Hokkaido Horse Racing Story.

Chapter 86 Visitors on the Day

"Merry Christmas!"

Holding a platter of carrot slices, flax seeds and fresh grass, Xuhe Zhang walked into the stable with a smile.

In the United States, trainers often add an extra pint or two of beer to the racehorses' Christmas meal.

However, Xuhe Zhang disagreed with this approach.

I once discussed this issue with Kitano, a professional veterinarian.

Both sides quickly reached a consensus that beer should not be fed to racehorses.

Although in terms of metabolic capacity, the alcohol content of beer is not enough to affect racehorses.

However, for thoroughbred horses, which are already prone to gastric ulcers, the possibility of alcohol irritating the gastric mucosa must be considered.

Furthermore, beer itself doesn't provide as much energy as regular feed, and even the act of metabolizing alcohol requires the horse to consume its own energy.

In the past, people used beer to supplement trace amounts of B vitamins for racehorses under limited conditions.

But today, with science more developed, the B vitamins needed by racehorses can be obtained through professional supplements.

Of course, if it is just used as a beverage, beer is still very attractive to them, just like various high-sugar fruits.

"What a pity you don't have the good fortune!"

As he spoke, Xuhe Zhang opened the gate of the stable.

Ocean Fleet2024, who was curled up in the corner playing with her tongue, slowly walked over and gently took the corner of his clothes with her mouth.

"Eat, eat! You must grow stronger in the new year!"

Pouring the feed from the platter into the feeding bowl, Ogawa Jō looked tenderly at the petite chestnut horse in front of him.

Although the appetite was still normal, the horse's body had not grown significantly compared to when it was first delivered.

This was reported to Mr. Kitano, along with the risk that the animal would be unable to reproduce in the future.

"Then let's work hard to achieve the goal of 'running healthily'."

This was the answer I got from Kitano.

While I felt a little relieved, I felt more and more the weight of the responsibility on my shoulders.

However, there are still some achievements that I can proudly report to the horse owners.

Although they are still quite shy, with the help of various equipment, Ocean Fleet2024's desensitization and harness adaptation training has finally progressed to a barely acceptable level.

During the first trot training a few days ago, he showed a terrifying speed that surprised Ogawa Jō.

Contrary to the first impression, his physique is also the tough type, and no matter what kind of training he does, he can recover quickly the next day.

As the training process progressed, I became more and more impressed by Mr. Kitano's keen vision.

"Perhaps veterinary medicine can really help us understand a lot about horses?"

So he also started reading books on veterinary medicine.

But at this age, it is still too difficult to learn something new.

The progress so far can only be described as quite slow.

While washing the platter in the sink, the smile in Xuhe Zhang's eyes gradually faded.

There is a lot to look forward to about Ocean Fleet2024.

But at the same time, there is also a lot of not-so-good news.

In terms of skeletal structure, Ocean Fleet2024 has the inherent disadvantage of being a small-handled horse.

An extremely narrow chest circumference is also a sign of poor development in a yearling, and the ribs are severely underdeveloped.

In addition, the slow growth of muscles also makes people worry.

The adjustment of the gate was also carried out very unsuccessfully.

Whether from the perspective of horse physique or training progress, the debut plan has to be postponed for a few months.

"Asheng, come and help me"

The words stuck in my throat suddenly stopped.

Xuhe Zhang shook his head with a dumb smile.

He subconsciously overlooked the fact that both his son and daughter had already left for the city with the expedition group.

Without those two guys making noise in front of me, it would be a little too uncomfortable for a short while.

Even Pegasus, that troublemaker, left. After tidying up the tools, the new amulets sent by the horse enthusiasts were hung in front of the stables.

Ocean Fleet2024 poked its head out curiously, its half-exposed tongue wagging.

"Both people and horses must be safe."

After clapping his hands and finishing his prayer, he came to the chestnut horse's stable.

"Next year, you have to work harder too—"

As he said this, he reached out and poked its exposed tongue.

It seemed that he was very happy with this kind of game, until a few minutes later Ocean Fleet2024 reluctantly retracted his head back to the stable.

Then, he immersed himself in enjoying his Christmas dinner.

On the other side, festive decorations were also hung in front of the stables at Kobayashi Ranch.

However, since most employees are on vacation, the atmosphere on the ranch is even quieter than usual.

In the conference room, the Kentucky Expedition continued yesterday's discussion.

"The situation of dirt track racing in the United States is completely different from that in Japan, and I should say that it is completely different from that in most other regions."

Ogawa Kana pressed the play button, and the projected slideshow moved to the next page.

“Even in the U.S., there are significant differences between tracks on the West Coast and the East Coast.”

The slide showed something like a cross-section of the track material.

It was to the point where Kitano couldn't understand it at all.

"So if possible, please prepare in advance."

After saying that, the girl turned her head and looked at Kitano.

"understood."

Kitano nodded slightly and replied with a serious expression.

"I was asking if you had anything to add."

Ogawa Kanna's slightly tense delicate face suddenly fell.

"Probably not."

Turning his head away somewhat awkwardly, Kitano opened the exquisitely packaged food box on the table.

"So that's all about the meeting."

When I opened the food box, I found that it contained roasted chicken that had been processed before being delivered.

In recent years, turkey has become a classic dish at Christmas banquets even in Japan.

In Japanese, it means seven-sided chicken.

This is a popular recommended course meal at a restaurant in Kitano where you can order Christmas banquet dishes.

Although I don't quite understand the connection between turkey and Christmas.

In addition to grilled chicken, the main dish is pasta, and the sauce comes in two different styles: black pepper and tomato.

"Merry Chrismas."

He raised his glass and toasted to all the collaborators in the camp.

What Ogawa Katsu was holding was a non-alcoholic champagne drink.

dong dong dong-

There was a heavy and rapid knock on the door outside the meeting room.

"Sam Potter?"

When Huangshan opened the door of the conference room, he was shocked by the scene in front of him.

The man standing outside the door was very tall, carrying a bulky retro leather suitcase in his hand and a mountaineering bag that looked quite heavy on his back.

"Finally meeting you guys, Merry Christmas!"

As he spoke, the man opened his arms and hugged Huangshan tightly.

　Thanks to REN Lian for the 500 starting coins reward,
　　Thank you for your support

　　Ciallo～(∠ω<)⌒★
　　
　
(End of this chapter)