The horse was switched out when the other tired so that the traveler did not have to stop to rest the horse.

Horse?

LOL?

I give up, what?

I am getting a horse soon, and bare foot horses are hard to find. How would you transition a horse from shoes to barefoot? The horse would, eventually be ridden 6 days a week, if that helps.
Also, how much does a farrier cost with and without shoes per month?

Please do not comment on how much you hate barefoot, and I need shoes, I think barefoot is best. Keep your arguments to yourself, please!
Thanks!

I agree with you…barefoot is the best way to go! Be sure that you get someone that knows how to trim a BAREFOOT horse….not a farrier. There is a big difference between a barefoot horse and someone just TRIMMING a horse. Make sure that your farrier or trimmer doesn't take any sole, that's BAD! Be sure to keep your horse off hard ground. Let them walk though to get good blood flow to their feet. It will take about a good week to get your horse to adjust. All horses are different and it depends on where you live. If you have boots…like renegade boot, or easy boots…those help immensely! Also a new barefoot horse's hoof tends to chip a LOT, so if you have a rasp I'd use it or learn to use it and just keep your horses hoof nice and smooth. Hope this helps.

Our older horses are loyal horses and many of them are still eager to hit the trails or even compete at a local show. Some have been retired to their pastures to live out their days in equine luxury. If you plan on keeping your senior horse until the very end, then you will want to attend to his special needs as he ages.

A geriatric or senior horse is typically twenty years or older. There are a lot of health differences in these horses that appear as they age and they often require specialized care throughout this part of their lives. This is because, just like humans, parts of their bodies simply begin to wear out. The horse’s teeth, eyes, joints, liver, gut, and kidneys all begin to lose their regular functionality. These are the parts of the older horse that horse owners should pay close attention to.

Older horses may have a hard time breathing and walking if they are becoming arthritic. They may not be able to get around as well, so it is harder to walk back and forth to the barn to get a drink and then go back out to pasture. We can make life a little easier on our horses by providing them an extra water source in the pasture so that they don’t have to do so much traveling. As their gut begins to wear out we need to consider what we can do to make it easier on them absorb the nutrients that they need.

Begin by having your vet check the horse’s liver and kidney function. They may need to do some blood work on the horse to see if anything is malfunctioning. They will also check for diseases in the blood. These horse’s teeth should also be checked at least once a year. If there are any problems, your vet will prescribe new medication and a diet for your horse.

Switching to a senior feed can do a lot for these older horses. The nutrients are designed to be easier to absorb and they contain higher amounts of nutrients because it is easier for the horse’s digestive system to miss out on them as the feed travels through. The best forage for a senior horse is grass. Grass contains seventy percent water and ninety percent dry matter. Most horse owners will rely on hay of the horse’s forage, so you may need to find a higher quality hay for the senior horse. It is also important to be sure that you maintain the same deworming schedule that the horse has been on his whole life to keep the parasites at bay. Making some simple changes such as these will make life much easier on your dear old friend.

Happy Horsing
Jo Thompson

Jo Thompson
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/caring-for-the-senior-horse-123712.html

Finding the right medication for horses is a tricky business, taking into consideration the possible side effects and for racehorses, making sure that the drugs taken would not affect the horse’s performance in the race. However, the challenge definitely does not end there. Getting the drugs into the horse’s mouth (and making it stay in) is a different matter altogether.

Besides having to maneuver the 1,000-pound body to get a pill inside the horse’s throat, you’ll have to deal with the possibility of having that same pill spewed back at you in a less distinguishable (and practically unusable) form. Of course, the chances of this happening depend on expertise at handling horses and in experience at giving medication.

Seasoned ‘horsekeepers’ have come up with all sorts of ways on administering medicine to their horses. These different methods are ‘tested and tried’ but not foolproof. Giving medicine to a horse is much like coaxing a child (only, a much stronger one with a longer mouth). Thus, the approach that works best for one horse may not be effective at all for another or merely to a certain extent, like only during the first try.

One of the easiest (but most likely to fail) approach would be to mix the medication with the horse’s usual food. If this works for your horse, then you’re pretty fortunate. But if mixing the pills with grain, applesauce or molasses does not do the job, one might revert to the age-old syringe. Truly reminiscent of dealing with an unruly preschooler, pumping the fluid medicine into the horse’s mouth and holding it shut until the medicine is swallowed is not a comfortable task. It requires strength and patience as the horse will not make it easy.

An alternative to the syringe is something more friendly looking a plastic mustard dispenser. It won’t guarantee that all of the liquid medication would stay inside that equine mouth but it would get it all in, after all a condiment bottle is more appealing rather than threatening.

Some horse owners also testify that pills dissolved in strawberry Kool-Aid juice or vanilla yogurt make irresistible concoctions. It appears that just like us, these medicine-repellent creatures have certain indulgences. Once we discover what makes them forget their repulsion to medicine, it’s an easy ride from there.

It is not only the horse’s health that should be considered when giving it medication. One should be careful in handling drugs that may have adverse effects when ingested by humans. Another technique in horse medication is to crush the pill into powder and placing it directly on the horse’s tongue. Airborne particles that might be inhaled while preparing the powder may be harmful. But (phenylbutazone, equivalent to aspirin), in particular, causes aplastic anemia in humans.

Ultimately, horse medication also involves training and discipline. No matter how stubborn the horse is, it can eventually be trained to receive medication with little fuss. Making the drugs look and taste good requires more time and effort but is fulfilling too!

Paul Kramer
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/a-beginners-guide-to-horse-medication-609353.html

When Paloma arrived at the barn, which was accustomed to warmbloods, she drew a crowd of people who were waiting to see in person what a real mustang looked like. Curiosity turned to even greater intrigue when her owner said that she was a â??Spanishâ? mustang, not the feral mustang that roams free in the west. The timing was an interesting coincidence as most of the boarders had seen the movie â??Hidalgo,â? in which the equine star plays a Spanish mustang.

The Spanish mustang is a descendant of the horses brought to the Americas by the early Spaniards. On his second voyage to the New World, Columbus brought a number of Spanish horses, as the breed was considered to be the finest horses in the world.

In the 1950s, because they were on the verge of extinction, an effort to preserve the Spanish mustang type began through the selection of horses that best demonstrated the Spanish mustang breed characteristics. As a result, the Spanish Mustang Registry was incorporated in 1957. â??This registry was formed to preserve and perpetuate the last remnants of the true Spanish mustangs,â? according to the Registry. Twenty horses were originally entered into the registry, and current numbers show about 3100.

Like the Spanish mustang breed classification describes, Paloma was just under 14 hands, with short strong canon bones and round, muscular hindquarters. But her most outstanding trait that caught everyoneâ??s admiration was her classic Spanish head with concave forehead and convex nose. Her noble head was set on a fully crested arching neck, and she looked like a baroque horse, such as the Andalusian or Lipizzaner.

A particular herd of pure Spanish mustangs was discovered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in 1977 and separated to preserve their purity of traits. These horses are known as the Kiger mustangs. To be considered a Kiger, according to the Kiger Mesteño Association, a horse must be the offspring of a registered Kiger or have documented proof it was obtained from one of the Kiger herd management areas. Additionally, Kiger mustangs carry the breed color traits, which include dun and gruel, among others, along with markings such as dorsal stripe, zebra stripes or facial mask.

By contrast, the American mustang is the descendant of escaped light riding horses and draft horses, mixed with the Spanish bred and others. In general, these horses are thought to have little-to-no remaining Spanish blood.

Charged with the oversight of wild mustangs and burros is the BLM, which manages wild horses and burros on the public land in a â??multiple useâ? mission that considers natural resources and uses such as ranch livestock grazing. The BLM monitors herds for health and population size and offers individual animals for adoption. Since 1973, BLM placed more than 213,000 horses and burros in homes through its adoption program. In 2005, Congress enacted a new law to maintain herds at healthy population levels that requires BLM to place for sale horses and burros older than age 10 or for whom adoption has failed three times. According to BLM, this affects approximately 8400 horses and burros.

Formerly wild mustangs have found success in new homes. J.B. Andrews, a large black mustang, has successfully competed in dressage to Intermediare I while schooling at the Grand Prix level.

Michael
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/americas-first-horse-horse-chit-chat-89522.html

Author: Max Redd: www.ReddRacing.co.uk

There are currently four all-weather tracks in the UK, with a further course in development in Essex. This year there will be £5million in prize money on offer for the all-weather season, so racing promises to be the most competitive and exciting yet. Max Redd takes you around the venues, and reveals his key tips and advice for making a killing when betting on horse racing on the sand.

All-weather racing often receives the same response from horse racing fans as Marmite gets from lovers of toast â?? you either love it, or you hate it!

Admittedly, the opportunity to watch low-grade horses running on the sand at a February meeting at Southwell may not have the same allure as the Gold Cup on Ladies Day at Ascot in the height of summer. But that is no reason for all-weather snobbery. In fact, the UK all-weather racing scene is going from strength to strength. And this is good news, hopefully, for punters who endeavour to grind out a profit betting on races run â??on the beachâ?.

The four venues in the UK that currently stage all-weather flat racing are Lingfield Park in Surrey, Wolverhampton in the Midlands, Kempton Park near Heathrow, and Southwell in Nottinghamshire. However, this year that list will be boosted to five because a new track is opening at Great Leighs in Essex.

Forget the forecast

The all-weather horse racing championship kicks into gear just as the traditional flat racing turf season comes to a close in the autumn. The 2006-2007 all-weather season gets under way in November and culminates in a grand finale at Lingfield Park in March with the running of the Winter Derby. With around £5 million in prize money, jockeysâ?? and trainersâ?? championships up for grabs, and opportunities for horses of varying levels of ability, this season should be the most competitive ever staged in the UK.

So which jockeys, horses and trainers should we be following on the all-weather, and how can racing at one artificial track differ compared with that at another? Hopefully, if you follow this abbreviated guide you will soon be on course to make some serious dosh from the sand!

It may boast a catch-all monicker, but all-weather racing actually differs slightly at each of the four venues which currently stage the sport in the UK. This is a factor well worth being aware of before you decide to have a bet at a particular track. With the exception of Kempton, the courses are left-handed. Racing at Wolverhampton and Southwell takes place around lozenge-shaped tracks, while Lingfieldâ??s configuration is more triangular. I will expand upon the significance of this a bit further on.

One fundamental point you need to get to grips with early on is how the actual racing surface differs from one course to another. Two types of sand are currently used. All-weather races held at both Wolverhampton and Lingfield are now run on a material called Polytrack, which is a kind of rubberised sand which minimises the impact of â??kickbackâ?? â?? the effect the horses produce as they thunder over a loose-topped sandy surface. Polytrackâ??s consistent nature means that most races can be run at a good pace, so when having a bet at Lingfield or Wolverhampton itâ??s worth remembering the importance of backing a horse which will see out the trip.

With that in mind, it would be less of a concern for a horse with good form over 12 furlongs at these two courses to get stepped down to race, say, over 10 furlongs. But it may be more of a problem for a horse which has been doing well over, say, 6 furlongs if its next challenge was to run over a mile or further.

Horses for courses

However, a different racing material known as Fibresand is employed at Southwell. Generally speaking, this produces a more demanding surface compared with Polytrack. If all-weather racing at Wolverhampton and Lingfield is similar to running on the equivalent of fast going on turf, then Southwellâ??s Fibresand is closer to a turf equivalent of racing on soft or even heavy ground.

Take note of this factor when a horse which has performed well at Wolverhampton or Lingfield is then asked to contest a race at Southwell â?? even if the distance is the same. Before having a bet in this instance, you should be happy the horse will see out the trip on this different surface.

Lingfieldâ??s sharp contours and relatively short finishing straight mean it tends to favour horses who can race up with the pace (or â??handilyâ??) rather than long-striding gallopers who need time to wind up their run. The layout of the track means that horses drawn in double figures tend to be at a disadvantage for races run up to a mile. Low-drawn horses who can race handily should enjoy a definite advantage when it comes to sprint races over the minimum trip of 5 furlongs.

Itâ??s a similar story at Wolverhampton. Once again, horses drawn low in 5 and 6-furlong races usually have an advantage. Itâ??s difficult for horses to swing wide into the straight without compromising their chances. But for race distances over a mile or more the impact of the draw diminishes rapidly.

Weâ??ve already heard that the racing surface at Southwell is different to the other tracks and this means the kickback is far more pronounced here than elsewhere. The next time you go to the beach, get someone to throw handfuls of sand in your face and see how much you like it! For that reason, Southwell tends to benefit horses who can race â??prominentlyâ?? or who are described as â??strong travellersâ?? because they will avoid as much kickback as possible.

Sticking to these guidelines for all-weather betting should help you take a little more cash from the bookiesâ?? satchels than the average punter. Happy punting!

About the author: Max Redd has been making a living betting on horse racing for over 10 years. He runs the Redd Racing betting advisory service which offers members a FREE trial and a 60-day money-back profit guarantee. Find out more at http://www.reddracing.co.uk

Max Redd
http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/key-tips-for-allweather-horse-racing-96602.html

Every horse needs pasture or access to some type of forage. Ideally, the more time your horse can spend in the pasture the better. This is not only healthy for them nutritionally, but mentally and physically as well. There bodies are just better off when they are able to graze on a regular basis. Eating all day is what horses are good at and they enjoy it.

Horses have a remarkably small stomach for their size and multiple small meals per day is ideal for the horse. They are meeting their requirements for these multiple small meals when they are allowed to graze on a regular basis. In fact, horses that are not ridden or worked on a regular basis may be able to survive quite well on pasture and a little grain supplementation to ensure they are getting essential vitamins and minerals. Some horses may need to be supplemented with round bales of hay and salt licks, especially in the winter months.

In very rare cases will a horse colic or founder on grass. This has nothing to do with whether or not the grass was recently cut, that is just a coincidence in most cases. The horse will founder on grass if the moisture level is at a certain point and the nights get very cold and the days get very hot. The grass will begin to produce a toxin that will cause a horse to founder. This is extremely rare and most horse owners will not have to worry about it.

One instance in which grass can harm a horse is in the case of fescue poisoning. Mares who are pregnant should be taken off of fescue three months prior to foaling. This poisoning has caused many mares to abort and was a sort of epidemic in Kentucky during which numerous mares aborted their foals due to fescue poisoning. Pregnant broodmares are the only horses affected by the fescue.

The pasture should be well maintained. Fences should be safe and grass should be well cared for and nourishing. There should also be plenty of grass available for grazing horses. A pasture should have ample drainage as a flooded pasture can pose as a health risk to horses. Typically, four horses will be able to graze well on ten acres. This, however, depends on the climate and condition of your land. Horses in New Mexico, for example, may need a whole square mile to each horse. Paddocks should also be properly managed. If you are able to split a pasture in half for grazing, one side will benefit from not having any grazers and will give the grass time to rejuvenate and grow. Horses are particularly hard on pasture as they pull the grass out by the roots. In bad pastures, you may have to burn them to encourage new growth. They many even need reseeding.

Allowing your horse regular pasture time is very important to his health and well being. Even if it is just a half hour per day, you will see a big difference in your horse’s state of mind.

Michael
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/a-good-pasture-horse-chit-chat-94382.html

Kentucky is a state of natural wonders that also have two large cities with Lexington and Louisville. Both these cities offer excellent history and heritage. Throughout Kentucky there are three things you will run into: mansions, historic sites and horse farms of legendary proportions. Visitors to Kentucky can also experience a variety of sports and recreational activities in a natural outdoor setting. The opportunities for outdoor adventures are endless in Kentucky including hiking, golfing, biking, climbing, sight seeing, exploring caves, riding horses, canoeing, rafting and swimming.

For horse related attractions and associations the best place to visit is Lexington since it has rightly earned the title of Horse Capital of the World. As the city continues to experience urban growth many efforts have been made to preserve the horse farms and the scenic regional landscape that surrounds the city which continues to draw visitors to the city every year.

Lexington also features a variety of indoor activities such as historic sites, museums, performing arts centers, antique shops and excellent dining options. Artsplace provides an excellent exhibit of local art while the American Saddlebred Museum offers the largest collection of Saddlebred artifacts. For history or Civil War buffs there is the historic sites and reconstructions at Harrodsburg, Perryville and Nicholasville.

The legendary Kentucky Derby horse race can be found in Louisville. Although the race occurs only on the first Saturday of May there is a Kentucky Derby Festival which runs for two weeks before the race and have the largest fireworks display in the United States. In February there is another popular even that lasts for six weeks and features the newest theatrical work, the Human Festival of New American Plays.

Louisville offers visitors a variety of choices when it comes to performing arts. Whether you like opera, ballet, music or theater you can find a performance you like at either the Kentucky Center for the Arts, Walden Theatre or the Louisville Palace among other venues in the city. For those who enjoy art a must see is the Speed Art Museum which is the oldest in Kentucky. Louisville also offers excellent outdoor recreational areas for travelers with over 120 city parks.

When it comes to accommodations a top option is the Cincinnati Marriott at River Center which is a high rise hotel on Madison Avenue at the river across from the convention center. This is a popular choice with business travelers. For a unique hotel consider the Radisson Hotel Riverview which is known for its circular design. Some other excellent options include the Comfort Suites Hotel, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn/Cincinnati Riverfront and Holiday Inn/Riverfront. If historic lodging are more your style then consider the Amos Shinkle Townhouse B&B or the Christopher’s Bed and Breakfast which offer an excellent historic experience for travelers.

G. Chadwick
http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/horses-and-baseball-in-kentucky-128046.html

Grooming is a subject of importance, and the adage that a good grooming is as good as a feed is true.

The dandy brush is used for removing rough mud, and must be used gently on horses with tender skins when they have been clipped.

The body brush does the main work. The groom should stand well back from the horse and lean the weight of his body on to the brush, which should penetrate to the skin. It is worked in the direction that the coat lays. By its action the grease is removed from the skin and the pores rendered more open to exude sweat when work is being done. The brush is kept clean with the curry comb, and this should be the only function of the curry comb in grooming.

The water brush has longer hairs than the body brush. It is used for the mane and tail, and is also admirably adapted for the dry brushing of the head and legs.

A hoof pick is another essential tool which cannot be used too frequently when a horse is in the stable.

A sweat-scraper is useful when a horse is brought in hot or when he comes in very wet.

Straw wisps and hard hay wisps are also used for drying and stimulating the skin and acting as a massage to the muscles.

The stable rubber, which is a great favorite among grooms, is nothing but a duster. It may be used to give a final polish to the coat, but it does not take the place of a body brush, and its excessive use is to be deprecated.

The principal grooming of the day should take place after work, and a thorough grooming will take one man an hour. A brisk grooming gives the skin a healthy-glow in the same way as the brisk rub of a Turkish towel does to a man.

Grooming of this kind diminishes the chance of a horse breaking out into a cold sweat.

The eyes, nostrils and dock should be cleaned with a moist sponge each time the horse is groomed.

Every week the sheath should be cleaned with a sponge and water.

When a horse returns from work the girths should be loosened, the saddle raised and replaced, and the girths again done up slackly. The groom should water the horse, do the other parts and then remove the saddle. By this time the back will have cooled down slowly, regained circulation and be ready for grooming.

Quartering is an abbreviated form of grooming in which the roller is not removed. The eyes, nose and dock are sponged and the rugs turned back so that the quarters and then the forehand can be groomed.

The feet should be picked out at least twice a day, and three times if the horse is bedded on peat or sawdust.

A common vice of grooms is the washing of a horse’s legs. This should never be allowed as it is most likely to cause mud fever and cracked heels. When a horse comes in with wet, muddy legs the rough mud should be removed with a straw wisp and the legs loosely bandaged with flannel bandages. When they are thoroughly dry the mud should be brushed out with a dry brush.

As a preventive of mud fever it is advisable to smear the legs and heels with Vaseline before hunting in wet weather.

The shoes should be inspected daily to see that they are tight and should be removed every four weeks at least and replaced or renewed.

Jimmy Cox
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/proper-grooming-of-horses-134099.html

There is a unique emotional bond between humans and horses ever since the first man tried to mount this wonderful animal. Horses seem to have the ability to sense a person’s mood and react to it. It is no wonder then that so many people enjoy books and feature films with horses as the stars. Here are some of the best known horses-actors.

Black Beauty

The book “Black Beauty” was written in the 1870’s by writer Anna Sewell. She worked most of her life with horses and wrote the book especially with the intent to report and correct abuse against these animals. People all over the world know the story of Black Beauty, even if they never read the book. Since the 1940’s three movie films have been made about this animal, telling his story in his own voice. Even a TV show was made that run for several seasons.

My Friend Flicka

Flicka was the horse of a young rancher’s son Ken McLaughlin in Wyoming. At least it was so in the children’s novel written by Mary O’Hara that told of their incredible adventures together around the Goosebar Ranch. The first movie was made in the 1940’s and a remake in 2006 stars Alison Lohman as young farm girl Katy … A television series ran from 1955 - 1958.

Seabiscuit

The story of Seabiscuit is based on a true story. Seabiscuit was a racing horse during the Great Depression, but not a very good one at that. For some years he performed at the very lowest levels of horse racing. But then three man saw the talents that apparently were hidden. Author Laura Hillenbrandt made him into a legend by writing a bestseller about him. The consequent movie adaptation was inevitable.

Trigger

Another real and living horse was Trigger. His fame came from the actor Roy Rodgers, who always appeared in films as cowboy. He bought Trigger in the 1930’s. Since then the two became virtually inseparable and Trigger was as popular if not more popular than Roy Rodgers himself. Trigger died at age 33 and when he died his hide was stretched over a plaster likeness. Even today you can see Trigger in the “The Roy Rogers/Dale Evans Museum”. (Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum: 3950 Green Mountain Dr, Branson, MO).The museum gets over 200,000 visitors a year and not surprisingly most people come to see Trigger. .

Mr. Ed

Like Trigger, Mr. Ed was a dark-blonde Palomino horse. And although the show aired in the 1960’s even children today are familiar with the talking horse. Mr. Ed was not just another horse, no, he wanted to be more human than man and this meant that his owner, Wilbur got into all kinds of trouble very fast whenever Mr. Ed got his “hands” on a phone or was able to get out of his stable.

Frank Rom
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/famous-horses-from-the-big-screen-115465.html