Equine wellness
Equine
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Hydroponic farming Diet tips forfor 24/7 forage your easy keeper Achilles heel
Project Panda TIPS to 6 prevent & resolve
What to do about contracted heels
equine Wellness Magazine
Miniature horses for the blind
back pain
Therapy
horses Making lives better
Heartland is a hit with horse lovers everywhere, and the TV series also raises awareness of alternative horse care. The show’s star talks about her passion for everything equine.
Is it colic?
Horse shopping?
Here’s help your horse awaiting the vet Advicehow ontoassesssing yourwhile new companion 80% 1.5 BWR PD 5.95CN / 5.95 US
Makingsteamed Getting
waves
The nitty-gritty on soaking and steaming hay
Discover therapeutic ultrasound
Stress-free VACATION TIPS VOLUME 65 ISSUE 16
Display Displayuntil untilJanuary April 19, 31,2011 2011
WEG IN REVIEW hits Holiday – our top 5 highlights! Creative gift ideas for every budget!
$5.95 USA/Canada
VOLUME 6 5 ISSUE 1 6
Yoga for riders
EquineWellnessMagazine.com
Contents
31
12 features 12 Getting steamed?
Here’s the nitty-gritty on soaking and steaming hay.
20 Dreams, drama and excitement
Top 5 highlights from last year’s World Equestrian Games.
28 Acres in a box Hydroponic farming gives your horse 24/7 access to healthy green forage.
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equine wellness
31 Amber Marshall
52 Achilles heel
36 Horsepower plus
56 All aboard!
A good tow vehicle provides peace of mind and helps keep your precious cargo safe during hauling.
Going on vacation this winter? Stressed about leaving your horses behind? These tips will help give you peace of mind during your time away.
46 Horse shopping?
60 Don’t get your back up
The star of Heartland talks about her love of horses and acting.
Check out these suggestions for assessing the training level of your potential new equine, as well as some red flags and what to stay away from.
Contracted heels are a common health problem, but they don’t have to become your horse’s “new normal”.
Does your horse pin his ears when you saddle him? Is he difficult to get moving? His behavior may be justified if his back hurts!
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46 Columns
Departments
8 Neighborhood news
6 Editorial
16 From agony to ecstasy
19 Heads up
24 Holistic veterinary advice Talking with Dr. Cheryl Detamore
42 Equine Wellness resource guide
39 Hot to trot 40 A natural performer 65 Did you know?
59 Book reviews 63 Marketplace 65 Classifieds 66
Events calendar
56
28 equine wellness
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From Agony to ecstasy
Take it easy
Horses that back out of their trailers too fast can seriously injure themselves and the people around them. Learn to teach your horse to slow down when exiting the trailer. by Bob Jeffreys and Suzanne Sheppard
Forward movement: Standing in front of the horse and slightly off to his side, point your hand and extended arm in the direction (forward) that you want him to go and begin to tap the point of his hip with a dressage whip.
D
oes your horse like to rush out of his trailer backwards? If so, it’s a serious accident just waiting to happen. If the horse is still tied and hasn’t been taught not to pull back, he could panic, break the rope or snap, andeitherseverelybanghisheadonthetrailerrooforflip overbackwardsashe’scomingout.Boththesesituations can cause severe injury or even death.
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equine wellness
Even if the horse has been untied, he poses a tremendous risk to anything or anyone near the rear of the trailer if he comesouttoofast.A1,000-poundanimalfleeingbackwards in a hurry can cause significant damage or bodily harm. So first we’ll issue a word of caution: always untie your horse before opening the back doors of the trailer
or disengaging the “butt bar”. This is important no matter how well trained he is.
horse’s feet move backwards, quit. Repeat on both sides.
The reason a horse hurries out of his trailer is simply because he feels trapped in it and is uncomfortable beingthere.Inthisstatementliesthe ultimate cure for the problem. You must show your horse the trailer is not a bad place to be, and that it can actuallybeanenjoyableexperience. Asinmosttraining,webeginbygetting control of the horse’s feet. We teach him to move forward on cue and back up and stand still on cue.
Now begin asking your horse to stand still by saying “whoa” and startingtowalkafewfeetawayfrom him.Ashestands,graduallyincrease the distance you walk away.
Three keys to success
1Forward movement
Beginbyoutfittingthehorseina halterandleadrope.Standinginfront ofthehorseandslightlyoff tohisleft side, point your hand and extended arm in the direction (forward) that you want him to go and begin to tap the point of his left hip with a dressage whip. As soon as he moves forward, quit tapping and let him walk off. Teach this on both sides (simply reversehands)untilit’ssolidandthe horsewillwalkoffasyoubeginyour pointing and tapping. Lighten your cues as he gets better. If the horse crowds you, tap his neck with the stickuntilhemovesitawayfromyou, then continue to drive the hip.
2
The backup
Teach the backup by standing about ten feet in front of your horse, slightly off to one side, and holding the lead rope in the hand closest to him. Run your hand down the rope while you’re approaching so your hand will be about six inches from the clip when you’re standing next to his head. At this point, move your hand slowly back and forth as you applybackwardpressure.Whenthe
3“Whoa” and stand Obstacle work
Now that you’ve got your forward, backward and stand cues in place, you’ll need to do a lot of ground work to teach the horse to go over poles, walk and trot circles and straight lines, go over a sheet of plywood,takesmalljumps,squeeze between two barrels or a fence and anotherobject,etc.Thisteacheshim thatwhereveryouaskhimtoputhis feet, it’s safe and he won’t get hurt. (To learn how to do these exercises, check out our DVDs.)
Step by step Nowyou’rereadytoloadyourhorse into the trailer. As always, be sure to do all prep work necessary for a safeexperience;ifalittlevoiceinside tells you there’s less than an 85% to 90% chance your horse is ready for the next step, do more practice first! Safety is always the top priority, and trailer loading a horse that hasn’t been properly prepared is about as dangerous as it gets. We don’t have space in this article to “teach” trailer loading steps, but we’ll discuss the steps required to prevent the horse from rushing out backwards. First,openupthedividerandsecure it in that position to make the space inside more inviting. Then use your “go forward” cue to get the horse to walk up to the back of the trailer. Use the same cue to have him put equine wellness
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