Archive for Horses

7 Terrific Tips For Novice Horseback Riders

Sunday, July 15th, 2012

If the idea of setting out on your first horseback ride gives you butterflies in the gut, that’s absolutely normal and you shouldn’t permit it to obsess you. I have seven tips that will teach you the easy way to calm your nerves.

1. There are only a few thrills to match horseback riding, nonetheless it could be a bit dangerous without an instructor who is truly good at doing his job. You must sign on with an instructor only after you have gone deep into his bona fides. If you are in America, your instructor should have received certification from the North American Riding Instructors Association; in the UK, the relevant authority is either the UK Horse Society or the Association of British Riding Schools.

2. You should really train yourself to remain calm and collected at all times when you’re with your horse, whether on the ground or astride. Horses are receptive to their riders’ feelings, and if you get on your horse without confidence, he is going to catch your vibes and that will affect him adversely as well. Even if you feel positively insecure inside, act as if you are wonderfully at home.

3. Never show your temper to your horse, irrespective of how much you think he is irritating you. You shouldn’t fail to impress upon him that you are the boss, but you must do so with a firm iron fist within a particularly soft velvet glove.

4. Well before you go for your first ride, you should have strongly selected the form of riding you need to master: English or Western. To some degree, your call will be influenced by what style is available at your riding school. If you do have a choice, I would recommend that you begin with the Western style. I know, though, that lots of instructors believe in starting beginners with the English style, they think this style is better for correct development of rider balance.

5. At the outset, don’t trouble with correct riding attire. Just wear any old attire that are appropriate for riding. A pair of jeans or something of that sort would be fine. Don’t wear shorts or any other apparel that exposes your legs; you’ll rub the skin off them before very long! Becoming filthy and tired while riding horses is all part and parcel of the game, so don’t dump money on costly riding clothes until you have been at it a couple of days and are definitely sure you aren’t going to give up. You might like to make an exception with a great pair of riding boots and a suitable helmet, but the latter item should be available for free at your riding school.

6. Your riding school should have a policy of providing very experienced horses to beginners, so that one of the pair has some wisdom and experience. As you get better, you will be ready to ride different horses. As you do therefore you will observe that like humans, horses also come with really distinct individual characters.

7. While there is no substitute for practical riding on a horse under the tutelage of a professional trainer, you might like to steel yourself more completely by going thru some books and videos on the science of riding horses. It is easy to get such books and videos at shops locally or from internet stores.

Horses are Heather Tomspassion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers visit HorseHorses

How To Help Your Horse Understand You

Saturday, July 7th, 2012

I’m not sure if there is any known way of comparing animal intelligence to human intelligence, but I am going to say this; horses are reasonably intelligent. They can be taught; they know and learn. Even if you try to teach a pony something that goes against its basic instincts, it’ll still follow you and obey so long as you take the trouble of ‘breaking in’ the pony gently. As an example, it’s easy to get a horse to conquer its fear of a weird and potentially threatening object by letting that pony get used to the presence of the object. It takes time, but if you’re patient, the horse learns well. During the course of a life spent with horses, I have seen professional riders get their horses to do some praiseworthy things (talking horse show-wise) with no apparent physical or vocal cues whatsoever, and you can’t reach that sort of understanding with an animal unless that animal has a particular level of intelligence.

You also can’t reach that sort of understanding unless you relate to the horse. Let’s get this straight: in the initial stage, you have got to reach out to the horse, not the other way around. The enormous difference between you and any animal is that the animal does not know better, but you do. Thus, it is your decision to take the lead, and if you set about it the correct way, you’ll find your pony responding positively. Setting about it the best way means persuading the horse and steering it in the direction you would like in slow steps. It means ingraining habits in the horse by rewarding it for everything it does right. You’ll achieve a degree of unwilling obedience if you include punishment in your teaching curriculum, but you may never achieve blind trust and tenderness.

Once a horse learns its lessons, it does not forget them, it can become baffled badly if it starts receiving contrary directions later on. You must be consistent with your pony, and you have to make sure others are also consistent with it, because that’s the only way you will achieve the type of perfect coordination with your pony that you see in professionals.

You can see horses demonstrating their powers of understanding in other ways. I have seen horses instinctively put on their best behaviour with youngsters and women, and I have seen them roll their eyes at folk they had not seen before, but sensed were difficult to deal with. I’ve seen horses finish with a grumpy rider and come to their owners with lots of joy, as if to show their relief at the end of an ordeal.

I think I can wrap up by saying this: you gain a horse’s complete understanding when you give it yours first. I have never seen a pony that didn’t respond well to a keen coach, handler or rider. Often horses can be very difficult, but just about inevitably that was because they had not received correct care or coaching earlier. Even these horses can be brought into line, though with lots more patience than normal.

Horses are Heather Toms passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers, like all things about equine health

Horse Education Courses

Friday, July 6th, 2012

You can participate in plenty of equestrian courses today. These courses range all the way from short sessions of a couple of hours or longer nationally licensed full time courses that may take days to finish.

It will not be easy for you to figure out what is required from you when you enrol in one of these courses for the first time.

If you are intending to take part in a day course, you ought to be getting in contact with the institution organizing the course and getting precise details of just what the course entails. If the course includes a practical yard component, it is a desirable plan to pack riding gear and take it along. You will also need stationery items like note pads, pens, pencils, erasers and highlighters, though lots of these things are often provided by the organizers themselves. If food and water are supplied, that’s great, if not, you need to make arrangements to drink and eat You can also carry along some nibbles if you feel they’re going to keep your energy levels up.

If you are going to enrol in distance tutoring courses, you are obviously not going to have much use for your riding gear. However , occasionally you may be required to get yourself on video going thru some practical tasks in gear and on horse. The videos might need to be submitted to your instructors. That means that you keep jodhpurs, yard boots, hat and gloves and other stuff to hand. You will also need to set up a study table at home at some place where you aren’t going to be interrupted. As you are doing a distance course, you are going to need to arrange for your own stationery. Your communication with the course instructors and your assignments (if any) might need to be made online, which implies you also need a computer with web connection at your work station. The PC will also assist you in researching and completing assignments.

When you are engaged with full time courses, whether you need riding gear or not will depend on the contents of the course. Most of the time, you’ll be asked to don riding gear to take part in limited practical exercise programmes at degree level, and this means you don’t need to have full riding outfits at hand. You could be asked to carry the basic protection gear for handling horses, like yard boots, hats and gloves. As options, you are offered lessons on practical skills, including riding, when you do some degree courses. You’ll be needed to take full riding gear when you are enrolled in vocational courses, which include riding and practical issue assessments. You will obviously need a smart set of breeches or jodhpurs, long riding boots or boots with gaiters and a neat riding jacket. It doesn’t need to be said the ensemble would not be complete without gloves and a riding hat!

Accessories for a total full time course would include, obviously, paper and pens, and probably a laptop computer. If you are not allowed access to printing facilities, you might need to carry along your own printer to meet requirements to hand in work on paper. You must plan on utilizing the library at your institution extensively, as it will be necessary for you to be in a position to get your assignments done. If you will be a home student, you will obviously need accommodation. If the course is pricey you may need to apply for an instructional loan.

The institution you choose to work with will be the best source for you to interact with to exchange information on what your expectations are, and what the institution expects of you. For now, the necessities covered in this piece should give you food for thought about what you want to be properly prepared.

When you are well prepared, you’ll enjoy your course and learn plenty from it!

Horses are Heather Tomspassion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers go here

Contemplating Evolutionary Development When Thinking About The Horses For Sale

Friday, July 6th, 2012

Are you aware that when evidence of the first horse was found, living greater than 50 million years ago, it looked much more like your dog as opposed to the grand beast we are familiar with nowadays? They say it had a body which was only about a single foot high at its shoulder, its head looked much more similar to a dog’s nose plus it had a lengthy tail. However, as opposed to the dog’s feet the first horse called the eohippus had toes that appeared to be hooves instead. This was thought to be the start of an evolutionary trail that’s been traced all the way up to the beautiful animal we know and adore nowadays.

When time passed the horses grew to become bigger and bigger and gradually the toes changed into hooves as the wonders of evolution painted this gradual yet continual picture. As you could guess having said that it was certainly not a completely predictable development. While there is evidence of vast herds of smaller horses existing about one million years back we also know that several of these early breeds became extinct due to climate changes and aggressive hunting by mankind.

In fact, it is said that horse populations were totally erased in what we now know as North America and that the creatures were basically “reintroduced” into this country by Spanish explorers who brought them along while they searched for the new world in the 1500s.

You may think that it’s ironic that the horse is so synonymous with the American “Wild West.” When you ask people to arbitrarily think of a picture of the animal in their mind’s eye the chances are that a lot of them might see somebody similar to John Wayne riding off in to the setting sun on a horse, having just beaten the bad guys at their own game.

It is intriguing to consider the development of the creature and how they have evolved into such a superb companion and workhorse. It isn’t entirely unexpected that a great many of us are looking at really special horses for sale, so that we can introduce them into our own lives. We’re starting to search for places to purchase saddles, special apparel and tack. We are looking online at top quality horseboxes for sale in addition to horse trailers for sale. We’re figuring out where we might keep the creature, how we would allow for its training and whether or not we’d have enough room to ensure that it will get the proper sort of exercise.

Needless to say, there is lots more to taking care of a horse than there may be to a pet dog, although the much bigger creature seems to have descended from a species which was much more similar to our domesticated family canine friend, initially.

At the moment, provided you may love to learn a little more related to horses for sale, don’t forget to look to obtain other particulars => http://www.thehorseexchange.com

What Are The Best Features In Stable Design Horse Stable Design

Thursday, July 5th, 2012

A great horse stable has to have fantastic air movement as well as high standards of security and defence against outside weather. A stable designer will also keep pony safety in mind so your horses don't get any kind of injury during bedding and everyday movement.

A good stable will also have abounding space for horses to move around. Horses living in dumpy stables without enough space and air flow have a tendency to catch illness and stay sleepy for most of the times. In short , if you want the best from your horses, consider giving special attention to stable design.

Here's some advice to build a well-designed stable.

Ventilation: The foremost thing for any pony stable is ventilation. It won't only keep the smell away but will also protect your horses against disease by guaranteeing overall well-being. Many stables lack ventilation facilities and that the horses have ill health.

Fertilizer management: Dung management is another vital thing to consider when planning your stable. You have to consider proper waste control of solid and liquid portion of waste. Keep in mind that 40% of waste is liquid while 60% is solid. Many stable designers only address solid waste product management leaving liquid to the mercy of nature. This may make disease spread while making the final environment unhealthy and polluted.

Horse stall: Horse stall is among the really important things in a stable design. If your stable designer is not paying enough attention to stalls, you need to chat to him about it. When planning pony stalls, you have to ensure that it provides comfort and convenience for horses as well as handlers. Also ensure you are dedicating a major part of your stable space to pony stalls to keep your horses comfortable.

Safety measurements: Pony stable holds your horses. You've got to make sure that if anything goes wrong, you have all of the obligatory kit to reduce the impact. As an example, you need to keep fire safety products in the pony stable to avoid fire spread. Since stable will contain wood as the major building material, fire can burst even when you are expecting it the least. Also make sure that the electrical wiring is in secure place where horses can't have interaction with it.

Flooring: Flooring is as important as stalls and other things in a horse stable. You can use stable mats, mud floor and even hard floors. Nonetheless using pony mats will keep your horses comfortable by providing cushion to their feet and body when bedding. Nevertheless horse mats have their own drawbacks. Infrequently, using hard floors covered with horse mats serve the best since hard floors make allowances for excellent drainage. But hard floors will increase the force on horse legs and it'll make them uncomfortable.

Temperature and humidity: It is always vital to keep the right temperature and humidity levels within the stable. If you're uncertain about what the best temperature would be, try consulting a consultant.

Kevin Tuff writes for HorseMats Plus a leading supplier of horse mats in the UK. Most of Kevin’s articles are related to what makes good stable design and how to improve the quality of your flooring in stables with EVA rubber Horse mats

Why UseA Snaffle Bit On Your Horse

Wednesday, July 4th, 2012

Pony riders use western type bits for a similar reason they use spurs. Bits and spurs are used to draw the horse’s attention to a command from the rider and to get it to respond promptly to that command.

You apply pressure thru a bit to a horse’s mouth. You hold that pressure just long for the pony to start responding, then you release it. I keep telling other riders, especially novices, that the response will be quicker if the release is faster. You don’t wish to unnecessarily cause pain to your pony.

I take some pains over teaching a horse about responding to pressure with extended ground training employing a rope halter before I put a snaffle bit or western bit on him. I subject him to pressure on both sides and teach him to bend (also known as flexion). I also teach him to yield his hindquarters, to simulate a rider’s one rein stop as he gets into the saddle.

I’ve got a impressive technique, which has worked well for me, with horses that I feel are mature enough to start. I turn the horse out in a pen, ideally a round pen, after putting a side pull on him with a snaffle on it. I keep repeating this process over a spell of a day or two until I know they have got used to it. This way, I get them accustomed to a bridle and the bit without having them blow a gasket each and every time. The concept is to get them to accept the bridle and bit as playthings, instead of work items or products that may cause them harm.

Once the pony is cosy, I repeat all the ground work I had done earlier with the rope halter, except the halter is replaced by the snaffle bit. I make sure the snaffle is of the smooth western type. The snaffle brings pressure to bear on different end points: you are now putting pressure on both sides of the cheek, the bars in the mouth and the tongue rather than the nose. You must be terribly cautious about staying intensely light with this process.

This way, I achieve my intentions of getting my horse used to the idea I will use light bit pressure to communicate with him. I am taking things easy, a step at a time, and reward him for each positive response to get his confidence up and make sure he knows he

is doing just

fine.

Horses are Heather Toms passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers, like all things about riding hats

Basic Hints For Beginners Of Horse Riding

Wednesday, July 4th, 2012

Are there any real doubts that horse riding is an skill? It takes experience, interest and the right attitude. You need to not simply love animals but likewise dedicate your daily life their attention. Your horses become equally as crucial to their owner’s lives just as if they were their own family members. If you think that you possess these qualities, then you most certainly have what it takes to become a pro horse rider.

Just before you even think of going up onto the back of a horse to have an aftternoon ride, you better be trip properly for both prepared. safety and comfort The most significant object is a helmet. In you’ll need incidents falls, concerning horseback riding headgear your shield from an otherwise skull avoidable. harm piece of horse riding One more is riding boots. outfit Find a which is set comfortable too wide. and not them getting You wouldn’t like in the horse’s stirrups so stuck you want a thinner boot.

Knee or ankle height boots with a low heel that is why are for simple, low-impact riding for example. It’s also acceptable ride while wise to gloves with a no-slip grip on the palm. Gloves donning help you hold on to the reins conveniently you guide the horse. Now that you are all as appropriately, prepared you can start your horse.

preparing The Things You Need the RideJust before bridle, a saddle pad, and a saddle. You need a Go and gently when mindfully these on the horse. putting The last thing you should do is actually startle or perhaps the horse. When bridling, cause harm to its head to hold it. steady it is on Be sure, not too loose or tight. When saddling, perfectly go for a saddle pad, fresh the saddle in its and place perfect before position it on the horses back.

fastening both you and the horse are Finally and dressed up. all set Now you may mount. competently the reins and stirrups Grasp. when you start doing so Since you are and soothingly pet and calmly the horse. speak with to mount the horse by sneaking up on it. Do not attempt It can also be to unsafe the animal frighten. that way, Next a hold of the front of the saddle and swing your right leg grab back of the horse’s body. Set both feet into the stirrups and across the the track. This adjust the saddle from keeps.

KW Saddlery offers top quality horse accessories and equipments. Check-out the various tips and guidelines for beginners of horse riding as well as horse supplements that are offered in our website.

Ways To Reduce Horse Stress

Tuesday, June 26th, 2012

Stress in horses can cause 1 or 2 health problems, but the good news is that it can be simply spotted and controlled. Stress triggers the release of cortisol, the hormone responsible for ‘fight or flight’ reactions. While this is nature’s defence mechanism at work in natural settings, it can cause disaster in domestic environments. Frequent release of cortisone because of stress can adversely impact body functions like digestion and behaviour. It could also damage the reproduction, immunity and heart systems. Stress can cause dysentery, stomach ulcers and colic.

It is hard to consider the factors that might stress horses in a domestic environment. They are not working 9 to 5, they’re not handling choking traffic, they are not worrying about budgets. So what do they fret over?

Most reasons for stress in horses relate to change in routine or environment: changes in feed, bedding, pasture and pasture mates. Even tiny and reputedly trivial changes are really capable of disturbing horses.

Below, I give you a list of common stress solutions and causes for them.

1. Untimely feeding patterns

While horses spend substantial time grazing. As an undeniable fact, they spend up to 70% of their time in grazing. If at pasture, your horses will follow their natural inclinations. If not, you should feed them not less than four times each day, spaced out over the day.

Look out for feeds containing excess carbohydrates, especially of the fast release type. Keep your horses on a feed of the slow energy-release type.

2. Help them work it out

Like with humans, horses work out their stress significantly with exercise. Take them regularly out for a walk, a ride or some extra turnout. The exercise will help greatly with stress.

3. Loneliness

Horses belong to herds. They derive a feeling of security and emotional support from their herds. Horses in a herd understand how to entertain themselves. Each horse in a herd is given his or her own place in the totem pole, When deprived of others of their species, horses feel lonesome and that isolation leads to stress. While the best pasture and herd buddies are other horses, donkeys and goats are good as substitutes.

Stable your horses together such that they are in sight of one another. They derive comfort from knowing they are not alone.

4. Monotony and tedium

Monotony is a massive cause of stress, whether in human beings or in horses. Give your horses plenty of toys to stop them from relieving their stress by pursuits like weaving or cribbing. Mirrors are good stress busters: a large amount of horses find looking at themselves in mirrors sedative.

5. Boost confidence

Confident horses deal better with stress. If you consistently but gradually treat your horse to previously unknown smells, sights and sounds, you are playing on its natural sense of curiosity. When a pony is curious, it chases the object that intrigues it and stress goes out the back door. Make sure you are not forcing your pony into anything; let it work things out at its own speed.

6. Keep an eye out for contamination!

When your pony is feeling stress, talk to it as much as you can in soft tones. Keep cool and help it keep cool. Do not let your horse’s stress trouble you, as well.

Horses are Heather Toms passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers, like all things about circle y saddles

Desensitizing Your Horse To Objects That Spook It

Thursday, June 14th, 2012

If you’ve been very long time pony person, you most likely have experience with horses that spooked at something they saw, heard or smelt. If you have a lot of young horses, you’ll have had this sort of experience frequently. Some horses are literally capable of facing just about any situation with equanimity, while other horses are so fragile they can get spooked by their own shadows. Some horses will take just a little bit of time out to inspect whatever spooked them and either become placid again or take off in a tearing hurry. I’ve been on horses that were so spooked I may have sworn I heard their heart beats thru the saddle! Manifestly, that’s not a very comforting thing to occur to a horse or human.

Some horses are vehement in their reactions to something that may be scary and unfamiliar. Others fight their fears and shortly put the whole thing out their minds. A record of getting preyed on by predators has made horses intensely attuned to their surroundings. Obviously, we won’t change this inbuilt nature, because it is this nature that enabled survival down the ages.

But here is a fact: even the touchiest of horses can be aided to conquer its fears if the problem is approached with a well created plan and a peaceful, unflappable behavior.

You can make a pony learn quicker if you’re able to assure him that whatever you do with him isn’t going to put anybody at peril. You can’t even begin to guess the many thousands of stimuli that will set off panic in horses; what you can do is to catch as many of them as you can and help your horse get numbed to them.

As with a great many other training techniques that involve horses, it’s advisable to start from ground 0 when you set about deadening your horse to objects that spook it. You are much safer off when you start this way, as this sort of approach helps instil confidence in your horses much faster. You can switch to strengthening the lessons from on top of a saddle at a later stage.

You must be acquainted with advancing and retreating, because it is vital for effective deadening of a pony. A horse starts panicking if he is unable to run away from something he considers seriously threatening. At some phase, the pony will surrender and try to live with the threatening object, but he’ll never be assured around it, and that’s no good for rider safety. I can remember once buying a young horse who had undergone some such experience in his life. He would stand rigidly still in the vicinity of moving objects like a swinging rope or possibly a hand. He showed the of great fright: head held high up, eyes wide and unblinking, and a tendency to flinch if touched. Often, horses will put up with things as long as is possible for them and then explode into action; they may buck or they may bolt.

Advancing and retreating is a system of deadening a pony by introducing it to the object it fears in such a way the horse gets rewarded for standing still by immediate withdrawal of the object. The practice is repeated with the object staying just a little longer everytime, until the horse finally loses its fear of the object when it comes to the realization that there had been nothing to fear about the object to begin with. At that stage, the pony relaxes completely.

Take the example of a pony that fears a big ball. Get that pony on a lead of between 12 and 22 feet long with the object within reach. Let the pony look at the object as and when it wants, and let it approach the object if it wants to. Don’t force it into doing anything at all. Let it act on its own accord. If your pony shows extensive fright, turn and lead the foal away, with the ball in the center of you and the horse. Often, horses are less apprehensive when they are moving towards something, compared to that something moving towards them. Once your horse gets inured to that, turn again and walk backward with the ball in between again. At the opening stages, the foal will resist to the whole length of the lead rope, but as time passes, their curiosity will triumph over their fear and they’ll come closer and closer to the ball, until finally they recognise it as a absolutely harmless object. Remember that you can achieve all of this only if you never force the horse to do anything all thru the process.

When the pony finally has become curious enough to approach inside sniffing distance of the ball, hold the ball still and let him sniff it a bit before removing the ball again to a distance. This way, you confirm your horse doesn’t fall back to a state of unease. The time is coming soon enough when you can move the ball slowly toward the horse without causing any trepidation. It will occur only if you don’t try to force things along, Once the foal is completely at home with the ball. On the ground, approach the pony with the ball held at shoulder height. As soon as you see any trace of anxiousness, retreat. You can try approaching from varied angles, always ensuring that you don’t cause the foal to get unduly nervous. At some particular stage, which should be decided by the pony itself, he’ll become so used to the ball you can even bounce it off him and roll it under him and he won’t even notice it is there.

You can use the advance and retreat strategy with practically any article. As time moves forward, you will find it amazing that your pony has acclimatised to so much. It makes him much more entertaining to be around with.

Horses are Heather Toms passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers, like all things about riding hats

Where To Purchase Equest

Tuesday, June 12th, 2012

Equest

You are going to find {that a} new medicine for horses has been presented in the market. This new medicine is popularly known as equimax. Equest can assist your horse to de-worm. Individuals who have horses are really contented with is medicine called equimax. You are going to find a lot of the reason why you will have to buy equimax to your horse. If you learn this newsletter, you will come to grasp the whole lot in regards to the equimax. The medicine Equimax is used for de-worming the horse. Again and again horses fall sick on account of worms. Horse house owners try to use every kind of medication to transparent the entire worms from their horses. There are many medications for de-worming the horse. However many horse de-worming medications are not effective. But those medicines which might be just right are top priced. Hence, horse owners should acquire equest. The equimax can also be purchased by means of you for a large number of reasons. The foremost reason why is that equimax may also be discovered at a low price. The Equest Pramox is a very reasonably priced thing. You might be advised to buy the equimax for all your horses. You’ll save some huge cash by way of shopping for equimax. The second reason why is that equimax is to be had in the entire places. You will now not have any tricky even as in search of equest pramox. Moreover, by buying Equest Pramox, you’re going to have an excessively wholesome horse. You will be somewhat contented with equest pramox. Different horse de-worming drugs are inferior to the equest. The equest pramox is totally secure for all the horses. Value of equest pramox will depend on its quantity. You need to make certain to buy good high quality equest pramox. There are lots of puts from where you can purchase equimax. You can pass to any chemist store to shop for equimax. Equimax is also available at the internet. The equest is bought on many good websites. It’s your responsibility to seek for a good and fair website to buy equest. While you get to find out about the cost, you can buy equest from the web. The website online will mail the product at you home.