• At a minimum the average horse should take in 1oz of salt per day to stay hydrated, that’s 2 tablespoons for us measuring challenged people.
• In warm/hot weather or increased activity (hard work, stressed)  3-4 oz of salt will be needed.
• As a rule of thumb 2-3% dehydration can lead to a 10% drop in performance
• Dehydration causes muscle cramping, tying-up, poor nerve and muscle function (fatigue)
• Sodium is what the brain reads in determining when to trigger thirst.  This is huge my pony people because the average horse should drink at minimum 5 and up to 15 gallons of water depending on temperature, work and forage consumed.
• Inadequate water consumption can cause colic and impactions
• Salt is so important that when in short supply the body will excrete potassium in the urine to preserve the sodium, concentrating the urine and rob the tissues surrounding the cells of water.
• Salt is of primary importance to the hormonal regulatory systems.
• For optimal consumption add plain old table salt to your horse feeding/supplementation regimen.
• Horses cannot get enough salt w/ a salt block.  These were designed for cattle and since our horses have smooth tongues, well they just don’t get the proper amount.  I do suggest always keeping a salt block/rock available just in case they want a little more to get on their own.

So as you can see plain old salt is really important.  Salt=Thirst=Water consumption.  You want proper water intake to keep the vet away.  It’s cheap (I get a huge bag at Sam’s for less than 4 bucks), easy to implement into your feeding program and can actually save a horses life.

PS- If your horses water supply comes from a salt use water softener you should test the water to accurately adjust the sodium needed in your feeding regimen.  If you feed a kelp based product do not feed iodized salt.

Happy Horsekeeping,

Tracey

Most all horse owners do it no matter if they’re skilled or novice, but it’s the novice ones I really worry about these days, especially those of middle age like me.

It usually happens like this…insert name bought some small acreage, always wanted a horse so went to the local horse trader, auction, rescue group, craig’s list….you get what I mean and for some @%$# (bad word) reason brings home a cute 2 year old that someone manages to get a halter on.  Never mind the fact that insert name hasn’t been on a horse in 15-30 years, ok, maybe lessons, maybe. Insert name at first has fun feeding, mucking, grooming, but what about cantering off into the sunset?  Then it hits them square between their dreamy eyes as they realize they can’t ride the horse as they dreamed because….IT’S GREEN AND HAS NEVER BEEN RIDDEN!  They start treating the horse like a big dog, a big expensive dog that poops all over and needs to be fed and mucked up after no matter what the weather is and it’s getting big and pushy sometimes scaring you.  Something may go wrong like colic, hoof issues, injuries and now there’s big vet bills because your big Fido got scared of a plastic bag that flew thru the pasture and he flew thru the fencing.  Didn’t expect that did you because you thought horses were big, strong and brave like in the movies. Ok I’m getting carried away but it true and this is where the heartbreaking part comes in, insert name comes to the decision to give up and sell, give away or auction the horse they did all this for.  It happens all the time and far too much.  They picked their poison and usually they and the horse gets hurt along the way.  It’s why the saying “green on green makes black and blue” exists.

And why am on my high horse about this you may ask?  I did it, yes I did just that except he was 1 1/2 yrs not 2 and hadn’t even been castrated and some were known to be scared of him.  Hah! So I out did most of you, not that that’s a good thing.  In a nutshell I had taken lessons for a year, he was owned by a friend who just didn’t have time for him, I was studying Parelli, he was lonely (and crazy) I needed a new Parelli case study, so she let me use him.  Luckily in this trial period I was surrounded by my trainer and barn friends whom were all knowledgeable and supportive of my adventure.  We did ground work only for a while, mind you just getting the halter on him took about 30 mins and you had to check to make sure all your fingers were still attached when done with this usually minor of tasks.  I once showed up to find the guy who mucked the stalls walking around with his head wrapped in a bandage, yep the guilty party was Cooper whom was offended by said mucker in his stall, Oy!  Anyway things progressed, he was a fast learner, I was determined, yada yada we became a couple.  As fate would have it enter stage right Joel Means the answer to our prayers and we became a couple, hmm isn’t that one too many?  He was perfect for us and so we married him, I mean I married him…lucky for Cooper.

So what’s your point Mrs. Hypocrite with all this story telling?  Well I didn’t purchase Cooper until I knew I had some skills and training under my belt and ok I married a horseman to cinch the deal.  I have 24-7 support and training and study all things horsey.  As Pat Parelli says you have to take the time it takes and believe me it takes a lot of time, especially w/ a green horse.  I’m not gonna tell you it wasn’t scary, he was the first horse I started but because I took the time to do it the right way with the support it worked.  Mind you there are still some knee knocking events and I still have to get out of my comfort zone so we can progress.  I have to put it out of my mind that older bones heal slower than younger ones, but it was a commitment I made and love.  He absolutely changed my life and I learned through him how to be a better human.  Owning a horse to me is a lifetime, 24-7 commitment, yes it can get in the way of stuff you want to do and travel plans, money in the bank, etc,  I want all new horse owners or those even contemplating owning a horse to know this.  I have seen and been told of so many mismatched owner-horse horror stories and usually it starts with older aged, well intentioned people getting young and or green horses.  No matter who you are or how experienced a rider is, it can always be risky.  Horses are decision making, pray animals.  You are a decision making, predator and sometimes together each makes their own decision at the same time and you’re going to be the one that leaves the saddle and hits the ground.  Parelli once said of horse ownership that with in the first 5 years eighty percent of owners get rid of the horse and with in the next 5 years 80 percent of those left drop out.  So new horse owners I beg of you for the sake of your dreams, body parts and for the sake of the horse, please consider a wise, older horse with lots of trail/riding experience.  Think of it like this, with your finances, health and medical advice we would all want reach out to a wise, experienced professional.  One that’s been there and done that.  Do this as well with the choice of your horse, because if not it could very well put you in the position of putting your finances, health and medical condition in jeopardy.

]]> http://alphahorsemanship.wordpress.com/2012/02/06/picking-your-poison-and-the-perils-of-ownership/feed/ 1 alphahorsemanship http://alphahorsemanship.wordpress.com/2012/01/25/but-i-was-told/ http://alphahorsemanship.wordpress.com/2012/01/25/but-i-was-told/#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:11:13 +0000 alphahorsemanship http://alphahorsemanship.wordpress.com/?p=29 ]]> Have you ever been told:

We’ve bred the hoof off the horse, domestic horses just need shoes, light hooves are weaker, rocky ground is bad, shoes are necessary to prevent injury…..

You get the idea here, a million reasons why they need shoes, but the fact is these are all lies, myths and outdated traditions perpetuated by farriers, schools, vets, trainers, and the “I just didn’t know any better” people.  I was one of the latter- just following along with what everyone else did, and one of those things was thinking all horses needed to be shod.  Now, I had ridden a Shetland pony on a rocky trailride but that’s different right? Most people don’t shoe those??? I did once tell a guy I wouldn’t go on a trail ride with him in the mountains until he put shoes on his horses first.  How inhumane do you think I am, sir?

Fast forward 7 years and I can’t believe I said that.  Yes I can because I was told!  But then I saw something that blew all those things I was told right out of the water.

I was visiting my soon to be husband Joel at the ranch he was working at in the Napa Valley of California.  The major part of his job was overseeing the 8 ranch horses and his own personal horse all used for lessons and trail rides.  An absolutely beautiful and amazing place.

Now if you’ve never been to the Napa Valley, let me paint a quick picture.  It’s mountainous  and not just rocks but ancient volcanic lava rocks; chunky, sharp like razor rocks.  That’s why they grow great vineyards there.  Visiting there should be on your bucket list.

Ok- so he’s giving me the tour and it’s time to meet the horses.  They’re on about a 2 acre side of a hill.  A dry, rocky, abrasive and vertical hill.  The only flat spot was home to the 50′ round pen.  The whole setting is beautiful, ranch, barn, horses, mountains, new found love, what could be missing?  Shoes!!! That’s what’s missing.  None of these darn lava rock, trail ridin’ horses has shoes!  But I was told…..taint possible nor good.  What say you ranch manager Joel?  Well he says except for his horse (who has never had shoes), they were all not so long ago shod.  When they decided to go barefoot, their farrier, vets, and a trainer friend told them all the same, “won’t happen, you’re just gonna tear those feet up in this environment.” (condensed and without the farriers cussin’).   The transition took time for some and none for others but within a year and with proper trimming and diet here you have it, 16 sound, rock-hard, healthy hooves (and Joel’s horse who the previous farrier said would go lame), proving all those neigh-sayers wrong, and I had been on that bandwagon.

After almost a year of living there plus the addition of 4 more horses, different sizes, breeds and hoof colors, there it was, a living testament of the truth and all those lies and myths that I had thought were true shattered forever.

- Tracey Hill

Sounds simple, right? Apparently that concept is not easily understood nor accepted. When it comes to horses, for some reason the word “natural” is a dirty word. Horses are supremely natural, and we should be finding ways to preserve that, instead of sweeping it under the rug.  I’m shocked at how many people can’t understand what “natural” means, especially when the word “horse” is in close proximity!

This is a good place to introduce you to my mentor, Jaime Jackson. His name and tuition will be all over my blog- he is a true friend of the horse, as well as a pioneer in the natural horse care field. Thank you Jaime for all the hard work you do! To understand what is meant by natural horse care/natural hoof care/natural horsemanship, please read Jaime’s Director’s Message, “Natural Horsemanship: A Hoax of Near Mythical Proportions”

While you are there, browse around the AANHCP website- there is lots of good info there!

Lots more on this subject in next post.

My training and experience with horses these past 15 years has not been mainstream- far from it. I’m proud of that, though. Mainstream thinking about horses and their care is so far removed from the actual biological needs of the animal that it is devastating our beloved partners. If people would only take the time to investigate what the biological needs of the horse really are, to find it in themselves to become an advocate for the horse, to really get excited about providing for the horse those biological needs- what a wonderful gift we would be giving the horses in our care!

There is a lot of information out there on this subject- most of it is just plain bad, and the rest seems to be a far cry from nature’s truth. That’s the reason I feel compelled to write about the natural horse.

W.E. Webb wrote in his book “Buffalo Land” in 1872-

“I should have liked to draw the attention of the whole learned fraternity of blacksmiths, who mutilate horses, the world over. The hoofs were as solid and as sound as ivory, without a crack or wrong growth of any sort. It is noticeable that the equine race, in its wild state, has none of the ills of the species domesticated. The sorrows of horse-flesh are the fruits of civilization. By the study and imitation of Nature’s methods, we could greatly increase the usefulness of these valuable servants, and remove temptation from the paths of many men who lead blameless lives, except in the single matter of horse-trades.”