Hay You Guys!

Note: Be sure to click on the links for references and much more information.

High-quality forage is probably the best investment you can make in your horse's health. Above all else, a horse is a grazing animal and will require most of its nutritional and caloric needs be met through grazing and roughage. If adequate pasture is not available, then hay becomes the next best thing.

There are many different types of hay available in the US, and many types are area-specific. However, hay is usually broken up into two different catagories:

Legume Hay (alfalfa, clover, lespedeza)

Grass Hay (timothy, brome, prairie, bermuda, fescue, orchard grass)

Legume hay tends to be more calorie and nutrient-dense, and is generally a better choice for performance horses, young horses, and breeding stock. Grass hay tends to have a better nutritional balance and is a better choice for adult horses that do not fit into the other catagories. Of course these are generalities, and may not be true in your area.

Nutritional content of hay varies widely by area. I've learned this through experience. The alfalfa I got in Arizona was not the same as the alfalfa I got in Kansas and it certainly was not the same alfalfa I got in Missouri. Nutritional content can change dramatically even locally--a 50 mile drive in my area can make all the difference between stemmy, hard-to-digest hay and fine-stemmed, leafy, beautifully green hay.

I have tried to picture the most popular types of hay below, linked to an article with more information.

Alfalfa



Lespedeza



Clover



Timothy



Prairie Hay

Brome

Orchard Grass

Fescue

Bermuda

Ideally, everyone would be able to test their hay. Unfortunately that is often not what is practical. There is, however, a "test" you can perform on hay when you pick it up, to ensure it's the best quality hay possible. Although nutrition can vary with region, you can still determine good hay by appearance. With the help of an equine nutritionist, you can combine different hay types available in your area, along with supplemental nutrition such as grain, supplements, beet pulp and bran, and develop a program that keeps your horses in optimal health.

No Hoof, No Horse

Anyone in the horse industry that has had to deal with laminitis, navicular, white line disease, or a host of other foot ailments that plague horses knows how important a healthy hoof is.



I admit it--years ago I knew how to clean out my horse's feet, and that was pretty much it. I knew what the frog was, but the internal mechanisms of the foot were lost on me. I had a farrier for that, afterall, right? A farrier was a person I felt I should be able to call up if there were any issues in the general hoof area at all. A farrier was supposed to fix that stuff, afterall.

Then I adopted a special-needs stallion and the only farrier in the area decided he'd leave on a hunting trip for two months without telling me, standing me up for our already-set appointment (right when the horse was due for a trim and reset), so this circumstance forced me to learn more about the hoof.

It's sad it took an extreme circumstance to get me to learn more about my horse--something I hope to never repeat again.

So, it's my hope that by providing some resources, that you, too, will be inspired to expand your knowledge about the hoof, whether you are a professional farrier, or have a horse as a pet in your backyard to keep the weeds down. One thing about the equine hoof--there is always something to learn!

To the right I have a list of links and among these are some websites that deal exclusively with hoof-related issues:

Barefoot for Soundness
This is where I first learned to trim from and it still serves as a very handy resource.

Pete Ramey's How-To Articles
I am forever referencing these articles. While some of the cadaver pictures are a bit unsettling, once you get over the "ick" factor, they are extremely important learning tools to see what the inside of the foot looks like.

A healthy hoof

I'm not saying, by any means, that everyone should trim their own as I do. It's terribly hard work, and if you aren't careful you can really do some damage. Honestly, if you have a good farrier, then be sure to tip him/her a little extra next time. They truly don't get paid enough for the hard work they do!

I think, though, it is very important to try to be as educated as possible as to how the hoof works, what the signs of trouble are (sometimes the signs appear before the trouble does, and if you know, you can help stop it!), and it even helps the farrier out when the owner is more knowledgable. In the past couple of years I've had to call a farrier a couple of times due to my back troubles. I'm always pleasantly surprised that when I explain that I usually trim my own, the farriers tend to come out much more quickly, follow up with me better and do a better job trimming! It's truly a win/win, to become as knowledgable about our equine friends as possible.

Winter-Ready

It's coming! Are you ready?

If you're anything like me, winter is your least-favorite season. It's cold and there are very little daylight hours. Both those things add up to very little riding time.

Plus, feeding and watering seem to take twice as long when you're trudging through the snow, or having to chip ice out of a tank because your tank heater has malfunctioned.

It doesn't really matter if we like it or not, though--winter is coming. The best we can do, short of all moving south, is to prepare. The Horse recently did a great article on preparing for winter weather.

Earlier this year I also wrote a post on my other blog about the importance of making sure that our horses have fresh water all winter long.

It's time to increase your horse's feed, make sure they are in optimal health, make sure they're wormed (and I'll add clean the manure out of your pens/pastures and scrape those bot eggs off your horse's legs, or worming doesn't do as much good), get those shelters and blankets all ready, get all your feed stocked up, and test your tank heaters.

Then go inside, make sure you've got plenty of hot cocoa on hand, hunker down and pray for spring!

Happy Un-Hump Day

Since this is Wednesday I thought it might be appropriate (or at least a little funny) to designate this as "Un-hump day," in an effort to draw a little attention to the responsibilities involved in breeding horses.

Foals are cute. They come into this world on their wobbly long legs and within a few days they are chunky, fuzzy, doe-eyed creatures who are amazingly agile and quick on said wobbly long legs.

They are in the same catagory as kittens, puppies, and even human babies. They have a very high "Awwww" factor. We want to scoop them up in our arms and cuddle them (although with don't carry out that desire with foals, for obvious reasons).

Genetically we are programmed to love babies. The trouble is, babies grow up. And with foals, that means they eat a lot, need a lot of training (in which you mostly likely will get hurt in some form or fashion) and they tend to need to be wrapped in bubble wrap 24/7 (because they will definitely hurt themselves in some form or fashion). Cuteness gives way to responsiblity. A LOT of responsiblity.


At this point, most people want to sell the foal. Sometimes these are foals with great pedigrees and great conformations who were raised correctly, with the right training and nutrition. Sometimes they are not. The process begins the same--with a "for sale" posting, but the results tend to be quite different.


For this reason, I've put together a list of questions to ask yourself before you decide to breed that mare of yours. And in all fairness, I will answer each one myself. I am by no means exempt from these responsiblities, so let's begin.


1. Why are you breeding your mare?
I don't plan on breeding either one in the near future. I'm not breeding them because I'm not prepared for the responsiblity of properly raising a foal right now, and I don't think they've earned the right to reproduce yet. They have to have their careers before family....


2. Is your mare of high enough quality to contribute positively to the gene pool?
Right now, no--they aren't. Having reproductive organs does not automatically qualify a horse to be breeding stock. I believe they have potential, yes. But, they must show they can do something other than stand around, converting alfalfa into manure.


3. Are you willing to lose your mare and/or foal?
This one is tricky. Most people think it will never happen to them. They point fingers and say "Well, I've never lost a foal!" Just wait. It's not if, it's when. Right now I'm not willing to lose either one of my girls. I'm not ready to bury another foal.


4. What are your plans for the foal?
This is probably the number one reason my girls will remain foal-less for a while. I want to show any foals that they have, but first, they need to show. I have a full-time job and a farm to care for by myself. That leaves limited time to fit and show a horse. I will be lucky to be able to get two trained, fit, and shown. No time for foals right now....


5. If your plans include selling, are you willing/able to keep the foal if it does not sell? Or, are you willing to sell to just anyone, at any price?
I was told once "You care too much where they go." Well, that was news to me. I didn't know I wasn't supposed to care. I thought if I created a living, breathing creature that I had some responsiblity to it. Silly me.
The point is that I will not breed my mares until I'm able to have another permanent mouth to feed. Could I sell a horse? Sure! Moose almost left for France and I didn't even have him advertised. If the perfect home comes up then some of my horses could be sold. In this economy, though, I'm not pushing my luck.
And I am unwilling to advertise my horses on Craigslist for $300 like some backyard junk. It's tasteless and grossly irresponsible, as is continuing to breed horses when you can't even sell the foals you have. If no one wants what you already have, why make more?


I'm not saying that no one should breed horses right now. That's not only ridiculous, but it's unrealistic. If your foals are selling, in good homes, being productive in some way other than creating more unwanted foals, then you're obviously doing something right.

If this isn't the case, then please give yourself a big slap and wake up. Equine Overpopulation is a very REAL problem. If you're not part of the solution, then you're part of the problem. No one is exempt from responsiblity.

What Do You Know?

I am learning all the time. The tombstone will be my diploma.
~Eartha Kitt

For some reason, one of the favorite excuses of abusers, neglectors, back-yard-breeders and generally ignorant bad-horse owners everywhere when they're caught with their proverbial foot in their mouth is "You're just a dang-gum know-it-all ain't ya?!"

The irony of their statement is lost on them--they claim those trying to educate them are "know-it-alls," yet they refuse to open their minds to any information whatsoever. I suppose their point is it is better to be a "know-nothing" like them?

That's hypothetical, of course. My point is that most of the enjoyment of owning horses comes from the fact that there is always something more to learn. They are a challenge, which makes it exciting and enjoyable to own and work with them.

Here are a few sites I have bookmarked, that I feel are good general resources for equine-ownership education:

The Horse
Although this website is a bit irritating in that you have to sign up to view the entire article, the information in the articles are well worth whatever advertisements you'll have to delete in your inbox.

EquiSearch
I haven't been on this site much, but there are some great articles here I'll be coming back to!

The American Association of Equine Practitioners
In the horse owner's section there is a plethora of information, and most recently some excellent articles on preparing for the winter.

HorseCity
General information, including articles, videos, podcasts, and a forum.

On Twitter, you can get informational updates by following:
Americas Horse
Go Horse Show.com

There are many, many more that I will cover in subsequent posts, so if you have a site you love, be sure to leave it in the comments!

Addiction

As horse owners, we probably have all gotten that email or at least read somewhere the "dangers" of horse hair (which is really cute, by the way), but in all seriousness, there comes a point when a passion can turn into a serious addiction, with disasterous consequences.

Addiction is defined as "A habit or practice that damages, jeopardizes or shortens one's life but when ceased causes trauma, or a pathological relationship to mood altering experience that has life damaging consequences. "

Most of the time the word "addiction" is associated with mind or mood altering substances, such as drugs or alcohol. However, we now know that there are actions that can be addicting as well: gambling, overeating, shopping, and even sex. The definition of "addiction" has been expanded to include behavior in a broader sense--any type of behavior that a person engages in that they cannot stop doing, even to the detriment of others.

The five symptoms of any addiction are:

1. Unable to meet responsibilities at home, school or office.

2. Continues to use substances or engage in behavior even when it is dangerous.

3. The need increases to engage in behavior or use more of a substance to achieve the same effect or feeling.

4. Has tried but failed to stop using the substance or end the behavior.

5. Continues to engage in the behavior or use the substances even when they are aware of the dangers.

Only answering yes to 3 of the above symptoms consititutes an addiction.

Horses can become an addiction. I know. I am a horse addict.

And I don't mean that in a cutsie "My boyfriend can't keep me away from the barn" sort of way. I was a true addict and like an alcoholic, I will always be a horse addict. So, rather than give a secondary example, I will provide a first-hand account of my addiction, the consequences, and what I now must to do keep my "habit" in check.

I've always loved horses. I grew up with horses, and so when I got out on my own, my goals always included having and showing horses again. The opportunity came when I got out of law school and began making enough money to board a couple of them. Then I found out I was going to move to a place where I could keep my horses on my own land, so suddenly two horses became four. In my mind, I could, so why wouldn't I?

In Arizona, four horses became six, then a move back to Kansas and in in two years six became eighteen. I know it seems ridiculous. Looking back, I completely agree. At the time, though, I kept finding opportunities to get more horses--ones that would improve my herd, ones that I could breed to my stallion, ones that I thought I could ride or show or that just needed to be rescued and put into a good home. I'd buy/adopt trailer-loads of horses at a time, thinking I could do this or that with them, all the while living on the hope that one day all my dreams would come true.

The thing is, I could take care of eighteen. I leased 60 acres of pasture, and in the winter I brought them all home and put them on roundbales of dairy-quality alfalfa. They were fat and healthy. I had land and the room. They all got their needed veterinary care. They were all easy to handle and I worked with the ones that weren't. I had eighteen horses because I could. I bred several mares because I could.

It had never occured to me, that just because I could, didn't mean I should.

I had so many horses the only thing I had time for was to feed them. Only a couple of lucky ones got shelter in the winter. I had to convert my garage into a foaling stall one year because I was so ill-prepared. My house was a mess. Every bit of my freetime was spent on the computer searching for more horses. I borrowed from next paycheck to buy gas to go get another horse two states away. My relationships suffered. Instead of buying basic neccessities (like clothing, food, doctor's visits, haircuts) all my money was spent on just feed for my horses. I couldn't even afford things for them like vaccinations and wormer. Once in a while I would get them caught up on those things, but as soon as I did they were all due again and I couldn't afford it.

I spent a lot of money trying to save horses. I let my emotions lead me to believe I was doing a good thing, when all I was doing was creating an outlet for people who didn't want to take responsibility for their own in-actions--aka, "Just give them to Jessie and she'll fix them." It was emotionally and financially draining, as many of these horses were neglected to the point that they were permanently affected.

I couldn't afford tack to ride in, so I never was able to properly break out a horse, and I could afford to show any. I didn't have any room in my facilities to properly fit a horse to show, even if I could have found the time or money. I was in debt for my hay, to my vet, and to anyone else that would let me get anything on credit. I was eeking (purposefully spelled wrong) out a way of life, always putting horses first, no matter what the cost to me, or even to the horses I loved.

Ultimately, my inability to control my own addiction led to harming those I love most. I leased out horses that did not receive even the basic care that they required and it cost several of them their lives. I didn't face my own responsiblity of putting down one beloved horse that I should have, instead letting her suffer for another year (once again trading judgement for hope). I didn't geld a colt I sold and he ended up in the hands of someone who had no business owning a stallion, so he ran through a fence breaking his back legs. All these things happened because of me--because I was too consumed by my addiction to realize that if I had only owned a few horses, I could have cared for them better, been better-prepared for the unexpected, been able to afford gelding and been able to face my responsiblity to euthanize those that are suffering without any hope of recovery. I now face a lifetime of consuming guilt for these things that I did, because of my addiction.

Today I only have four horses. I am not overexaggerating when I say it is a daily struggle to maintain status quo. I get offered beautiful horses all the time. In fact, I was recently offered, for free, a gorgeous broodmare who I've adored for YEARS. She recently had a colt that I would have owned if I could have afforded him, and I could easily do the same exact cross again for the next few years. This mare produces stunning foals, is a dilute color and a pretty nice pedigree. I really wanted her--I still do. I could easily get her. I have room. I have feed. I make enough money to afford another one to worm, vaccinate, trim, and vet.

But I said no. I said no because just because I can, doesn't mean I should. I said no because she doesn't fit into my current plans. I said no because having that thrill of me getting a new horse only takes away from my concentration on my current ones. I said no because rather than spending money feeding, breeding, and foaling out more horses I can spend that money on other experiences: showing the horses I have, paying down my debt and ultimately taking the trip to Peru I promised my friend several years ago.

Right now every one of my horses has shelter (thanks to the extra funds I had to buy a second shelter). Every one is entirely up-to-date on all their care, including vaccinations, worming, and farrier work. Every one has a winter blanket, a halter of their own, and although it has nothing to do with their health, they are all clipped and well-groomed. My pens have lots of beautiful grass in them because I have plenty of area for the four horses I have, so they are never forced to stand in mud and they always have something to graze on. I have a roundpen to train in, and a fenced arena. I have the trailer I always wanted, a reliable truck to pull it with, and I now have plenty of tack and even show clothes for next year.

There will always be the temptation to get another horse (or three more), but I just have to keep reminding myself how nice it is not to be overwhelmed, how nice it is to look out and see them standing in their shelters, warm and dry on a cold, rainy day, how nice it is to be able to work with every single one of them on a nice day.

Ultimately, I have not conquered my addiction, I've merely got a better handle on it. It will always be difficult to say no to another horse, especially the really good ones, but then when I go out and spend time with Paula, Bambi, Moose, and Fabian, I know that I say "no" for them. They need me a lot more than I need another one of them.