Posts Tagged ‘vets’

Even more essential to horses than humans, a steady supply of good food and water is vital to horse health. Horses naturally spend most of their time chewing, swallowing, and digesting. As with most herd animals, the equine digestive system is meant to be constantly on the go and to process vast quantities of fibrous food that we would find utterly impossible. To give your horse the best chance at a happy, long life, I will outline the basics of food and water for your horse.

Food for Your Horse

There are understandable disagreements about the best food for a horse. After all, there are so many factors to consider, and each horse is unique within different environments. Individual horses have different nutritional requirements. Where and how the horse lives, the age of the horse, what kind of work the horse does, and the horse’s own physiology affects the optimal diet. In general, horses that are ridden hard in demanding disciplines, such as cattle work, need more calories than horses used for casual trail use. Therefore, the advice below will provide you with a solid understanding of the needs of most horses. Horse veterinarians will be your best source for your horse’s specific food requirements. He’ll have access to the horse’s records, and will be familiar with his nutritional needs. He will also be more aware of the types of locally available hay for your animal. What is plentiful in one part of the country may be far too expensive in another.

Hay is basically composed of plants that have been cut, dried, and baled. There are two types of hay, legumes and grasses. Alfalfa, rich in protein, calcium, and other nutrients, is the legume horses most commonly eat, though some vets believe it’s far too rich for horses, and should be left for cattle. The most common grass hays are timothy, orchard, and bermuda. Hay is a proper stable food for a horse. It provides roughage in addition to nutrition. Roughage is vital to keep the horse’s digestive system working properly and also satisfies the horse’s natural tendency to chew.

Hay cubes are concentrated blocks of hay. Hay cubes tend to be cheaper than hay and are good for older horses with worn-down teeth. This is because the cubes break apart easily when chewed. Cubes are less dusty, as well, so it’s easier on horses that may have respiratory problems. Cubes are also ideal for horses who have trouble maintaining a good weight. Nonetheless, most horses prefer baled hay to cubes because the normal hay gives them plenty on which to chew.

Pasture grass is the ideal staple food if there is enough volume and diversity of its content. Horses are happiest in pastures, and follow their instincts honed over thousands of years of browsing. You can verify that your pasture is of good quality by calling your local agricultural office. Ask an expert to inspect your pasture, and to help you analyze its nutritional content. Otherwise, supplementation of ordinary hay may be required. If it is less than optimal, measures can taken for fortify and improve a horse pasture. If you don’t have pasture land, and wish to create it, don’t begin without contacting a local agricultural agent for knowledge and help. Be forewarned; starting and maintaining a quality horse pasture can be a big undertaking.

Watering Your Horse

I can’t overemphasize the importance of providing plenty of clean, fresh water as part your horse’s daily care. Humans unwisely do without it daily, but a horse’s need for water is even more acute. The horse’s health and digestive ability heavily depends upon it. An automatic watering device that can be set up in the horse’s stall is best. A large bucket that you refill several times a day is an alternative, or a trough that holds enough water for a day or two at a time.

If you stable your horse where temperatures fall below freezing, you need to keep your horse’s water supply from turning to ice. Consider using a heating element made especially to work with horse watering devices or manually break the ice whenever it forms. Cold water doesn’t do horses any good. I recommend the heating element because it requires less work on your part and also keeps the water at a warmer temperature, encouraging your horse to drink.

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.

If you already own a Bunn, always use Bunn coffee filters to prevent overflow and to remove all chances of a bitter or papery taste in your coffee.

Author: Tanya Vorgan
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Duty tariff

A diagnosis of equine colic is a situation that worrries any horse owner. So what is equine colic? What indicators should you be aware of?

Colic in horses refers to pain originating in the abdomen. Normally horses will not handle pain of the abdomen very well. So if there is any abnormality in gut functioning they will usually show signs of discomfort.

Signs of irritation could be stretching, a stance as if to urinate, and hoofing the floor. If the pain is greater the horse will get up and down, and roll to try to become more comfortable.

It will likely start to sweat. In more severe cases it will stand up and lie down and continuously roll.

What Should You Do?
If you believe your horse has colic, it’s best to call an equine vet immediately. They will be in a position to supply emergency pain relief and make a decision whether additional treatment is necessary.

What should you do while waiting for the vet to arrive? Taking your horse for a walk sometimes helps. It may encourage his guts to work ina normal manner and surpress any discomfort. It could also further prevent him lying down and rolling. However if he is currently lying down quietly then you should let him stay lying down.

It was thought that a horse could twist its gut by rolling. That has been proven to be probably not true. But it is preferred to stop him rolling over if possible. This way you can stop your horse causing injury himself by knocking himself on the stable walls. But be careful that you don’t get injured yourself. It’s likely horses will forget all their normal manners if in pain.

There are many different reasons as to why horses get colic. But often the signs look the same regardless of the cause.

How does the vet investigate the problem? He or she will have a listen to the abdomen with a stethoscope to show them if there is more or less activity in the gut than normal.

Monitoring the heart rate gives a good indication of the severity of the discomfort and the seriousness of the issue. A horse with a normal heart beat does not have a sever case. Whereas fast heart rates are not such a promising sign.

A really helpful part of the examination will be the examination of the rectum. By physically feeling the intestines, vets could be able to find the cause of the issue. It goes without saying that this is a very complicated procedure, that is potentially hazardous for both the horse and vet. However for an experienced equine vet the feedback it gives is invaluable in concluding the nature of the issue. Helping to discover a blockage, or a swollen area of gut as a result of a twist or another problem with the intestines.

In all but the simple cases vets may inset a tube through the horses’ nose into the stomach. It sounds uncomfortable but often may make your horse comfortable by releasing the pressure from the stomach. Doing this can also give the vet useful feedback about whether the stomach is functioning correctly.

On occasion a horse is in so much pain that it isn’t possible for the vet to diagnose properly without first applying a dose of sedative.

Only by considering all of the information provided by a careful examination is the vet able to make an initial diagnosis. Though it might not be possible to tell exactly what the problem is.

Occasionally, after the initial inspection, the horse needs surgery. But more usually the vet will decide to treat the horse with a fast-acting painkiller and monitor his condition after a few hours. Most examples display a quick improvement. However others will show no response to the treatment, or they will respond at first, then start displaying signs of pain again later.

In preference to having to call the vet out multiple times, it is normally better to move these cases to a specialist equine practice where they can be closely monitored and surgery can be performed if necessary.

Conclusion
Luckily the vast majority of examples respond to medical intervention. However if surgery is necessary – it is important to operate early. The likelyhood of a successful outcome is much better if the surgery is carried out before too much damage has occurred.

For more information, horses for sale and more, please visit the Horse and Pony Directory.

The weather in the UK is extremely unpredictable at the moment with clear blue skies and sunshine just as likely as blustery winds and rain. One thing is for certain though, the winter weather will soon kick in and your horse will take a bit more looking after than it does in the summer months.

Preparing the horse for the winter is essential and here is how you can do it. Horses are fortunate in that they are naturally tolerant to colder weather. In fact, horses cope better in the cold than in the heat. However, keeping your horse healthy during the winter takes care and attention. Be sure to check for any parasites and get your horse immunised as quickly as possible so to keep it safe and healthy.

Vets are great to consult with as you can set up a health plan for your horse to help it through the winter. Fully preparing the horse for the winter will mean that it won’t need to eat as much food which will save you some money, the health plan should aim to keep the horse at a stable weight as a horse should never lose weight over the winter. In fact, it is best to allow the horse to gain a bit of weight to help it through the cold weather and will provide energy for your horse if it becomes stressed.

When it is allowed to grow, a horse’s natural winter coat will reduce the amount of heat lost in the horse and acts a brilliant coat. This happens to be the best protection for the horse and again, costs you nothing as long as you look after the horse and prepare it well for the upcoming winter months.

During the winter you should regularly check the condition of your horse. Its ribs are a good tell tale sign of its health as you should not be able to see them but underneath its winter coat you should be able to feel them. If you can see them through the coat then it has lost too much weight and you will have to seek advice or alter the horse’s health plan.

To see if the horse is too cold then simply feel its ears as this will tell you whether it’s too cold or not. Horses are warm-blooded animals which means in order to survive they must maintain a specific body temperature. During the winter do all you can to ensure your horse conserves as much heat as possible and check its condition daily to keep it healthy.

Horses are fascinating animals and as such items such as horse riding clothes are a popular purchase in the equestrian field.

Clothes amongst other horse riding equipment are widely available online where you can find the most competitive deals around.