6 Tips to Keeping your Horse Healthy!
Posted on Sunday 24th June 2018
A healthy horse means a happy owner. Whether they’re for professional racing or your local pony club there are a few steps you will have to take to ensure your horse lives a long, happy life.
1. Good food
A good diet is critical to keeping your horse healthy.
Access to fresh grass is important but a blend of alfalfa and hay daily is the basis of a healthy diet. There are also different manufactured feeds available that can support your horses’ immune systems, and help them meet their dietary requirements.
Mixing your own rations is also a good option as raw grains, lucerne hay and chaff, oaten and wheaten chaff and molasses can add valuable nutrients to your horses’ diets, and it allows you to address deficiencies that can cause poor health and performance.
Another important aspect of a healthy horses daily routine is supplements. If you suspect your horses need supplements but aren’t sure what they need, ask a supplement supplier. At Farmcraft we offer a free diet analysis, and to help get your horse back to top health.
2. Exercise
Just like humans, horses need consistent and regular exercise to stay healthy.
Horses spend much of their day standing and walking which helps keep them active but rigorous exercise at least three to five times a week will keep their joints, ligaments, and muscles strong.
3. Water
Having access to clean, fresh water at all times is very important to the health of your horse.
Horses need a lot of water, most can drink between 7 and 10 gallons per day. If they don’t get enough water, they can easily become dehydrated which causes a whole host of other problems.
So check the water trough every day to ensure it is clean and full. And if any algae begins to grow or the water turns green, give the trough a good clean.
4. Comfortable, Clean Bedding
How you clean your stall and the type of bedding you choose to use will be determined by how often you keep your horse in their stall.
Straw is ideal for stables, as it allows fluid to pass through and drain away. This means the bedding will stay dry and comfortable for your horse.
Another option is wood shavings. Wood shavings act as an absorbent Bedding to soak up moisture. Woodshavings can be used in stables and are ideal if drainage is no great.
5. Vet Care
From worming medication to check ups, horses need vet care to be healthy and happy.
A lot of this care can be very simple, and done from home. Worming medication can be easily bought from animal product suppliers, Farmcraft sell an extensive range of worming products, so ask for advice and worming schedules.
Another thing to be aware of is that horses can be accident-prone and need their wounds tended to. Other horses may be quite clumsy so you will need you to keep a special eye on their self-inflicted wounds.
First aid can be taken care of by their owner but anything bigger should be handled by a trained large animal vet.
6. Grooming
Grooming your horses is one of the most important ways to protect their health.
It protects their skin by removing dirt from their body hair, mane, tail and feet that can cause rubbing, removes hair that they’re shedding, prevents many skin conditions, and gives you a chance to check for any injuries or parasites.
This needs to be done in a number of different ways. Washing your horse using a large sponge, horse shampoo, conditioner/conditioning spray and sweat scraper is a great start. Although frequent use of soap can remove too much of the natural oils of your horse’s skin, so reserve bath time for occasions where it is necessary.
How often you need to groom your horses will depend on how often you ride them, and whether they live outside or in a stable, so make sure you are aware of the best routines for your horses’ living situation.
Keeping you horse healthy is a challenging but very rewarding experience. For advice on bedding, grooming and food to keep your horse happy and healthy, come and visit Farmcraft!
