little to be got, scatter short swe•••• Hay, especially, when the Snow lies on the ground, •• feed on; scatter likewise some Greens, to nourish •••• physick them so that they be kept sound; but particu¦larly, plash down small Twigs or Boughs of Sallow Birch, Osier, Beech, or any wholsome Tree; scatt•• them in little heaps, lightly up, that they may creep unde•• them; and they will serve not only for a shelter, but for very good Food; for they will eat the tender lea•••• Sprays, and also the Bark of the biger; if you find they are ill, scatter Parsly, and a little sweet Fennel ab•••• their Holes; and in so ordering them, they will b•• healthy, grow fat, well furred, and increase in breed••

Of Diseases in Conies, their Causes and Cure.

The Diseases in this Creature are but few, yet th•••• are very dangerous and fatal, destroying sometimes g•••• multitudes of them; and the worst and most sweeping •••• these is the Rot.

Of the Rot in Conies.

For this Infirmity, which destroys Multitudes where •••• once takes place; it cometh by their too much feeding on green Meat, especially when the wet of the Rain, •••• Dew, or Mildew is upon it; and when you percei••

this, seperate the infected if you can, however debar them as much as possible of green Meats; and give them dry sweet Hay▪ which will dry up the moisture, and knit them again; and to restore them in the Warrens, you may thrust it into their Holes, and by that means, keep them in for a time, that they may feed there.

Of madness in Conies.

This is a Distemper that often afflicts them, and is in∣gendere•• by corrupt Blood, proceeding from the rank∣ness of their feeding; it is known by their disorderly leaping, tumbling and wallowing, with their heels upwards.

To Cure this, give them Hart-Thistle to eat, and it will remedy the Distemper; and thus much of Conies.