Posts Tagged ‘Proper Diet’

A good sound knowledge in horse feeding is important for any horse owner. Even if your horse is stabled and fed by the staff at a yard, you ought to have a basic understanding of horse nutrition. A healthy horse fed a proper diet is a horse that will have the balanced energy to suit you.

If your horse is lacking in energy he may seem lazy to you, but have you looked at his diet? Are you feeding him enough of the right food? A diet consisting mainly of hay or grass is good for a horse living out in a pasture. Of course if that same horse is exercised on a regular basis that hay should be of high quality, good protein, and no doubt he would be having a grain too.

Besides low energy, a horse on an incorrect diet would lose weight, or gain too much weight. Both can lead to health concerns and problems, which usually would result in a veterinary visit and fee.

Feeding a horse more than hay obviously costs more, but you truly save on money in the long run. Horses that are worked need more than hay to replenish lost calories, to maintain his health and to repair the body. No different than humans who are not simply couch potatoes.

Pleasure horses that are ridden infrequently still benefit from grain. You can purchase grain or pellets that are best suited to your horses needs. Today feed bags have several labels which tell you the type of food and ingredients. Foods have been specifically developed for broodmares, senior and junior horses just to mention a few.

Knowledgeable staff at a yard and your veterinarian can further assist you in choosing the correct diet. You want a content, happy horse, but perhaps not a highly strung, spirited race horse between your legs…

Depending on your horse’s lifestyle, whether a competition horse, a companion horse or a pleasure horse there is a diet to match. Diets help you get the best performance from your horse. Supplements may or may not be necessary, if you are competing in a showing class on a regular basis, your horse may very well benefit from a supplement that adds benefits to his coat.

Feeding truly makes a difference to horses from birth up. You want a good healthy happy horse, read up on horse nutrition and find the correct diet.

Horses. Get information on buying, owning and caring for your horse, learn about Feeding Your Horse. Learn about your horses anatomy.

Author: Benjamin Wise
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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What is better than going to the barn and seeing your horse standing in the stall, shining like new money, mane perfectly pulled and laying beautifully on your horses’ neck, dapples everywhere just talking to you saying, look at me, tail free of tangles, almost reaching the floor, thick and wavy. Not to mention your horses forelock is where it should be, not too long or too short, and no dirt or dust on your horses nose and that shining look in your best buddies eyes. Wow!!!…Hah, GET REAL. These things happen only after many weeks or months of constant serious grooming and elbow grease.

A proper balanced diet as well as a regimented exercise program with a minimal amount of stress are contributing factors to a beautiful coat on your horse. Breeding will come into play but with hard work, a brilliant coat can be achieved.Successful, well groomed horses are very pampered animals. Of course they do have a price to pay, they must do what it is that is asked of them and do it well if they wish to continue this pampered way of life. Doesn’t matter whether you have a western pleasure horse, jumping horse or dressage horse, or even a racehorse, performance horses have a job to do and they will always be expected to have positive results from their performances. Nothing in life is free, not even for them.

So, let’s get down to business. First you will need a grooming box. Most of them today are made so you can sit them over the top of a board such as a fence board. You need at least one curry comb, preferably two of them, a fairly soft bendable one and you can get curry combs that look like they have small cones sticking out of a round base with a band to put your hand into on the other side.

Next you willneed a regular size soft brush, a regular size harder brush and a very soft regular size brush. You will need a smaller hard brush for brushing out the horses feet after you have picked them out. You will need a hoof pick, a mane pulling comb and a tail brush. Last you will need a few good rub rags. You will need a large spray bottle that will be used for a detangler for the tail. Old timers would not let us use anything but a hard brush on tails as you want to try and keep the tail as long as possible for swatting flies and gnats. If you are careful you can do a good job using a comb and detangler. Some eye wash in your box is probably not a bad idea, a good hoof care product and maybe an anti-thrush product. Last you should keep some type of wound care product in your box for easy access too (check out my latest blog).

After your horse has had a bath (complete details on bathing in recent blog “Giving Your Horse A Bath From Nose To Tail“) and is now completely dry, take your softer curry comb, stand in front of your horse after you have either tied him or her in the stall with a tie chain, (tie chains are not necessarily made of chain, there are rope, elastic or other varieties), or have your horse in cross ties either in a barn or outside on a wash rack. If you are right handed, use your left hand and hold the nose band of the halter lightly, and curry your horse between the eyes, very gently, currying is usually done in a circular motion, continue up towards the ears.

Now down both sides of the cheeks. Start on the left side of the horse, if you wish you can change to your other curry comb. Continue from behind of the ear, again in circular motions, straight down the neck, onto the chest. You should gently curry between the front legs and over their chest. Do this all the way down the whole side of the horse, (the curry is not for their legs but there is a soft rubber glove type of curry that is much better for horses who are shedding this type would be ok for the legs), under the stomach, close to the spine but not directly on the spine, over the horses rump, around to the tail down to the hock. Now you need to start on the other side of the horse behind the right ear and do exactly the same. You will know if you are currying too hard because the horse will keep moving away from you or will drop his or her back down low trying to get away from the curry comb, adjust to a lighter touch. Next, take your regular size soft and regular size harder brush.

Gently start brushing at the forehead, up between the ears, behind the ears making sure to move the halter back cleaning under the crown piece of the halter very well. Using the brush in your left hand, on the left side of the horse, and your brush in your right hand, alternate strokes from top to bottom covering all areas again working your way all the way back to the tail. You will use these brushes to brush their legs all the way down to the hoof. Go to the other side using the same alternating strokes with soft and harder regular brushes. Now, starting again at the front of your horses head, use the soft regular brush and your rub rag. Do exactly the same alternating strokes except that you can sometime use the rub rag in circular motions with your right hand giving your left hand a little break.

Grab your comb, comb forelock, mane and then tail using the detangler if you get a lot of resistance or excessive knotting, starting at the bottom of the tail working upwards. Now it is time to perform the very important picking of the horses feet with your hoof pick and your small hard brush. Stand by the horses left leg facing the back of the horse, asking your horse for his or her front foot by running your hand down usually the inside of their leg. This is a taught behavior to give you their foot and practice makes perfect. After you teach this to a horse and with regular practice of this important procedure, most horses have no problem with being obliging.

As they pick up their foot, use your left hand to hold the front of their foot, using your right hand, as you face the point of the pick towards the ground, run the pick on either side of their frog and clean out any unnecessary stones, manure or other things you know do not belong there. Still holding the foot with your left hand, grab your small harder brush with your right hand, brush out the bottom of the horses foot in a downward motion. Put that foot down, run your hand, as you are bent over, on the outside of the other leg and do the same.

Continue to the back of the horse, stand by his or her hind leg, start up high, running your left hand across the rump and down the inside of the left hind leg, asking kindly for their foot, clean and brush the foot and then ask for the right hind foot, you know the deal. Job well done, stand back as you will be able to see a difference. By grooming your horse in this manner on a daily basis, it will bring you great satisfaction as you will really be able to see the difference,and your horse just might give you a smile.

Beverly Jansen
http://bevshorseadvice.com
Co-Owner of BevWeb, LLC

I’m a licensed Thoroughbred Horse Trainer and a licensed Equine Message Therapist. I have devoted my entire life to horses and have over 40 years experience to share. My blog site was created to share my knowledge and will soon offer exceptional, all natural horse products that are above and beyond any other products in comparison and will guarantee fantastic results. I will also be posting “How To” videos on my YouTube channel soon.

Author: Beverly Jansen
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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You are getting ready to ride your horse, go on a trail ride, take them to a show, or it has been raining. You discover your horse has been “rolling in the mud.” If it hasn’t happened to you yet, sooner or later you’ll get a surprise at the worst time. I have seven beautiful Paint Horses or, most of the time they are beautiful. When they roll in mud, it is not a very pretty sight to see and if neglected for an extended period of time, it will have undesirable effects on your horse’s mane, coat and skin. I live in Texas, in an area where the soil is a black-clay so when it rains, the soil becomes deep, sticky and very muddy.

Once my horses roll, because they are wet, they turn black instead of their natural color which is mostly white. This is what I do to keep them groomed, not only for their skin condition, but to look really good. People often ask me “how do you keep those horses so clean.” The answer is simple… I bath them regularly. Now it is time, not only groom your horse, but to give them a bath first.Simply brushing the horse only removes some of the dirt and the remaining dirt and dust is unhealthy to their coat and skin and coat. Your horse should always have a healthy diet for that natural shine to their coat. If you groom and/or bath your horse and they still have a dull coat, you should make sure they are getting a healthy and proper diet.

You will need grooming products. There are lots of them out there. I find the sources on-line are cheaper, even with shipping and offer discounts. You don’t have to get the most expensive brands to groom your horse either. You will need the following:

1. Shampoo – Suave(TM) — Inexpensive (buy at local grocery store) or, use Vetrolin Bath(TM) as it is not that expensive and a little goes a long way — It contains PABA Sunscreen (buy on-line).

2. Conditioner – Suave(TM) — Buy this at your local grocery store… very inexpensive or use Vetrolin Conditioner(TM) as it is not that expensive and a little goes a long way. It contains PABA Sunscreen (buy on-line).

3. A good detangler – Survivor Detangler(TM) by Eqyss — Expensive but well worth it. Great for the Mane and Tail and it smells wonderful (buy on-line).

4. Sheen (optional) – If you really want your horse to have a brilliant shine, you can use a “ready to use” spray such as Vetrolin Sheen(TM) (buy on-line).

You want your equipment to last so it’s best to spend a little extra in this area. If it’s really cheap, there is usually a reason.Here are some suggestions:

1. A comb for your horses mane and tail (buy on-line)

2. A regular curry brush (buy on-line).

3. A good rubber curry comb. Using the rubber curry comb to lather your horse will give them a great message. (buy on-line).

4. A good brush for when the horse is dry – Pick one that will feel good to your horse (buy on-line).

5. Electric clippers – I use all Oster(TM) products because they last forever (buy locally or on-line) Used to clip bridal paths, chin hair, ears but it’s not natural to cut a horses mane or tail. These are best combed out with brush or detangler.

Now that I have everything I need, I put all my stuff in a horse bucket that I can carry around (except the clippers).

Location – Pick a spot where you can tie your horse and have a water hydrant and hose long enough to avoid getting their legs tangled-up in the hose. Try to avoid bathing in area that will become muddy during your horses bath. It’s easiest to use a variable sprayer for your hose, of the garden variety.

1.Wet the entire horse down, starting in the rear and working your way forward and around the other side. When you wet their heads and, avoid spraying them directly in the face. Using the “mist” selection on the sprayer works really well from about 18″ away from the face and spray upwards and allow the mist to settle gently on their faces. This will minimize your horse’s resistance to getting their faces sprayed.

2. Once your horse is wet, you can begin to apply the shampoo using the rubber curry brush, creating a good lather, and giving them a nice massage. Most horses really enjoy this part once they get used to being wet. Wait until the very end to apply any shampoo to the facial area in case your horse gets soap in their eyes. You don’t want to try bathing them with their eyes full of soap. When applying to the face, use a sponge, a mildly soapy rag, or even your hands.

3. Rinse well and message, with rubber curry, to get out any remaining shampoo and spot clean any dirty areas still visible

4. Apply the conditioner and leave it on for a few minutes. Again, wait to apply to your horse’s face last, with your sponge, instead of the hose.

5. Rinse your horse thoroughly with the “shower” setting on your sprayer but, use the “mist” setting to rinse your horses head.

6. Use a squidgy to get most of the water off by starting at the upper neck and working your way down to the hooves.

7. Spray the horse with Vetrolin Sheen(TM). Do not spray the sheen to the horses back if you plan to ride the horse because it is too slippery and will cause your saddle to slip.

8. Apply the de-tangler to the mane and tail with your hands. Comb out the mane and tail, starting at the bottom and work your way toward the roots.

9. Tie your horse in a dry spot until they are totally dry. The last thing you want is to have your horse roll while wet and ruin your efforts.

When it rains, I try to wash one horse a day until they are all clean and I wait until after the weather dries out for a day or two before I begin. Once they are clean, brushing them every day or two will keep them quite clean. Of course you don’t want to over bathe your horse as this will dry out their skin by removing all the natural oils necessary for a healthy coat. Bathing them every other month is sufficient unless “Mother Nature” gets involved.

Sherry Marshburn has been working with horses for over 20 years. She now runs a small ranch, called Paints of Texas Ranch with APHA paints outside of Austin, Texas. If you would like to see the products in this article or tips on horses, such as buying, selling, training, or general care, please go to http://www.paintsoftexas.com or e-mail sherry@paintsoftexas.com

Author: Sherry Marshburn
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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