Friday, May 11, 2007

Pet Insurance For Your Horse

Many pet owners today have been looking into the benefits of having insurance to help care for their pet. The chances are very good that you already have all sorts of insurance, whether it is for your own health, your car and even your home. Luckily for many animal lovers today, there is also the option of pet insurance that can help out in the event of illnesses as well as any regular and ongoing care that needs to be addressed...

Friday, May 04, 2007

Is It Time to Introduce a Saddle?

It doesn't matter whether you have a young horse that has never been saddled or a horse that has not been saddled in a long time, you're probably going to experience problems the first few times that you put a saddle on your horse.

The technique for training either a young horse or a horse that hasn't been saddled much in the past is the same. Simply let him examine the saddle so he knows not to fear it. Horses are psychologically wired to be prey animals and automaticlaly consider every other thing and object as a possible threat- even when they are much smaller like a saddle- until the horse has investigated the object to his own personal satisfaction...

Thursday, April 05, 2007

Beginning Trail Riding

Trail Riding is one of the most fun activities you can do with your horse. It gets you both outdoors, it's great exercise for your horse and you both get to bond by spending time together. When you're trail riding with your horse, be sure to follow a few safety rules that will ensure that you and your horse have a fun and safe ride.

First of all, do not ride alone. Anything can happen on a trail, even a trail you know well. Always try to ride with another person when you trailride. If you choose to ride alone, make a map of where you're going to ride and stick to it, that way in the event an incident delays your return, you can easily be found...

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Help For a Nervous Horse

Horses can become nervous for a lot of reasons. Abuse, neglect and lack of human interaction and sometimes it's due to their emotional make up and they are naturally a little more skittish than other horses. Fortunately, working with your horse on a steady basis will help him become desensitized and learn not to react to people, places and things he would have previously feared. Another name for this type of training is called "bombproofing"...

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Is a Gelding Better?

In many cases if you're looking for family oriented horse and you have your heart set on a boy, consider a gelding, or rather a male horse that has been neutered.

Stallions were originally the horses used in battle because of their aggression. A stallion would be taken in to battle by a rider because the horse would usually fight as well with their teeth and hooves. A stallion is a thousand plus pound animal that is full of male hormones and can be as territorial and aggressive as he can be alternately sweet and nice. When neutered (made into a gelding) the stallion will lose most of his aggression and the sweet and nice parts of his personality will be brought out...

Thursday, March 01, 2007

Good Home For a Horse

After a horse is placed in our rescue, finding them a good home is a priority. Many of the horses that are placed in rescue are there not because their owners were cruel or physically abusive, but because they didn't understand what it takes to properly take care of a horse...

Thursday, January 18, 2007

Safety Tips for Young Children

If you were lucky enough to add a horse to your family over the holidays, be sure and keep your younger children safe around your horse - here are some basic tips.

First of all, your horse will treat every new person, place and object with mistrust until he figures out who and what will be kind to him. He will drop his guard as he gets more acclimated; never let a young child go towards a horse alone that they haven't been with before. There is no way to gauge your horse's reaction. Instead, if you want to show a child your horse, take the child with you and approach your horse first and watch his mannerisms. If he shows the slightest signs of uneasiness or aggression, now isn't the time for introducing new friends...