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5 Things You Can Do to Help Your Horse Get Through a Snowy Winter

5 Things You Can Do to Help Your Horse Get Through a Snowy Winter

by | Horses, Stable Management

As winter piles on the snow, it’s not just us who need to bundle up; our equine friends also face the chilly allure of the season. Living in harsher conditions, horses need a little extra care to ensure they remain comfortable and healthy. Here’s how you can help your horse navigate through winter’s challenges, while ensuring they stay fit and happy.

Ensure Adequate Nutrition and Hydration

Without the lush pastures of summer, horses rely heavily on what you provide during winter. Adequate nutrition is the bedrock of a horse’s well-being, especially during the colder months.

  • Provide Quality Hay

Hay is crucial in winter as it not only provides essential calories but also helps maintain body heat. As the temperature drops, increase the quantity of hay to ensure your horse stays warm. Remember, forage generates heat as it digests, acting as a natural heater for your horse.

  • Access to Fresh, Warm Water

Dehydration is a stealthy winter foe. Horses, like humans, might not feel as thirsty in cold weather but still need plenty of water. Ensure they have access to unfrozen water, ideally between 45°F to 65°F. Heated buckets or water troughs help in maintaining the right temperature, preventing your horse from shivering while they hydrate.

Maintain a Clean and Safe Environment

A clean environment is more than just tidiness; it’s about safety and comfort. In winter, this becomes doubly important due to the additional hazards brought about by ice and snow.

  • Manage Ice and Snow Accumulation

Regularly removing snow and ice from walkways and, if possible, paddocks is vital. Not only does it prevent slipping, but it also ensures that your horse can move around freely without the risk of injury. Sand, wood shavings, or even used bedding can offer additional traction in slippery areas.

  • Provide Proper Shelter Against the Elements

A sturdy shelter is a haven for horses during winter’s brunt. It shields them from winds, snow, and freezing rain, keeping them cozy and healthy.

Providing a windbreak helps your horse maintain body heat. This can be a well-made barn, an open shed, or even natural coverings like dense trees. Ensure these areas are insulated but well-ventilated to prevent respiratory issues.

The bedding within stalls plays a big part in providing warmth. Opt for materials that stay dry and provide insulation, such as straw or shavings. A snug and dry bed helps horses conserve energy better.

  • Exercise and Physical Activity

Horses, just like people, benefit from regular exercise all year round. It’s essential for their physical and mental health.When it’s too treacherous outside, consider indulging your horse in indoor exercises. Basic groundwork or walking around an indoor arena can keep them fit without risking accidents.

If the weather allows, and the ground isn’t icy, outdoor activities can continue. However, always ensure your horse is properly geared for the cold, and that they avoid icy patches.

Special Care for Older Horses

Older horses, with their decreased ability to regulate body temperature, require a bit more attention during winter.

  • Blanketing

Older horses may need a blanket to keep them dry when it snows. depending on how thick their coat grows, it may not be enough to adequately protect them from melting snow. It’s up to you to decide what’s best for your horse, but if you are in doubt, check out what other experienced horse owners in your area are doing, and don’t hesitate to ask your vet for advice.

  • Adjusted Feeding and Monitoring

Older horses may need a diet richer in calories due to their diminishing ability to keep warm. Regular health checks can help in identifying any winter-related issues early on. There are many feeds on the market which are specially formulated for older horses. Remember that forage is a great heat provider, but if your horse’s teeth are worn and chewing hay is difficult for them, consider a forage extender. remember that changes in diet should be made gradually, so as not to court colic.

  • Joint Care in Cold Weather

Cold can aggravate joint issues, so incorporating joint supplements or consulting a vet for arthritis management might be necessary. Always consult your vet before adding a supplement to your horse’s diet.

Conclusion

Surviving winter isn’t just about layering blankets and hunkering down. By ensuring your horse has the right nutrition, hydration, and environment, you’re setting them up for a healthy season. Whether it’s managing icy paths or tweaking their diet, every little bit of care contributes to your horse’s winter wellness. Keep these tips in mind, and you’ll have a happier and healthier equine partner ready to take on the snow.

It’s always changing

It’s always changing

by | People, Stable Management

Life at the stables is always changing. Some changes are small, some are big, but when they are made to benefit the horses it’s hard to find anything to complain about.

Well, I managed to create a situation for my sled that has me inwardly complaining, even though the change (a big one!) is ultimately for the benefit of the horses.

You see, I recently joined a Garden Club, located in a suburb quite far from the stables (or any stables, for that matter!) In my eagerness to be of help to the club, I offered to provide some well-aged horse manure for a nominal sum, which would go to the owner of the stables.

Imagine my distress when I arrived at the manure pile to find everything dug up! There was a huge culvert running the length of the fence bordering the paddock beside the pile, to allow for other installation of french drains.
It was an improvement, to be sure, which will pay off greatly in the Spring, when the paddock will be less muddy and the runoff from the manure pile will be directed away from the horses. But the work made it impossible for me to get to the agreed manure. The entire access are was a muddy quagmire with deep ruts from the heavy equipment.

I had to get in touch with the club and try to explain what had happened and apologize for offering something I could no longer deliver.

I know that this change is for the ultimate benefit of both horses and owners, but I wish it hadn’t come as such a surprise to me!

Lesson learned – next time check before you promise!

 

 

What feeds your soul?

What feeds your soul?

by | Horses, People

Do you have something in your life that feeds your soul? Something that helps to keep you centered, gives you joy, allows you to truly be “in the moment”?

I’m very lucky – I have had something in my life that does that for me, and has done it all my life since I can remember; horses. 

And for the last 21 years, that has been one particular horse, my Quarter Horse, Chips.

Our first summer with Chips

The thing is, for the last few years, I have not been feeling about the whole horse thing the way I used to. A few “health issues” (gosh, I hate that term!) like a broken foot and a bout of vertigo put a stop to my riding for almost a year — and then a fall (not off my horse; I tripped over my dog!) where I did something really painful to my back has now kept me out of the saddle, probably permanently 

I certainly won’t be riding Vhips again – he’s 30 years old now, and almost three years of no work have resulted in an unavoidable decline in his muscles, and he’ll never bear my weight again. When I realized this, my heart cracked. I wish I had known this when I last rode him. I would have paid more attention to how it felt, rather than what I was trying to accomplish. 

We’re still carrying on. I do groundwork with him, both in the arena and in his paddock, keeping up his manners and keeping his brain working. He has to take medication daily for his Cushing’s; there’s no cure, but it has been controlling the symptoms very well. 

Our very first day with Chips. <3

Chips sports his goofy fly mask.

M.A.’s first time back in the show ring after 35 years.

M.A. and Mathalie congratu;ate eacj other at Hodgson’s show 2009.

M.A. and Chips after winning the Freestyle at l’Eperon d’Or dressage show.

Summer 2009 results.

Hunter or Jumper? Decisions, decisions…

Go Emily! Ride it like you stole it!

Three Musketeers.

M.A. and Chips pose for Canadian Liberal Party video ad.

Chips thrives on Omega 3 Oil

Chips still looking great at 24 years ols.

Teach your horse to ground tie – a VERY good idea!

Teach your horse to ground tie – a VERY good idea!

by | People, Training

Lately I have realized that I’ve been posting my progress (or lack thereof) to my social media and neglecting to put it here, on my blog! DOH!

So anyway, I have got to the point where my arthritis is bad enough to make it very difficult to get on to Chips. Once I’m on, I’m OK, but it’s that first step that’s a doozy!

I am lucky enough to be boarding at a therapeutic facility (more on this soon) where they have several types of assistance for mounting.

I regularly mount from both sides, and I’d been using the regular mounting block, but my knees were really starting to bother me. So I started to look at the wheelchair ramp as an alternative since it’s quite a bit higher.

The drawback was figuring out how to get up onto the ramp without having someone hold Chips for me while I did so. He’s great at standing still while doing ground work, and also with a rider up, but he had some trouble understanding that he had to stand still while wearing his “working clothes” and riderless. 

It took a few weeks, but finally, he got it – I could see his “AHA!” moment – and now he’s the poster boy for being ground tied! Check him out!

About older riders

About older riders

by | General, People

 I prefer to be called a “vintage” rider but the fact remains, I am probably the oldest person riding at the barn where I keep my horse.

Huh. I almost wrote “who still rides” but I just don’t like the implication that it’s some kind of amazing accomplishment to “still” be riding at my age.

I’m a member of a Facebook Group for women who ride. We have members from all over the world – Canada, the US, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, France – you get the picture.  And as a rule, it is a wonderfully positive and supportive group.

But just yesterday there was a post from a woman who said she started riding later in life, and was enjoying it immensely – until she found out that some of the other riders at the barn were talking about her behind her back, making comments about her age, her weight, her riding ability, and in one case even wondering why she was even bothering.

Now, first of all, I’d like to know who told her about this – if they thought they were doing her a favour they most definitely were not. But I digress. What I really want to talk about were the responses she got in the thread.

As I read response after response telling her to ignore them, that they were assholes, that every barn had some like that, that it shouldn’t bother her, and even to change barns, I started to notice that these responses were coming from women an average 20+ years younger than she is  ( judging by their profile pictures). Well, easy for them to say. They don’t know the experiences she has had in her life.

She is at a stage where in many areas of life there is discrimination on the basis of age or weight. It can be subtle, but it is there. And as we grow older there is less to do at home as our children leave, our social circle can get smaller, and we can start to feel isolated. For me, the barn is a big part of my social life – a place where I have real friends (that’s another post), where I know I am welcomed for me, not for what I look like or how old I am.

And while it may be easy to say “ignore them”, that is not always possible – I know that I have days when my confidence is so low that I don’t ride at all, even in the supportive environment at my barn. Denigrating and negative words can make a person question themselves and take the joy out of an activity that was previously fun.

Words can cause deep feelings, they can hurt but they can also help. I finally saw a couple of posts from riders of a similar age to the woman who originally posted. None told her to “get over it” or “ignore them”. These women were telling her about their own experiences – not telling her how to feel or what to do, but instead sharing with her and letting her know that she is not alone. Some mentioned coping techniques that they had found helpful to overcome the feelings and lack of confidence. Some just offered support and a willing ear.

I guess what I’m really trying to say here is that riders, indeed everyone, should be accepted for who they are, and leave outward appearances out of it. If they are a nasty person, of course steer clear. But if you can see a way to make an encouraging remark to a rider of any age, do it! It costs you nothing and can mean so much.

How do you feel about the culture at your barn? Let me know in the comments.

 

 

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