Inhalt

Horses for Beginners: A Horse Handbook of Horse Facts

An Introduction to horses for the beginning equestrian.

A Quick Start Guide to Horse Care and Horse Health

Version 2

Cynthia M. Owens

So You Want to Buy a Horse

Before you go to the great expense of buying a horse, you need to evaluate how good a rider you are, and just how much do you really know about horses and horse care. Make no mistake; you need to really be honest with yourself as this is a huge commitment. Ask yourself what size and age of horse would work best for you as well.

Okay you have just fallen in love with a flashy looking equine and now what? What do you want to achieve and is THIS the horse for you? Are you going to be hunting, driving, barrel racing, trail riding or jumping? Are you going to ride at all? You can get horses just to drive.

What about this horse's temperament? Is he quiet, feisty, pushy, amenable, or grumpy? If you aren't comfortable with horses, don't get a pushy horse, as you will find it ruling you and not the other way around. If you are planning to just trail ride, don't buy an eventing horse.

If you don't have horse experience then do not buy a young horse and try to train it. Two newbies who don't know much do not make a good mixture. Wait until you have more experience or pay the price for your mistakes - such as injuries to you and your horse because you did not know what you were doing. Take an experienced friend with you to check out horses. Better they help you assess the horse so you don't wind up over horsed (buying a horse that is way too much for you to handle). Your experienced friend can also ride the horse for you to assess if it would work for you. If the current owner is riding the horse, and they insist you don't need to try the horse - run, don't walk as far away as you can, and keep looking.

Buying a Horse at Auction

Buying a horse at an auction is a crap shoot at best, as usually there are reasons why the horse is there in the first place - reasons you might not want to find out if you take the horse home.

Generally, unless you happen to be a horse trainer or Vet, you won't have the chance to do a pre-purchase exam. In that case, all you can do is try to pick up red flags from the horses you are considering. Yes, they can be really subtle and may also be masked thanks to drugs or even the fact the horse was rested prior to you looking at it (which would not show some forms of lameness).

Start your inspection from nose to tail for any swelling or warm spots. Run your hand down all the legs (if the horse will let you and if not - red flag) and compare appearance and the feel of the left and the right. You might find a bowed tendon or a fluid filled knee - an indication of arthritis. Try flexing the joints if you can. If there is arthritis they won't flex too well

Now take a good look at general body condition (good, fair or poor), hair coat (sleek and shiny or dull), foot quality (well-trimmed or chipped and cracked), muscle development (well-formed or wasted) and attitude (bright and curious, dull and depressed or scared). Many of these things will give you an idea of how well the horse has been cared for and you need to pay close attention to them. They are things that will also tell you how much training the horse has and the amount of exercise it has had.

Watch the horse move - walk, trot and canter. Does he move well or are his ears pinned and tail on a switch? Does the head bob up and down (lameness)? What about his breathing? Does he roar or whistle or wheeze? Make sure you see the horse ridden under saddle to get an idea of his attitude and whether or not he and you will get along. You need to take your riding experience into consideration for this decision. And try not to over-estimate your skills or you will get a horse not suited to your level of expertise.

Take your time sizing up a potential purchase at an auction. There is no need to be in a rush. You may miss a few things, but the more horses you inspect, the better you get at it.

Helping Mother and Baby: When Your Mare Has a Foul

Helping a mare through pregnancy can be any extremely rewarding experience, but remember that it is also a lot of hard work. If you've decided to allow your mare to become pregnant, make sure that you can be responsible for this medical condition, as well as an extra life. Breeding horses is a great career if you have the time and effort.

First and foremost, mares are pregnant longer than women. In general, a mare will carry her foul for about 11 months. During this time, care and regular checkups from a vet are crucial. You may even want to find a vet specializing in this particular field. As your mare's due date approaches, make sure to keep a watchful eye. Keep your vet's number on hand and call whenever the horse goes into labor so that the vet can arrive to help with the birth. In some cases, a vet may not be needed, but if you are inexperienced, or if the birth takes longer than a half hour, you vet should come to help with the birth.

Cleanliness is important. You don't have to hose out the entire barn and use a disinfectant, but make sure that you can clean bedding in a clean stall available for your mare. Also, it is important to tie up the horse's tail so that it doesn't get in the way. Don't tie this too tightly, and leave it free was soon as the birth is over. Of course, after the birth, rinse the mare's hindquarters and remove any soiled bedding, replacing it with fresh bedding.

If you see anything unusual going on with the birth, it is best to call you vet right away. Remember, a horse birth will look very different from a human birth, so before you mare goes into labor, make sure that you talk to your vet about what to expect. Afterwards, it is also important to let the mare care for the foul. Instinct will lead a mare to do the proper things for her new baby, and interfering may confuse or anger the horse. Keep your distance, and if you think something may be wrong, call the vet.

Your new addition to the family should be walking and drinking milk from the mare rather quickly. Remember, this is a very tender time in both horses' lives. Keeping them away from other animals for the first week or two may be a good idea. Afterwards, it is best to talk to your vet about the vaccinations and special food your foul may need to grow strong and healthy.

Keeping Your Horse Safe When Riding

One of the best parts about owning a horse is getting to ride it. Horses that are well trained and happy are great to ride, and for the most part horses enjoy being ridden as well. You are going to want to spend lots of time working with your horse to make sure that he understands what you want and how it feels when you ride him. You are also going to want to spend a lot of time just being with your horse, because bonding is a great way to make your rides even smoother. However, while you are riding your horse, there are several things that you are going to want to do to make sure that he stays safe and healthy so that you can continue to ride him for a long time to come.

One thing that you have to be sure of when you are riding your horse, is that you are never asking too much of him. You have to be sure that he is always comfortable doing what you ask him to do, and you have to be sure that you are comfortable with what he does. This is very important, because if you are not comfortable you are going to find that both you and your horse might be forced to take chances, and this is not going to be good for either of you. It can be very dangerous, and so you want to be sure that you never have a horse do something he isn't comfortable with.

When you are riding your horse, you are going to want to be sure to always only use the things that are sanctioned for use with horses. Be sure that the equipment you are using is strong and isn't going to fall apart, and make sure that you are able to attach the saddle and the other pieces to him so that you know they are done correctly and aren't going to hurt him at all.

The last thing that you need to do when you are riding your horse to make sure that he stays safe is to always be careful where you are going, and to always watch the terrain to make sure that you aren't doing anything that might be dangerous for your horse. You always want to be sure you aren't leading your horse somewhere that he could hurt himself.

Horse Language

Yes, horses have a language of their own, and unfortunately many of us are not as aware of it as we should be. It's a big mistake to not to know their language, as it could mean problems for us in the long run. Every swivel of the ear(s), hip movement, tail flick and facial expression means something. This is the language horses use to speak to other horses and to us - if only we would listen.

We need to know what OUR body language says to them first before we can understand them. Flapping arms while trying to get the halter on will cause concern. Running at them in a pasture rather than walking up to them calmly can make them think - a predator is chasing me. We've all heard about bombproof horses - sorry, there isn't any such thing. Something sometime will spook your horse - any horse. In the meantime, keep your body language quiet, slow, easy and calm. If you are calm, this helps your horse remain calm.

Horses speak to us with all body parts and that includes the front and back end. Both ends can cause us untold grief if we do not pay attention to what they are saying. For instance, most of us know that when a horse has both ears pinned back flat something is really wrong. Chances are they are either frightened or angry. In most cases it is anger. So watch the front and rear very carefully. Caution is best even if you think the horse may be listening to something behind them or bored. Once you really know your horse well, you will know what the ears are saying.

Impressum

Verlag: BookRix GmbH & Co. KG

Tag der Veröffentlichung: 04.03.2014
ISBN: 978-3-7309-8919-7

Widmung:
To my sisters, who have been avid horse lovers since they were virtually toddlers, and taught me everything I know.

Nächste Seite

Seite 1 /