Once you find yourself caring for a horse, you are bound to fall in love with the beauty of horse care. Such majestic animals require a variety of care, making sure that you tend to specific needs. This is why many experts will tell potential owners that in order to have a horse, you need to make sure that you can dedicate a good portion of your time to the care and grooming.

No matter what time of year it is, every horse needs a certain level of care that cannot be overlooked. This kind of care will include regular grooming, plenty of exercise and of course excellent nutrition. As long as you have a good amount of dedication and patience, you just maybe one of the people who can be called a natural born horse lover.

It is always important that you examine your horse for any potential problems as often as you can. Look at their shoes, their demeanor, and of course their gait to make sure that everything seems normal before any exercise or ride.

When the weather heats up, you will want to be sure that your horse always has a good amount of fresh water nearby so he or she can stay properly hydrated. In addition to that you can always look to wetting your horse down with lukewarm water when he or she seems to be overheated. Another smart summer move is taking the necessary steps to rid their stall of any flies or bugs to help keep them as comfortable as possible.

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It is always a very sad situation to find a horse that is malnourished and in desperate need of care. Losing weight to a horse is very similar to losing weight in humans. Basically, fat is lost first and then the malnourishment goes on to break down muscle tone. When you find that you have come to care for a horse that has been undernourished, there are many things that you can do in order to help them get back to a healthy weight.

To begin with, you can always work with your veterinarian to see if there are any special treatments that may be helpful to the horse. Your veterinarian can check to see if there is anything else wrong with the horse such as dental problems, which can lead to a lessening of appetite. Once any other problems are ruled out, you can then work on a decent diet to help bring the horse's weight back up to normal.

Always be sure to offer plenty of hay as added roughage for the horse to consume. When you find that the horse is not grazing well with the hay, you can always look to your local feed store to try certain partial hay replacers to help them out with added diet. You can also bring in an extra supplement of feed compared to what you would normally offer the horse. Bringing in extra calories and feed that is higher in fiber can help their diet without having any adverse affects on their behavior.

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Just as with humans, it is important to take care of your horse's teeth. Not only will regular check ups and dental care help to ensure that everything remains healthy as your young horse grows, but you can also help to get your horse used to their mouth being handled and worked with. When you are looking to make sure that your horse has regular dental check ups, there are a couple of things that you can keep in mind to make sure that you are working with a good schedule.

You can make sure that your veterinarian does a check on your young foal to see if they have the right amount of teeth, with twenty-four being the normal number. This will help to ensure that nursing will go smoothly with the mother horse as well. Once the horse gets to be a couple of years older, the permanent teeth will begin to come in. A veterinarian check at this time is also a good idea to make sure that they are coming through properly without and irritations or obstructions.

As a horse grows older, somewhere around six years and older, it is important to have regular dental check ups with your veterinarian still to make sure that there are no signs of damage to the teeth. This can also be a good time for any repairs including shaving down rough edges on the teeth. Your horse will be much happier with a healthy mouth and teeth that can last them a lifetime.

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When you take on ownership of a horse, especially if he is from and abused or neglected background, you will want to begin bonding with him as soon as possible.

Start off slowly and just visit with your horse and make sure he's comfortable with your presence, talk to him and bring the occasional small treat but don't let him see where you hide them in your coat pockets or anywhere else or he'll learn quickly to start nudging you for more treats. If you keep them an occasional thing, he'll learn that you are in charge of treats and he won't be aggressive for getting them.

After he is comfortable and accepting of your visits, you can start leading him around the pen. Watch for signs he is uncomfortable with his bit if he hasn't been harnessed in a while. Some horses will need to have their teeth floated or use a different type of bit if he is uncomfortable in or pain. Keep it pleasurable and talk to your horse as you walk him. Once again when he seems accepting of this, you can move on to the next step.

Riding is the final step in basic bonding with your horse. When he is completely nonchalant about your presence and being lead by a harness, you can then saddle and ride him. If it has been a long time since he has had a rider, you might want to get him accustomed to the saddle again by allowing him to wear it for a few times before you actually ride him. Once you get his trust and he's calm about it then you can start taking him for rides and really let your relationship with your horse grow.

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If you own a horse, sooner or later you'll have to have your horse's teeth floated. The term may not make sense are first as it conjures up images of teeth being loosened or floating in the horse's mouth. However what it actually entails is filing down the teeth of the horse so they even and give your horse an even bite for eating.

A vet or equine dentist will use a specialized dental rasp which is also called a float to file down the teeth. You will need to have your horse's teeth floated at least every few years and some horses will need it even more often. The only way to know for sure is to check your horse's teeth on a regular basis and make sure he or she has healthy, even and aren't causing your horse pain.

Unlike your teeth which come in and won't grow any more, horse teeth will grow throughout their lives as in the wild they eat foods that grind down teeth and that is nature's way of combating the problem. However domesticated horses don't eat fodder that wears down their teeth as quickly so they need to have their teeth floated on a regular basis to stay healthy.

If you've never floated your horse's teeth, early signs it needs to be done will include difficulty eating, inability to hold food in his mouth and shunning anything to do with his mouth including taking treats from your hands as his teeth have developed sharp edges and are cutting and painfully poking the inside of his mouth.

Having his teeth floated will return your horse to his old self in a short period of time along with his previous appetite.

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