Posts Tagged ‘Lineage’

Owning a horse is a great opportunity and one that comes with a hefty weight of responsibility. Unfortunately many owners don’t think before they leap into purchasing a horse, resulting in a negative experience for both the horse and the owner. Even owners that have experience with the privilege of horse ownership may sometimes find it is a bit overwhelming.

The following are some basic strategies and tips for horse owners and especially potential horse owners to consider to make the experience positive and healthy. By avoiding these common pitfalls your relationship with your horse will be much better both short and long term.

The Right Horse for the Job.

Many horse owners make the mistake of buying a horse out of emotion. Perhaps it is that beautifully marked yearling or the grand champion that has just come on the market that becomes your “must have” horse. While both of these horses may be a good choice, they both may also be horrible choices as well. It is essential to have someone that knows horses with you to make a purchase and consider what you want the horse for before becoming an owner.

Horses have natural abilities and things that they aren’t so good at. While breeding does definitely factor in, there are going to be some horses that just aren’t suited for the type of riding you want to do regardless of their lineage, breed characteristics or how their dam or sire performed. Taking an honest look at the level of skill required to ride the horse or provide training in relation to your skill as a rider is a very important step. Never take on a horse that is more horse than you can handle or that you feel comfortable in riding. This almost always results in a horse for sale or a horse left out in the pasture with no interaction at all.

Priorities: Is The Horse At The Top?

If you aren’t committed to making your relationship with your horse a priority in your life then horse ownership is not a good idea. The owner has to make the effort, every day, to interact with the horse. This can include cleaning stalls, grooming, feeding and of course riding. Training that includes the basics as well as more advanced levels if you want to enhance your skills requires practice, a bond of trust with your horse and a development of a team mentality.

Specific types of training such as horse gymnastics training can be used to help develop these skills and this teamwork. However, the owner must be prepared to learn as well, you can’t have someone else train your horse, you have to be the one to work with the horse and learn the aids and riding techniques.

Long Term Commitment

Owning a horse is not a short term commitment. Horses can live to be twenty plus years, and will need to stay active, engaged and cared for throughout their entire life. Knowing that you are willing and able to commit to these magnificent animals as both a rider and an owner for their entire life is essential before bringing one home.

Keeping your horse health with the correct food, shelter, exercise and routine vet care is also important. Not only does the ownership experience include your commitment physically and mentally to the horse, it will also require significant financial support as well. If you can make this commitment you won’t be disappointed and your horse ownership experience will be positive and one you certainly wouldn’t trade for anything.

Cathy Barrea is an award winning trainer and creator of Gymnastics for Horses. Her career spans over 35 years, during which time she has traveled the United States and Canada showing, training and teaching students and horses.

Author: Cathy Barrea
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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The Arabian horse is an animal which has lived on the Arabian Peninsula for well over 2000 years. These horses were properly bred to demonstrate many traits which were attractive, such as strength, beauty, and endurance. Many experts on horses have concluded that Arabian horses are among the oldest breeds in the world.

The Bedouins were a nomadic people who are given credit for first taming the Arabian horse. The Bedouins made every effort to protect the purity of these horses, and many could trace back the lineage of the horses they owned. During this time, it was critical to have a horse which was strong, fast, and courageous. It also had to be capable of surviving in the desert environment. The Bedouin tribes were constantly at war with other tribes in the region, and it was necessary to have a horse which could lead them into battle.

The Bedouins soon gained a reputation for breeding some of the most beautiful horses ever seen. Many people would trade horses with them, and they would get together and share the lineages of the horses which were traded. There are a number of different variations of Arabian horses, which are known as strains. These horses have a common ancestor and look. Some of these are Hadban, Kuhaylan, and Dahman.

The Arabian horse of one of the most well known breeds in the world. Their heads are shaped like wedges, and they have large eyes and a small muzzle. Arabian horses which have a concave shaped nose are highly prized. The neck of an Arabian horse should be arched, and their legs should be muscular and lean. Their coat should be shiny, and can be likened to silk. Despite this, Arabian horses are often not seen at the highest levels of show jumping competitions, because it does not have a good bascule compared to other breeds.

Most Arabian horses have a coat which is grey or brown, and some horses also have black coats. Arabian horses with black coats were rare, because in the desert they would absorb heat, and this would be dangerous. Because the Arabian horse is so genetically pure, it is commonly used in enhancing the characteristics of other breeds of horses. Arabian horses have a good temperament, and this also makes them attractive to breeders.

Arabian horses have been used in professional horse competitions for a long time, and Arabian horse games are being held every year in which the horses and their owners can compete with each other.

Michael Colucci is an experienced horse competitor and writes articles for HorseGathering.com and HorsePasture.net

Author: Michael Colucci
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Horses have a very old lineage covering millions of years, and many different terrains. It isn’t so surprising, then, to learn that horses are found in an array of colors and patterns, with a host of different markings. By familiarizing yourself with the names of horse colors, patterns, and markings, the two lists below will help you to intelligently spot, name, and discus horses among your peers. For beginning riders, it will be comforting to know that when your trainer asks you to saddle up the buckskin blaze, you’ll never have a quizzical look on your face, or wonder if you should ‘fess up’ that you don’t know what she means.

Markings
Terms to describe marks on a horse can be divided into facial and leg areas. People around horses often describe these white marks as ‘chrome’, a rather funny use of the word to refer to variations seen as attractive additions to a horse’s appearance.

Here are some facial chrome feature descriptions:

A star is a white spot on the horse’s forehead.

A stripe is a narrow white strip that runs down the center of the horse’s face, from the forehead down the bridge of the nose.

A snip, I suppose, is a part of a longer stripe. It’s a white spot on the muzzle, on or just below the area between the horse’s nostrils.

A blaze mark is a wide white area that starts at the horse’s forehead and ends along the bridge of the horse’s nose.

Bald refers to a horse with a large amount of white on the face that starts above the forehead, runs along the front of the face to the muzzle, and extends beyond the bridge of the nose to the sides of the face.

The main kinds of chrome on the legs include:

The coronet band is a small white band just above the hoof.

Half pastern means a white marking that starts at the edge of the hoof and extends halfway up the pastern. Think of the pastern the horse’s equivalent to the upper part of a human foot, and the white marking on the horse would be equivalent to a human wearing white footlet sock.

A sock is a larger white marking that starts at the edge of the hoof and extends about a third of the way up the leg.

A stocking, then, is a white marking that extends from the hoof to the horse’s knee, or hock if the stocking is found on the back legs of the horse.

Half cannon is a white marking that starts at the edge of the hoof and extends halfway up the middle of the leg. Consider it to be between the length of a horse sock and a horse stocking.

Colors
Gray: A gray can be nearly white to dark gray or everything in between. Many gray horses will have dapples, which are circular, indistinct spots. In those cases, these horses are called ‘dapple grays’. Most gray horses are born dark and develop their gray color as they age.

Bay: Bay is a rich brown color on the body with a black mane, tail, and legs. Bays can be dark tan to reddish brown.

Brown: In the world of horses, the color brown describes a very dark brown animal, often with a lighter brown around the muzzle, flank or inside of the upper legs. The mane and tail of these brown horses are black.

Spotted: Spotted horses feature one of several different coat patterns that often consist of oval, egg-shaped spots. These spots can be distributed throughout the body or limited to the horse’s hindquarters and hips.

Black: For a horse to be truly considered black, he must be jet black with no light areas anywhere on the body, including the mane and tail. A fine, black horse in a sunny pasture is truly a poetic spectacle.

Dun: A dun horse has a gold, reddish, or tan body color and a black or brown mane and tail. All duns have a dark stripe down their backs. Roan colored horses are believed to exist within the family of duns. A subset among the roans are the grullas described as a mousy grey dun.

Buckskin: A buckskin looks very much like a dun but without the dark stripe along its back. The color can be anything from light to dark tan, always with lower black legs, a black mane and tail.

Roan: This term describes a horse who has a dark background color that’s intermixed with white hairs. The head and lower legs of the roan are usually darker than the rest of the body. Roans come in different colored patterns, most often red (white hairs mixed with chestnut or red hairs) and blue (white hairs mixed with black hairs). Many quarter horses fit this description.

Palomino: A golden yellow body with a white mane and tail is characteristic of the palomino coloration. This color horse comes in different patterns, depending on their breed.

Chestnut: Chestnut is a distinct reddish color covering the entire body. The mane and tail are usually the same color, although some chestnuts have what is called a flaxen or a blond mane and tail. Chestnuts come in different shades, from very light (called sorrel) to very dark (called liver).

Pinto: A pinto horse is marked with irregularly shaped patches of dark color against white or, sometimes, white irregularly shaped patches against a darker background color. The dark patches can be just about any color, including palomino, chestnut, bay, buckskin or black.

None of us were born an old hand around the ranch, rodeo or show arena. If you find the information above useful at this stage of learning, print a copy to have nearby. It will help you get a verbal handle on what your peers and trainers are saying.

Tanya Vorgan believes in the easiest way to learn — to teach others as she is learning. Her many interests have lead her to many exciting experiences, but sometimes nothing compares to the richness of quiet moments in which to reflect and grow. Tanya is also among those committed to the never-ending quest for the perfect cup of coffee, which for her begins with the best bar none Bunn coffee makers.

Tanya recommends going for the richest black gold possible with a Bunn coffee grinder and your choice of coffee bean. You won’t believe the difference fresh ground coffee in your kitchen will make.

Author: Tanya Vorgan
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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When you look at horses for sale, you may be looking for a horse that will be good with the kids. You might be looking for a horse that you can bring into the racing world. But some of you will be looking for something more specific; those of you who have seen barrel racing at rodeos or even on television events might be thinking that barrel horses may be a great option.

Contrary to what some people believe, not every horse is an ideal candidate for barrel racing. Though there are fewer particulars than there are when looking for a Thoroughbred that will be a winner on the race track, there are a number of different characteristics that will be found in great barrel horses. Temperament can play a role in the success of barrel horses just as much as the horse’s skills, character, training and lineage.

You read that right – even with barrel horses, you’ll find that one of the major considerations that many buyers have is the lineage of the horse. A barrel horse’s bloodlines can help to identify how successful past generations in the line were, what the horse was bred for and can provide a sense of what the horse will be able to accomplish during the race.

Of course, more than the bloodlines, most buyers find that, with barrel horses, it is about the build and health of the horse. A good barrel horse has legs that are straight, and if you’re buying a horse that’s already been raced, you will want to be sure that its legs are free of any bumps or external scars. It’s important to be sure that the horse’s hooves are healthy, that its back is strong and that the horse is flexible and athletic.

To some extent, you will be able to tell whether or not horses for sale are healthy based on looks, however, before you make a commitment to making a purchase it is usually a good idea to have a veterinarian check to make sure that there’s nothing underlying that cannot be seen by the human eye.

If barrel horses have been worked with by trainers to get them ready for the sport, you will want to gather information about the trainers and their experience. The trainers, much like the horse’s lineage, can tell you a lot about whether the horse that you are looking at is going to be ideal when you’re looking for barrel horses that you will be able to take around the country to ride at events with the hopes of – someday – competing in some of the sports’ biggest competitions.

On the other hand, if you only plan to participate in a race or two during the local rodeo season, you’re likely to find that you are looking for a very different horse. Yes, the animal’s health and build will still be important to you, but you won’t want to focus as much on professionally trained barrel horses. Choosing a horse that is good for overall riding as well as barrel racing can, quite possibly, save you $20,000 or more.

In either case, you are going to want to focus more on the health and build of the horse than on the coloring and markings – characteristics that those who are looking for a horse for afternoon rides can focus on a bit more. When you are looking at horses for sale and trying to find barrel horses, you’ll want to focus your attention on Quarter Horses which are great at running at high speeds in short bursts, or, if you prefer, Pintos and Paints.

Whichever horse you choose as your barrel horse, it is important to recognize that you won’t just be heading into the ring to compete. In order to keep barrel horses ready – and to get them ready if they haven’t previously been used for barrel racing – you are going to need to focus on building the horse’s lung capacity with long trotting on a regular basis. A good goal to set for barrel horses that you are conditioning is the ability to keep a fast pace for six to eight miles at least three days a week.

To that end, keep in mind that conditioning barrel horses is not just exercise for them; it’s also exercise for you.

Philipe Wiskell is a writer for HorseClicks.com, popular classifieds of barrel racing horses for sale, horse farms and used trailers.

Author: Philip Wiskell
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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