Horses in Winter

The arrival of the Front Range's first big snowstorm of the season means it's time to start getting horses ready for winter.

 

There are many things to consider when preparing for winter at the barn: the needs of the horse, what facilities the barn has, and what an owner plans to do with his or her horse over the winter.

Shoes or no shoes?

Snow packing a horse's shoe can cause problems when walking and potentially injure the animal. Owners choosing to use shoes will need snow pads, rubber inserts which line the inside of the horseshoe and keep the snow from balling up in the foot. Consider shoes with snow pads if:

• The horse normally wears shoes.
• If the horse is to be ridden, especially on rocky ground or in places where the animal's feet will get chipped.
• If the horse is to be shown and normally wears shoes during those events.
• If the horse is not sound without shoes because of foot soreness or other issues.
• If the horse is ridden in icy or muddy areas and uses studs in its shoes.

If none of those situations applies, the horse probably can go barefoot for the winter. A farrier always should be consulted about an individual horse's foot needs.

The blanket statement

Does a horse need a blanket? The answer will depend on several factors including a horse's needs and what an owner wants to do with it during the winter.

Reasons a horse may need a blanket:

• An owner plans to show the horse or needs it to not grow a long winter coat because it's being taken to warmer places during the winter.
• The horse has been body-clipped -- which should only happen if absolutely necessary. A horse will be much more comfortable in its natural hair than in a blanket.
• The horse is older and cannot maintain body temperature as well as it did when younger.
• The horse doesn’t eat large amounts of hay. Digesting high-fiber feeds is one of the primary ways a horse stays warm.
• The horse has just been moved to Colorado and is not used to cold and snow
• The horse has a light winter coat. Before blanketing for this reason, observe the horse to make sure the animal is cold. Some horses stay naturally warm without a thick winter coat.
• The horse is underweight. Staying warm burns calories, so if the horse needs to put on weight over the winter, a blanket will help conserve calories and help the horse gain fat and muscle.
• The horse is cold. If it's shivering, it probably could use a blanket.

If none of these conditions apply, the horse probably will be fine without a blanket. For more advice on whether a horse needs a blanket, talk to the trainer, barn owner or barn manager. They observe the horse on a daily basis and can help determine if a blanket is necessary.

An owner also may choose to only blanket on certain days. Especially in Colorado, the weather changes quickly and a horse only may need or want a blanket on particularly cold or snowy days. The best way to determine its needs is to visit the horse daily, especially on days when it might need a blanket. If the horse tends to shiver when it snows because its coat gets wet, buy a waterproof sheet or blanket to keep it dry and put it on before it snows. If the horse tends to shiver only when the temperature falls below 10 degrees, buy it an insulated blanket and put it on when readings drop to more frigid temperatures.

An owner who choose to blanket will need to pick out the right one -- or ones -- for his or her horse. The animal may need multiple blankets depending on where it lives, how it reacts to the weather, and what sort of blankets are available for purchase.

Owners who only buy one blanket should choose something waterproof and with some padding to keep the horse warm. During snow, horses need a waterproof blanket to keep them dry and warm. During cold conditions, a heavier blanket with lots of insulation will do the same job.

 

Blankets may need to be layered when the weather is both cold and snowing. If the waterproof blanket is not very heavy, an extra layer of warmth also may be needed under it. Insulated blankets, if not waterproof, can collect water and actually cause a horse to be colder than without the blanket.

A horse which gets turned out needs a blanket that allows it to run and roll around. Turnout-style blankets have extra room around the legs and fit a bit more loosely, so the horse feels free to move around.

If the horse is kept in a stall, stall blankets will be sufficient.

For more information on blanketing, check out this article from HorseLink Magazine.

Comfort food

Winter can be hard on horses, and if not fed correctly they can lose significant weight and conditioning. The most important part of feeding a horse during winter is knowing whether it is gaining or losing weight and then changing its feed ration if necessary. A big part of determining what to feed a horse will depend on where it lives.

• Pasture horses are used to grazing all day and night on grass during summer. The best way to feed them is to provide free-choice hay. They will be able to determine how much hay they need during the winter day as well as they do during summer. Grass hay will take longer to digest and thus keep them warmer. If they are harder keepers which need the extra protein and energy, feeding a mix of alfalfa and grass or pure alfalfa will help the animals keep weight on. They also can be fed grain if they are losing weight. I suggest a complete feed-type grain during winter. Complete feeds have more fiber than do standard sweet feeds and will help to keep horses warm just as hay does.

• Stall horses have lower calorie needs than do pasture horses because they are not moving around as much - and because stalls in barns are warmer than living outdoors. These horses still will need higher-fiber hay to stay warm. If these horses are being worked, a combination of grass and alfalfa probably is best for energy and digestion needs. These horses should be fed at least twice -- and preferably three times -- a day to keep their digestive systems working properly. Like pasture horses, these animals may need grain. They also should be given a complete feed rather than a standard sweet feed. Complete feeds tend to have less sugar and molasses and therefore keep the horses quieter and less likely to get nervous or destructive when stuck in their stalls.

• Horses which live in runs with shelter will have needs between those of the pasture and stall horses. They will be exposed to more weather than will stall horses, but won’t be moving around as much as will pasture horses. Diet will mostly be based on the horse's calorie needs and weather tolerance.

Special needs

Older horses, no matter where they are kept, will have extra needs during the winter. They tend to not be able to maintain their body temperature as well, so they will need extra hay and grain. Older horses’ teeth tend to be worn, so high-fiber hay is extra hard for them to digest. Their diet should be supplemented with senior feeds, a grain-and-hay combination designed to be a complete feed and easy to digest so that older horses don’t lose weight. These horses may also need extra blankets or to be kept inside.

Weanlings and yearlings also may need special care. Their bodies haven’t had much experience dealing with cold and may need blankets or extra feed to stay warm. They also are growing during winter, which will create greater calorie needs as well.

Talk to a barn manger and trainer about any questions or concerns about keeping a horse healthy through the winter. These people see each horse daily, know its needs, and will help owners make the best decisions about his care.

Horses and Halloween

Happy October!

It's time to start planning Halloween costumes, buying candy and getting ready for one of the best holidays of the year.

If you are like me, everything can be improved if done on horseback. So, how can you incorporate Halloween and horses?

Ever been trick-or-treating on horseback? Sound like something you’ve always wanted to do but never been able to? Trick-or-treating is just for kids, right?

Nope!

Every year the Mountain Riders Horse Club at Colorado State University goes trick-or-treating around a neighborhood in Laporte, Colo. These students are not seeking bags full of candy. They are collecting canned goods to donate to the Larimer County Food Bank.

Making the Halloween rounds on horseback has become a tradition -- and I helped start it!

I had wanted to go trick-or-treating with my horses since I first got a horse. I had talked about it with a lot of people but never was able to make it happen. I eventually met a group of girls through the Mountain Riders club who didn't have horses but liked to ride. I happened to own two horses, so these girls often would come out and ride with me.

When I brought up the subject of trick-or-treating with the horses, the girls became super excited. The first year it was just me, three other girls and my two horses, and we simply were trick-or-treating for candy.

The next year, we invited the rest of the club to join us, and one of the members suggested we make it a charitable event. Everyone really liked the idea, and that year we collected only about 10 pounds of cans - because no one in the neighborhood was prepared.

By the third year, the neighborhood was ready for us, and we ended up overloading the one pack horse we had.

Now, each year at Halloween, a group of 5 to 10 horses, riders and walkers meet just before sunset in the parking lot behind Vern's to start dressing up their horses and themselves before they head out into the neighborhood. They bring at least two horses wearing pack saddles which will be filled with cans before the night is over. Each year, the amount they collect gets larger, with more than 200 pounds collected last year.

More and more people participate each year. We bring three or more pack horses and still can't get to all the houses in the neighborhood.

Your group can do something like this, too -- wherever you are.

You will need to find a neighborhood that is friendly to horses. The easiest way to ensure this is to find homes with barns nearby. The residents will probably be accustomed to having horses walk through the neighborhood if there are already barns in the area. You could ask members of your club if the neighborhoods near where they keep their horses would be suitable.

To make collecting cans easier, post fliers and mail information so that the residents are prepared for your group to come by. You will either need one or two pack horses, depending on the size of your selected neighborhood, or you will want everyone to carry saddle bags.

You will also need people who are not riding horses. Their job is to knock on doors and help load the pack horses and saddle bags. If everyone wants a chance to ride, you can take turns walking and riding.

A few things to keep in mind:

• You will be riding at night. Horses can be more easily scared at night. You will need to watch out for cars and make sure your group is visible.
• Costumes and props can scare horses. Practice with your costume and make sure your horse is ready for the evening. Easily spooked horses should stay home.
• Here in Colorado -- and in many other areas -- it probably will be cold. Dress for the weather. Make sure children stay warm. Feel free to go home early if it gets too cold.

Remember to stay safe -- and have fun!

Trail Riding Tips

Trail Riding Tips

Trail riding is a great way to see the countryside, spend time with your horse and get some exercise. Proper preparation -- for yourself and your horse -- can make the day even more enjoyable.

Set your expectation according to the level of experience and ability of both yourself and your horse. Start slowly and close to home for your first few rides. Then, as you gain more experience, you can go for longer rides and find new places to ride.

Before beginning the ride, make sure your horse is accustomed to all the equipment you will be using, such as saddlebags or anything else hanging off your saddle. If you are going to wear a hat or big jacket, make sure you have introduced your horse to that apparel as well. Horses can freak out and take off bucking for all sorts of reasons.

Things to always have with you:

• Water
• Rain jacket
• Knife
• Cell phone
• First-aid kit
• Emergency contact information
• Hoof pick

Season Specific things

• Hunters vest during hunting season

Optional items:

• Extra food
• Hat
• Rubber "Easy Boots" which slip over a horse's hoof to protect it from rocks and wear.
• Rattlesnake kit
• Compass or GPS
• Gun or rifle, in case an injured horse must be dispatched on the trail.

Other good ideas:

• Let someone who is not accompanying you know where you are going.
• Give that person an expected time of return.
• Provide your contact information.
• Make sure he or she knows who to contact in case you do not return.
• Do not ride by yourself.
• Have fun!

These tips apply to day rides. Overnight rides have different packing requirements and are for advanced riders only.

For more tips, check out the free handbook from the American Quarter Horse Association. 

Guided Trail Riding Tips

As summer is winding down, so is vacation and trail-riding season -- but I want to offer  a few suggestions anyway for people who enjoy seeing the world from horseback.

I’ve worked at several trail-riding stables and have led private trail rides for years. I would like to pass on what I’ve learned and point out a few mistakes people make that make the guided ride less fun than it could be.
Most importantly, remember that you will not be doing any real riding at these stables. You are not going to prove your riding ability to anyone doing this kind of riding. The real purpose of guided trail rides is to get a unique tour of the area. Horse trails often go places you can’t reach with other modes of transportation. Horses also move at a unique pace: faster than walking but slower than motorized vehicles. The goal of the ride should be to spend time with horses and enjoy the scenery. With that purpose in mind, here are some tips:

• Never claim to have more riding experience than you have -- and estimate low. You don’t want a horse that tends to be spooky, grazes excessively, or otherwise causes problems; those horses will make it much more difficult for you to enjoy the ride. I suggest claiming "no experience" if your pride will allow it; you will get the best horse and be able to enjoy the scenery.
• Listen to your guide. Even if you are an expert rider, these guides know these horses and these trails better than you do. Remember, you are not out to prove your ability. You want to enjoy the ride.
• Dress appropriately. Wear long pants. Wear closed-toe shoes that do not have thick soles which can get caught in stirrups and thus are unsafe. Bring a jacket only if weather conditions in the area suggest that you may need it; you do not need to be taking clothing on and off while riding the horse. Most stables that have issues with weather provide rain jackets and have procedures to follow if it  rains while on a ride.
• Do not bring extra supplies. You will be gone for two hours at most and will not need water, snacks or other items that might hang off your body or saddle.  
• Stay in line. These horses often do not have experience outside of riding down the trail nose to tail. Do not try to trot, canter, or turn your horse unless absolutely necessary or if your guide tells you it's OK.
• Do not ask your guide to trot, canter or go faster. This prevents you from enjoying the scenery, causes chaos in the line and can cause accidents. Also, the trails are a length that allow you to walk the distance in the time given. The 1-hour ride is a trail that takes approximately an hour for a horse to walk. Guides often do not have other trails to offer if your ride ends up not being a full hour.
• Be careful with your camera. If you bring a camera, make it a small one that is easy to put into and get out of your pocket while you're in the saddle. Make sure it's quiet or turn off any sounds it makes; you do not want to spook your horse.
• Do not force kids to go on a ride. Your ride will be ruined if your child spends the entire ride scared or unhappy. Try a pony ride first to make sure the youngster likes riding. If you still want to go but your child doesn't, find another activity he or she would enjoy while you're gone.
• TIP YOUR GUIDE! If you enjoyed your ride, if you didn’t have accidents or issues, if they tried to entertain you, and if your child’s horse didn’t spend the entire ride with its head in the grass, you guide deserves a tip. Your guide works 12- to 15-hour days. He or she is up before the sun, saddling horses and getting ready for you to come and ride. When your ride is over, your guide has more work to do -- including rides to lead, horses to care for and pens to clean. Guides rely on tips for their income because their salaries are minimal. Because horses are large and unpredictable animals with minds of their own and are easily scared, a good guide who keeps the horses on the trail deserves to be rewarded for getting you back safely.

Remember, your goal is to enjoy your ride and enjoy the scenery. Anything you can do to help make that happen will make your experience much more enjoyable.

So, listen to your guide, tip your guide at the end of the ride -- and happy trails!

Supplements in Horses- Joint Supplement

SUPPLEMENTS FOR HORSES: Joint Supplements

In this ongoing series, I look at supplements for horses and any studies that are done on efficacy.

Go into any tack, feed or other horse-supply store, and you will find a wide variety of supplements that will help your horse do anything from move better, gain weight, grow a healthier coat to just be a better horse.

My question is: Do any of them work?

How do you know if a supplement works? Supplements are expensive and there is little scientific evidence that any of them do what their label claims.

Smartpak posted a blog on joint supplements and responded to a question of whether they are absorbed and if they are effective. This blog had four citations to studies that “prove” the effectiveness of these supplements. The study it cites to show that the joint supplements are absorbed seemed to be a reasonable methodology for testing the claim, but with only 10 horses in the study, this is preliminary evidence at best. Granted, for the horse studies I’ve seen, 10 is an average number. However, for any study to be statistically applied to the entire population, assuming a homogeneous population of horses (which may be a stretch), the sample size ought to be greater than 30.

The article goes on to talk about how effective joint supplements are for horses. I was unable to find information on the first citation about methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), so I cannot comment on the quality of this study.

The next citation is about how Hyaluronan (HA) is absorbed orally. This study was done well. It had a placebo ground (which many studies lack) and a decent-sized group of 27 joints in the treatment group. This study specifically looked at orally administered HA on horses' joints after surgery. It compared how swollen the joints were in the groups of horses and found that HA helped reduce the swelling. The question here: How does this apply to a healthy horse? These were also yearling horses, so can this be applicable to older horses? I’m not saying these studies are not useful. I’m saying we need a lot more research before we put every horse on these supplements.

The final study cited is not much more than a case study. A trainer had 10 horses which were being given hock injections of HA. The horses were studied for two years, then a glucosamine and chondroitin supplement was added to their diets twice daily for eight years. This study found that those horses “needed” fewer injections of HA during those eight years. The person conducting the study was also responsible for giving the injections, so there was no blinding of the study. Also, no placebo group was used. Quite a bit of bias could happen in a study such as this, which is why a placebo group is needed.

Were these really the best studies to prove the points in this article? If so, we as an equine community have a long way to go before we will know if all of these supplements actually are helping our horses.

This study reflects the state of research on joint supplements on horses. We can only draw viable conclusions if we hold our studies to rigorous scientific standards - which I believe we should.

I’m not saying that you should stop supplementing your horses. You should be aware, though, that the supplements may not have any benefit for your horse and you may just be wasting your money. I am advocating more research, held to a high standard, and honesty with buyers of supplements.

How to Choose a Trainer

I recently got a call from a girl who boards her horse at my barn. She needed me to help her move the mare from a different barn back to my barn. This was sort of an emergency situation; the horse was brought to that other barn to be trained, but after two weeks ended up lame.

Since the girl had paid for a month of training, she decided to switch horses. She moved her stallion to the trainer’s place and brought the mare to our barn. After about a week of hearing nothing from the trainer, she got frustrated and asked the barn owners if the trainer had been working with the stallion. The people at the barn had not seen the trainers at the barn at all. This is when she called me to move the horse.

When we got to that barn, I couldn’t believe she had let her horses stay there at all. We pulled up in a strange trailer, but no one came out to see what was going on or question why we were there. The smell was awful; all barns smell a little, but this one obviously had not been cleaned in a long time. The large number of horses, including mares and babies, were crammed into tiny stalls and standing on 5 inches or more of manure. Flies buzzed everywhere, and none of the horses seemed to be in the best condition.

As we pulled her horse out of his stall and loaded him onto the trailer, we noticed that the backs of his feet were severely lacerated - injuries that obviously would take a long while to heal.

What's the point of this story? A trainer for your horse must be chosen carefully.

There are some common-sense things to look for, questions to ask and things to do before you send your horse to a “trainer.” Remember, you're looking for a trainer with "horse sense" who knows more than you do. If trainers can’t meet these minimum standards, they don't know enough about horses for me to trust a horse with them.

First, visit the barn before you send your horse there. Check out the barn, the stalls, the horses and the other facilities.

• The horses should be calm, well fed, have plenty of water and have lots of space.

• The barn should be kept up, clean, and look like people use it on a regular basis.

• The stalls should appear to be cleaned at least once a day. There should be no overwhelming smell of manure or other strong odors.

• The areas where your horse will be ridden, tacked up and bathed should all be clean and look safe to use.

• If the barn does not seem like a safe, clean place, you probably need to pick a different trainer who can choose a proper barn at which to work.

Next, talk to the trainer.

• Ask about his or her training philosophy and what his or her plans are for your horse.

• Make sure the trainer's plans align with what you want, and that their philosophy makes sense and will produce safe and happy horses.

• Watch the trainer work with the horse. This will allow you to see if the relationship is going to work and learn about how you will work with your horse when it comes back from the trainer.

I generally don’t recommend that you send a horse to a trainer and then go get it in a month or several months. If you don’t learn along with your horse, you will have just as many issues when it comes back. I suggest finding a trainer who also wants to give you riding lessons to help you work with your horse.

If you want the horse to be yours to ride, you will need to learn how to ride it.

Don't find yourself in a situation such as that of the girl at the barn, having to pull her horse out of an unsafe situation at the last minute. A little homework will save you time, money, and potential tragedy if your horse should happen to get hurt or killed by a trainer who lacked proper horse sense.