Winter Riding

Riding during the winter brings a different set of challenges than riding in other seasons. The cold can cause colic, founder and many other health issues for your horse.

Whether riding inside or out, here are a few tips to keep you and your horse healthy and safe during winter:

Dress for the weather -- and dress in layers. You may get warm while riding, but when tacking up or cooling out your horse your body temperature can cool down very quickly. Most tack stores offer a variety of winter riding gear to help you keep warm.

Stepping off a horse onto cold feet hurts a lot. I suggest waterproof winter riding boots with warm linings. Wool socks or layers of socks also will help keep your feet warm.

Winter riding breeches are great, especially insulated or fleece. When choosing a jacket, try to find one that fits close to the body and does not have loose pieces which can get caught on tack. Gloves are also important and should be insulated but still allow the rider to use his or her fingers to tack up the horse and feel the reins when riding.

Warm up your horse. The most important parts of riding during winter are the warm up and cool down. Because the horses are out in the cold, their muscles will be cold and possibly stiff, and will need extra time to warm up and stretch. Warm up will be longer and should involve stretching and loosening exercises. Lots of walking and lateral work, if done uncollected, are great ways to help the horse warm up.

If the horse is especially cold, riders can use a quarter sheet draped over the horse's hindquarters. This will help keep the body heat near the horse and help the muscles warm up faster. This should only be used for warming up and cooling down, not while working.

Be careful on the trail. When trailering, you may need blankets on the way to the trailhead if you horse is usually kept in a stall or heated barn.

Trail riding during winter comes with the same warnings as riding in general. Riders should be prepared for sudden weather changes and drops in temperature. As soon as the sun starts setting, the temperature drops very quickly -- especially in Colorado. Riders should plan to be back before sunset or bring extra jackets.

Be careful about letting the horse drink water along the trail. If a warm horse drinks icy-cold water, it can colic or founder very easily. This is also true for allowing your horse to drink when you return to the trailer; it is best to let the animal fully cool down before it drinks water or eats.

If the horse is warm or sweaty when you return to the trailer, put the cooler on for the trailer ride home and groom the horse when you return to the stable.

Cool down your horse. The harder you work your horse, the longer it will take to cool it down. If your time is limited, keep the work easier so the horse does not get as warm. When riding indoors, horses will tend to get warmer and sweat more easily because there is less air movement. This will also be a factor when planning how long you will need for cool down.

Cooling your horse down properly during winter is important for several reasons. If the horse cools down too quickly, it may colic or founder, especially if turned into its stall or pasture where grain and water are available. If a horse is turned out wet from sweat, it may catch cold or may colic as well.

Once you have finished your riding work, walk the horse for at least five minutes under saddle. This allows the horse's heart rate to return to normal and starts the cool-down process. If the horse is still warm or sweaty, unsaddle it and put on a cooler sheet. This sheet will help regulate the horse's body temperature and help absorb sweat. Once the cooler is on, walk the horse or turn it out into the arena to walk on its own.

Check the horse every five minutes or so to see if it has cooled down. Place your hand low on the animal's chest, between its front legs. If the horse has fully cooled down, this area should be the same temperature as the rest of its body -- and also should be dry, not sweaty. That dryness is especially important if the horse wears a blanket; if the blanket is put on while the horse is still wet, it can't keep the horse warm or allow it to dry off.

Once the horse is fully cooled down, go through your usual grooming routine and then blanket the horse as needed. The horse can then be put into its stall or pasture to eat and drink.

Especially if you ride hard and your horse comes back sweaty, make sure it is fully dry and cool before adding blankets and putting it back in its stall.

Stay warm and enjoy your winter rides!

'Buck': A great way to warm up on a cold winter evening

The days end earlier and temperatures are colder as winter sets in, which makes it harder to find time and motivation to ride. Days like this make it appealing to curl up on the couch in front of a movie and hide from the world.

When the snow and cold keep you inside, check out "Buck."

An inspirational movie for horse people and non-horse people alike, this biographical documentary profiles trainer and clinician Dan M. "Buck" Brannaman. Buck was the inspiration for the book and movie "The Horse Whisperer" and even did some horse work on the film and helped Robert Redford with the character.

Buck has spent most of his life traveling the country, "helping horses with people problems." His clinics on colt starting and horse training have helped thousands. He has many worthwhile books and DVDs on training and other horse issues.

This incredibly well-made documentary features gorgeous scenery from Buck’s home in Montana and touching scenes from Buck’s past and from his clinics. The film will inspire you to be a better horse person -- and a better person in general. It will provide you will all the motivation you need to get out to the barn and spend time with your horse.

"Buck" is streaming on Netflix and available on DVD at most retailers. It is a great way to spend an evening and reinspire a love of horses and riding.

After watching the movie, you can explore his website, order books and DVDs, and find out when he is coming to your town.

Cool new Tech for horses

A very cool new technology, check out this video to see what it can do, then check out PonyUp Technologies.

While it may be a bit expensive now, this may revolutionize equestrian competition in the next decade. With horses dying at shows and collapsing while working, this may be the new way of monitoring horse health and keeping horses happier, healthier, and living longer lives.

Think what this could do for endurance horses both in training and during competition. With this you can far more accurately monitor pulse and hydration needs which will allow competitors to ride their horses at their peak ability.

This could also be great for eventers during the cross country and endurance phases. Riders could know if they were pushing their horse too hard, or if it could do more.
This could also speed up vet checks at both these competitions and with real time data vets may be able to pull horses off course before they have issues rather than waiting for the check points.

Who knows, this may have even been able to save Hickstead, the now famous show jumper who died this past weekend. Had the caretakers known about his condition they may have changed how they competed or cooled down after the jumping round.

Duminus Stupesidis

While the video quality is poor, this disease affects many in the industry and should be prevented at all costs. Enjoy this skeptical horse video :)

The Poudre Trail: A little bit of country in the city

As winter approaches, finding places to trail ride becomes more difficult. The trails get muddy, mountain trails are hard to access because of road closures and snow, and there is less time to travel to the trails as the days get shorter.

Fort Collins has an extensive system of trails throughout the city, however, and a few of them are open to horse travel. One of the city's best paths for horses is the Poudre Trail, great for an afternoon ride during fall or winter.

This east-west trail on the far north end of town parallels the Cache la Poudre River. The trail starts in LaPorte and heads past Old Town all the way to the Riverbend Ponds natural area off Mulberry Street and Timberline Road. Because this urban trail has a few road crossings and other obstacles, it's better for more advanced riders and horses. It offers a chance to teach horses about water crossings, bikes, dogs, people, and pavement. It's also a great challenge for a horse which is doing well on mountain trails.

Horse trailers can be parked in a number of places. To start at the beginning of the trail, park in LaPorte. A small parking lot is off Overland Trail just west of 54G. If that lot is full, equestrians can park in the supermarket lot just to the east, but must be sure to clean up after horses. Starting from this point means crossing a long and noisy bridge. This may not be the best choice for horses which are not calm and ready to behave immediately off the trailer.

A better choice is at the trailhead on Taft Hill Road. The fairly large lot has spaces designed for horse trailers. From the trailhead there, the trail heads south. Most of the route features two parallel trails -- one paved, one dirt -- to provide options for where to walk. This trail is popular, so equestrians will encounter people riding bikes, walking dogs and jogging.

The first major obstacle on this part of the trail is a tunnel. Although short, it's made from steel, so it is loud and echoes as horses approach and walk though it. If a horse becomes  nervous, it may be safer to dismount and walk the animal through it the first time.

The next obstacle is at Shields Street, which presents two choices: Walking under the road, a low bridge and blind corner, or crossing the road and watching for traffic.

After shields, Poudre Stables is on the right and the river is on the left. Some of the dirt side trails offer chances to play in the river or cross one of the many bridges and use the natural areas on the Cache la Poudre's north side.

The path winds down along the river, and crosses under railroad tracks and College Avenue. Those crossings are very low, so riders should dismount to be safe.

The trail eventually connects to Linden Street and passes New Belgium Brewing. A creative rider might be able to find a way to get a sample from the brewery before continuing on the ride.

The trail continues along a natural area and golf course until it connects to Mulberry Street and Lemay Avenue. Horses should be very used to cars and traffics to continue past here, because riders may have to travel on or near the busy streets. The trail concludes just past Timberline Road in the Riverbend Ponds Natural Area.

With all the side trails and adjacent natural areas, every trip down the Poudre Trail will be slightly different and can provide horses and riders many new challenges, both natural and human made.

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.

Return Horses: Homing Pigeons of Colorado Mining Camps

Back when Colorado consisted of mostly mining towns, the main forms of transportation through the mountains were walking and riding horses.

Riding was especially important when miners needed to carry supplies and tools to their camp. Most miners didn’t own horses of their own and only had need for a steed a few times a year. This meant that miners needed to rent horses - but they only needed them for a one-way trip. There were no national rent-a-horse chains such as today's car-rental companies, so livery stables needed a way to get their horses back. Horses were expensive to raise and train, and were scarce in the lightly populated Rocky Mountains, so these horses could not be easily replaced. It thus was very important that any horse that was rented was returned to the livery.

The livery owners started investing in “return horses,” animals trained to return to their home stables from wherever they were set loose. Using these horses, miners didn’t have to worry about traveling back to town. They could set the horse loose once they got to camp, and it would return to the livery.

Return horses had to be well trained to deal with all the obstacles they might meet on the trail:

• Large snowdrifts, blizzards, fast-moving thunderstorms and flash floods.
• Predators such as mountain lions, which could be especially hazardous to horses which got tangled in their tack or in fallen trees.
• Other horses which they might be tempted to follow - but which might not be going back to the same stable.
•  Thieves. Return horses had to learn not allow themselves to be caught after being sent home.
• This meant avoiding people or fighting back if a person managed to catch them, and staying out of the way of wagon trains and pack groups.
• The difficult terrain of the Rocky Mountains.

There were some etiquette rules for renting and encountering return horses. When you set a horse loose, you had to make sure the girth was tight so the saddle wouldn't slip and get caught on tree branches or other hazards, and the horse would be kept from getting tangled. The reins also needed to be tight when they were pulled over the saddle horn, to keep them from getting tangled and to give the horse extra incentive to return home. With the reins pulled tight, a horse can’t lower his head to drink or eat, so the only way for it to get relief was to get back to the stable. Since the horse needed to get back as soon as possible, it was illegal to catch a return horse.

These horses were impressive in their ability to return to their stables and saved everyone time and effort.

As Enos A. Mills, father of Rocky Mountain National Park, wrote about the return horses, “These horses are the pick of their kind.”