FEBRUARY 2012

HOLY SH..!

OK, so last time we talked about what your horse eats. Let’s talk about what comes out. The average horse poops about 50lbs. a day. Multiply that times 20 stalls times 30 days and you get 30,000lbs of poop in a month. That’s just manure. Then, stir in gallons of urine mixed with about 20lbs. of shavings per day and you’re up to 20,000lbs of wet stuff. That’s 50,000lbs of work every month. 25 tons of manure and waste. No wonder the pits look like they do. Add this workout to your 25 times around the barn.

Bell boot debate.

This is where I am torn. It’s that time of the year I get ready to make a Big Dee’s order and think “are these things worth it?” Bell boots do help keep your horse from reaching up and grabbing the shoe in an effort to keep your farrier from making emergency trips out to tack on a shoe. However, the cost of a pair of bell boots is almost as much as a tack-on. Putting boots on and off is hard on the Velcro. You’ve probably seen I leave summer boots on the MGS horses for that reason during the riding season. The boots last for months. Drawback is the foot doesn’t get air to dry out. Winter I don’t boot MGS horses because the snow is hard on them and they fall off, never to be seen again. Pick and choose.

 February, 2012

It’s time for stable management. Stall latches and you. What a handy gadget the stall and gate latches are. One handed convenience. Every once in a while make sure the nut is screwed securely to the bolt on your stall and even out on the pasture gates. Handling and wind loosens them and the gate or door will open with ease for our friends to get out and explore, vandalize or create havoc. We all prefer no foolin’ around while we are asleep.

 

W.W.H.D?

It’s a nice morning and I put out the gang with their hay and suddenly Mother Nature decides to unleash the dogs of war. A cold rain sucks for me and the horses. Especially, since our guys have fuzzy coats. On those days I get everyone in a.s.a.p. and close the doors to keep the wind out. As long as there is hay they can start warming up from the inside. Plus they like their bucket of warm water too. It’s very rare here, but it happens, if someone is shivering, I’ll throw a cooler on them. Periodically, I have had to scrape the mud off their backs so they can dry and fluff their coats. No horse left behind. Then I go hug the furnace.

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RIDING TIPS

Diagonal changes on trail.

Don’t forget when you are out for your ride to change your diagonal every time you trot.  For example, you are trotting off the right shoulder when you trot past the burn pile by the swimming pond. Your next trot in the sugar bush should be off the left shoulder. This will help keep your horses and you from getting “one sided”.  The other reason to switch diagonals is to let you know if there are any lameness issues you are missing by posting only off one side. It’ good to change canter leads too! Keep your horse in shape and on task.

Thank you, Mr. Winter for not beating us down and providing some great weather for winter riding.

Remember, keep your heels down!

Holly.

P.S. if you have any questions for “ask a barn manager”, feel free to leave me a note.