Horse Care

 

 

   
The Horse Mind
    
         
    Horses, ponies and donkeys are by nature HERD animals. They like their family around them. Each member of the herd looks out for and warns the rest of the group when there's danger.    
         
    And so they're most comfortable and relaxed when they have company and are part of a group. They are - with the odd exception - sociable animals which need the company of similar beasts.    
         
    They consolidate their relationships with each other by physical contact, mutual scratching, close grazing, and - most importantly - by PLAY.    
         
    Keep a horse, pony or donkey on his own all the time, and you'll have a very bored and miserable equine on your hands.    
         
    It would be like taking someone who really enjoys being in the heart of the social group, and confining him in a house and never allowing him to see anyone else.    
         
    Your fence will get chewed (bored), he'll eat bits of rubbish (bored), he'll stand at the fence swaying side to side, and he'll even start doing a spectacular impression of a deranged kangaroo - until you get the message and get him a PLAYMATE.    
         
    Give him the company of at least one other horse, pony or donkey. Even sheep have been known to make good horse companions.    
         
    Stallions often have to be kept in isolation, unless you want all the mares in the field in foal. He can't be loosed with the geldings either (neutered males) as he would fight them.    
         
         
   
Horse Feed
    
         
    Contrary to popular opinion, horses and ponies cannot survive by just living on grass all year round.    
         
    Grass provides nutrition for only part of the year - from around late March to mid-summer. After August, there a very little nutrition in green grass. And so all horses, ponies and donkeys, need extra feed during the winter.    
         
    In their natural wild environment they'd roam miles to find extra food supplies but today even wild ones do not have this kind of space to roam anymore.    
         
    Hay is dried summer grass, as so has plenty of nutrition and should be given in abundance through the winter, if not all year round (depending on the horse).    
         
    The larger your horse is, and the more he works, the more supplementary feeds - apart from hay - he will need.    
         
    Horses, ponies and donkeys are large mammals and need gallons of water to keep them happy.    
         
    A general rule for feeding horses is 'little and often'. Consistency is also important - any changes in diet should be brought about gradually.    
         
    All horses enjoy a salt or mineral block to lick both inside the stable or out in the field.    
         
         
   
Horse Health
    
         
    WEIGHT: As with all animals, don't be deceived by a shaggy coat. Feel under the coat to see if a horse is doing a convincing impression of a hat-rack.    
         
    The other give-aways are 'poor' lines, which run diagonally across their haunches - their backside - a groove which runs down each side from their back down their haunch towards the tail. It shows that there's a dip where fat or muscle should be.    
         
    Generally his body weight should look full, even and rounded, and his hair and coat should look in good condition - not sticking up unevenly, or looking very dull and full of bumps.    
         
    Conversely, some ponies are prone to putting on weight very quickly, and so their diet needs watching carefully. Overweight ponies can develop chronic laminitis - a condition which affects their legs and they can't walk - and which can result in permanent mobility and health problems.    
         
    FEET: Horses' hooves are the equivalent of our nails - the hard tissue grows all the time, and unless they are roaming in the natural wild state where their feet would wear down naturally, their hooves have to be trimmed regularly - every 6-8 weeks by a professional farrier.    
         
    Hooves need trimming whether they wear shoes or not. If they are neglected the horse can become lame and develop joint problems.    
         
    Whether living in the stable or out in the field, all horses should have their feet carefully picked out with a hoof pick regulary, or before and after exercise to remove any build up of mud or stones that may affect their mobility.    
         
    TEETH: Horses' teeth need regular checking by a vet or equine dentist..    
         
    SHOES: Generally, the more work a horse does - the more impact he gets by carrying loads, jumping, working along roads, etc. - the more he will need shoes to protect his feet.    
         
    A human athlete will wear good quality shoes - he won't run a marathon bare-foot. A farrier will advise on the most suitable shoes for your horse.    
         
    WORMS: Grazing animals can pick up worms from the land and from other animals. They need regular worming about every 8wks. Worms can seriously damage the internal organs and even lead to death if left untreated. Always ask your vet's advice on the different treatments available.    
         
    GENERAL: Horses get all manner of small injuries and common ailments, so it's wise to have a basic knowledge of common problems and appropriate first aid. Knowing your horse well is a pre-requisite - his habits, normal behaviour and routine - changes in which often indicate that something is wrong.    
         
    If in any doubt call the vet, and always have the telephone number of the vet handy.    
         
         
   
Horse Space & Exercise
    
         
    Being grazing animals, horses naturally want to be on the move most of the time. They love exercise and space to run around freely.    
         
    The recommended amount of space is 1 acre per horse.    
         
    As well as freedom to run around a field regularly, stabled horses ('living in') also need daily exercise - hacking, schooling, treking, and other forms of training.    
         
         
   
Living In
    
         
    Horses generally only 'live-in' - ie: spend most of the time in the stable - if they're being exercised regularly (hacking, schooling, etc.) If he lives in, he needs a minimum exercise quota of a few hours out in the field, and a hour's hack, trek, or schooling per day.    
         
    Horses which 'live in' need more exercise than a horse which 'lives out', ie: spends most of its time in a field.    
         
         
   
Living Out - At Grass
    
         
    Horses which spend most of their life out in a field need a field-shelter for when the weather gets rough, and a constant water supply. Shelters should be large enough for the number of horses in the field, ideally with a fenced area of hard standing for more spacious and flexible accommodation during bad weather.    
         
    Make sure the perimeter fencing is in good condition. Barbed wire is not ideal. Neither are delapitated posts and rails with bare nails sticking out of them, or other make-do fences full of rubbish or sharp implements that could injure the horse.    
         
    Gates should be easy to open with one hand (whilst leading the horse with the other hand).    
         
    Remove any poisonous plants such as ragwort. The land also needs managing properly to prevent horses from becoming sick. Routine checks for anything dangerous, harrowing, fertilising and rolling are all part of land management for keeping horses at grass.    
         
    If there are several horses in a field, spread feed and hay piles around so that they don't fight over it.    
         
    Check outside horses regularly, as well as the fencing, water supply, and field shelter.    
         
    Remove droppings regularly from the field to prevent possible worm distribution.    
         
    A tennis ball in the water butt will slow down freezing in winter.    
         
    Consider the security of your horse: micro-chipping or other forms of identification, and secure all gates with good quality padlocks.    
         
         
   
Grooming and Rugs
    
         
    OUTSIDE: A horse which lives out in the field - and which is left to do as he would in the wild - doesn't need much in the way of grooming or rugs. This is because his natural shaggy winter coat contains layers of air and grease - and those layers of air and grease are what keeps him warm.    
         
    Provided he has been allowed to grow it, this is the best winter coat he could ever have: it's waterproof, thick, and yet can still breathe.    
         
    For a horse's first wintering outside, it is possible to use a lightweight rain sheet to acclimatise him which won't prevent his winter coat from growing. In subsequent years he will probably be fine without any rugging, provided that all other conditions for horses at grass are put into practice.    
         
    Keep grooming to a minimum. Lightly brush the worst of the mud off him when you want to exercise him with a big widely spaced brush like a dandy brush. A close-set haired brush like a body brush might make him look smarter, but it will only remove the important grease that keeps him warm. As the weather warms in spring, grooming can be more thorough to help him shift that moulting coat.    
         
    Generally speaking (exceptions no doubt sometimes apply) horses which live out do not need to wear rugs. Because the more they are rugged up, the less of their natural winter coat they will grow.    
         
   
 
    
   

INSIDE: Rugs are put on stabled, living-in horses whenever they're not working, or whenever they 've a few hours out in the field, because the owner wishes to stop the winter coat from growing.

    
         
    Why? Because he wants to work his horse - in dressage, show-jumping, or some other high level training that is physically demanding of the horse - and it is not fair to ask a horse to work while he's wearing a great shaggy winter coat. It would be like a human running a marathon whilst wearing a heavy wool-lined sheep-skin coat.    
         
    Not only is the horse's coat prevented from growing, but stabled and working horses often have their hair clipped during the winter as well (and extra rugs put on accordingly when they are not working) in order to free them in exercise from excessive sweating from any winter coat that they still may have grown.    
         
    Rugging-up begins sometimes as early as August - in order to stop their winter coat growing through which starts as the late summer / autumn nights begin to draw in. The rug provides heat, and because they don't feel the cold as they normally would, their body tells them they don't need to grow a winter coat.    
         
    Grooming for a stabled horse is an altogether different case. He tends to get a much more thorough grooming, largely in order to keep his appearance smart for those dressage shows that he'll be going to. With 'fit' horses (equine equivalents of Rambo) grooming - or 'strapping' as it is sometimes called - plays a part in toning up and massaging those huge muscles (the horse's and the groom's....) that are worked so often.    
         
    There are, of course, cases inbetween these two ways of keeping a horse. For further animal info check out our LINKS page.