Our First Horse

The round bale hay experiment – Part 1

October 13, 2006 Bill Comments 0 Comment

A few weeks ago a guy we go to church with dropped by to deliver a roll of hay. We’ve decided to supplement our square bales for the horses (which cost $1 each at a minimum and as much as $4.50 at the end of winter when supply is low and demand is high) with a roll or two of round bale. Round bales are much less expensive ($20 this time) because they are easier to make when the hay is being gathered. But they’re also harder to transport and store. We can move square bales at 30 pounds each but couldn’t move 1,500 pounds of round bale by ourselves. We can stack square bales in the barn and pull off a flake at a time (a flake is a two-inch or so slice of hay precut during baling). Although you could use a round bale for everyday feeding in the barn, you’d have to roll one in and pitch-fork it to the feed bins. We opted for a round bale as a test to see if the horses would eat it in the pasture and if it works out, we’ll buy another one and have it rolled into the old barn to supplement our square bales if we run low towards the end of winter.

This delivery was made into the pasture and I’ve never seen it done before so I thought I’d share some pics. Basically, the baler (or is it bailer?) backed up to a tree and plopped a roll out. The tree is to protect the hay from rain and to stop it from rolling during delivery. So far the horses don’t appear to have touched it but there is still plenty of green grass so I can’t blame them. I’ll update you on the round bale hay experiment over the next several months.

The round bale hay experiment – Part 1 (you are here)
The round bale hay experiment – Part 2
The round bale hay experiment – Part 3
The round bale hay experiment – Part 4
The round bale hay experiment – Part 5

Should you buy a horse?

October 11, 2006 Bill Comments 1 comment

I’m going to try and talk you out of buying a horse. Stay with me…it’s not as bad as it sounds.

If you’re reading our horse blog, you probably fall into one of the categories of either owning your own horse and commiserating with our newbie fumbling or you long to own your own horse someday. Horses aren’t casual recreation purchases for most people. Since there is so much involved in horse ownership, horse owners tend to be pretty fanatical. It’s not like buying an expensive toy, like an RC car or a motorbike. When you don’t want to play with it anymore, you can’t put it away for a few months until you get interested again. So if you REALLY love horses, there is probably nothing I could tell you to convince you that buying a horse isn’t a good idea. On the other hand, if you’re a fence-sitter or are thinking about buying a horse as a gift for someone, maybe this is time for some serious consideration.

Our First Horse should be a real eye-opener for anyone who hasn’t owned a horse before. One of the things we write about the amount of time/work involved. Actually, for one horse, it’s not bad. But you’re going to need to spend at least an hour a day just keeping your horse alive (cleaning a stall, feeding, watering, debugging, medical attention, hugs, etc.). If you want your horse to be more than decoration, you’ll need to occasionally ride it or it will rust (okay, it will get rusty). In my experience, you can’t ignore a horse for a year and then slap a saddle on its back and go for a ride. You have to work the horse and keep it trained, at least with the minimums like giddy-up, whoa and “WHOA!!!”.

Then there is the ongoing expense. If you do the work yourself, it’s not too bad, unless your horse needs medical attention. You’ve probably seen our horse expense list. We spend about $40-$50 a month per horse but one month recently our expenses went up to $173 for one of our horses! Make sure you have some cash tucked away for those months. And keep in mind we have our own barn and pasture. If you don’t live on a property that includes these basic horse accommodations, you’ll either need to either put in horse fencing and plant good pasture grass (if you have the room and are zoned for horses) or board your horse somewhere, which will add significantly to horse ownership expenses.

There are scheduling issues. Although some people leave their horses out in the pasture for days at a time or longer, we bring our horses in daily for some supplemental nutrition via oats and alfalfa pellets and provide fresh water daily. Fresh water is most important and since we don’t own an automatic waterer, we simply must check and refill water containers daily. This means we sometimes do horse work at midnight or later if we go out to see a movie or take a day trip. Anything longer than a day trip means we have to ask someone to mind our horses for us. If you have dogs, you’re probably familiar with this routine. Only you can’t load your horse into the family SUV and take him to a vacation kennel.

Having said all that, I don’t regret for a minute owning a horse, or in our case now, owning horses. However, I do have some pre-purchase suggestions to help make sure buying a horse is the right thing for you:

My best suggestion is to volunteer at a horse barn. Seriously, once you assure the barn owner that you’re not crazy, volunteer to help out daily for a few weeks or a month. Clean out stalls, feed horses, brush them, help with some basic training, but do it every day so you can see how it impacts your schedule. In addition to determining if this hobby is right for you, you’ll also learn valuable lessons on what to do and not to do. You might also make some valuable contacts and learn who to buy from, what are good prices in your area, etc. In fact, some of the best horse deals come from people who haven’t publicized that their horse is for sale.
If you’re not wealthy enough to have an attendant for your horse, volunteer at a veterinary facility or stable where horses are rehabilitated. Your horse might become injured at some point, requiring you to provide rehabilitation services for many months before you can ride it again. Do you have the time, money and patience for this?
Visit your local horse supply stores, such as the feed store, tack shop or farm co-op. Read the bulletin board postings, chat with the employees. You’ll likely walk away with some great information and you’ll need to know these people anyway if you decide to buy a horse.
Consider taking a weekend or longer to volunteer at a horse rescue (we have some listed on our Links page). There are people out there with a passion for rescuing horses from destruction or food slaughter. The horses they work with are often great for casual recreation and are sometimes registered, former racehorses or trail horses. Some are rescued from abuse or neglect. Help out a worthwhile charity, learn about horses and maybe fall in love with a horse.

I probably didn’t talk you out of buying a horse but hopefully, you got some suggestions to help you make a rational decision. Although I don’t recommend it, you could just ignore our advice and go in blind for your own newbie horse ownership adventure. That’s what we did :-).

Also Avoid Being Stepped On By a Horse (especially if you’re a small dog)

October 9, 2006 Mikki Comments 2 comments

It was bound to happen. Our laissez-faire farm dog got a little too close to the horses’ feet. We didn’t actually see it happen, but we know it scared the spots off him. We were all up at the barn, Bill and I were working inside and Jack was out in the pasture with the horses doing his usual thing: sticking as close to the source as possible for his favorite snack, horse poo. The three of them were around the corner when we heard a shrill canine yelp and Jack came streaking into the barn with a big ol’ smear of “mud” down his side. He was shaking like our other dog, Ranger, does when we have a thunderstorm. (That is to say, if you held him, he’d vibrate out of your arms.) He was scared to death, but apparently unhurt. We think he was kind of half-stepped on but slipped out of the way in time to avoid injury. Since he just wanders around their feet, nose to the ground, without paying them much attention, he’s lucky it hasn’t happened before now. Hopefully he’s learned his lesson!

Avoid being kicked by a horse

October 2, 2006 Bill Comments 12 comments

As Mikki mentioned, Moonshine injured her hoof a little while ago and we’ve been treating it several times a day. Each treatment consists of cleaning out the wound, applying an antiseptic spray and then packing it with an antibiotic. The treatment calls for close personal contact with my horse’s left rear hoof, exactly the kind of position that leaves a human vulnerable to serious injury from a kicking horse.

Everytime I’m around a horse, I’m always especially careful around the rear legs, both beside them and behind them. I’ve read that you need to read the horse’s body language and pay attention while you’re walking around them. I’m not scared, mind you, but I am cautious. Part of it is because I’m new to horses, part is because previous injuries have taught me to be cautious around anything dangerous. And part of my nervousness is from the video below. I saw this video before we ever seriously considered buying a horse. And while it seems most people find it funny, it reminds me just how powerful horses are and just how quickly something can go wrong. Now even if you’re not planning on branding your own horses (I’m not), there is still a lesson to be learned here. WARNING: there is some audio, in which is an implied expletive. The video is 3 seconds long so it won’t take long to load:

Did you see how fast that horse was able to kick? We don’t get to see the damage (thankfully) but I’m sure at the very least it hurt alot.

So here are a few simple tips I’ve learned so far for avoiding injury when working horses’ legs and hooves:

Spend a few minutes with the horse before touching its rump or legs. Even if you’ve had the horse for a while, you need to know what kind of mood it’s in, if it’s spooked, nervous or upset.
When walking beside and around the horse gently pat and rub it as you go and notice any apprehension on the part of the horse.
Don’t take your eyes off of the horse when walking closely to the rear end, in particular. Pay attention to its body language and what it’s doing with its feet.
Don’t walk directly behind the horse. Give yourself at least an arm’s length of buffer room.
Be mindful of things that could spook your horse. A barking dog down the road, a car driving by, other horses, you sneezing, an evil plastic bag blowing in the wind, a snake in her stall, etc. If you’re in the wrong spot when your horse is spooked, it takes a fraction of a second for the horse to react and that could mean serious injury or death.

I’m sure there are many more practical tips but these have so far kept us from being kicked.

Horse Myths

September 26, 2006 Mikki Comments 0 Comment

Over the years, I’ve heard a lot of things about horses that I assumed to be true. Some are just silly, others seem to make sense. As it turns out, a lot of them are bunk.

For instance, the myth that a healthy horse never lays down. You know, like a shark has to keep swimming or it will suffocate? Well, if you believe this, the first time you go by a field of resting and sleeping horses you’ll think a horrible horse massacre has just occurred. Horses not only can lie down to sleep, they need to. Another reason to keep your horse’s stall clean.

Here’s one of my favorites: a horse is just a big dog. Now, in some ways, this is true – they are furry and four-legged, can be very playful and curious, and depend on their owner for their care. However, there are fundamental differences between dogs and horses, all relating to the fact that dogs are genetically predators and horses are genetically prey. The biggest difference here is that a dog can be happy-go-lucky and have a good time – he’s at the top of the food chain! A horse has to be a lot more wary, always on guard for something that might want to eat him (a dog, a tractor, a tree blowing in the wind, a plastic bag blowing in the wind, the wind…). So, unlike your goofy, fun dog, a horse is easily spooked. They’re also not so good at playing fetch. Ha ha.

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase healthy as a horse. Where on earth this came from, I have no idea, because – and I don’t want to scare you away from horse ownership here – horses are remarkably fragile. Well, take a look at that very large body on top of those spindly little legs. That’s a recipe for disaster right there! There are a million ways a horse can injure one of those legs. Horses also have a tendency to spook easily, causing them to act in ways that are harmful to themselves and others. They also will eat things that are not good for them and are susceptible to a host of diseases carried by insects, parasites and the inappropriate things they will put in their mouths. A horse owner must be ever vigilant for dangers in their horse’s environment: Keep the pasture free of debris. Don’t ever use barbed wire. Keep the stall as clean as possible. Follow a strict deworming and vaccination schedule. Keep an eye out for signs of injury or illness and treat promptly, consulting your veterinarian sooner rather than later if you’re unsure.

A myth that used to be true but is no longer is that a horse with a broken leg must be put down. Advances in medical technology have made it possible to treat some horse leg fractures with metal rods and other methods. Thank goodness for science.

Another funny little saying is that horses don’t like their ears touched. It’s true that some don’t, but you should be able to touch your horse’s ears – after all, you’re going to be putting halters and bridles and such over those ears. You also may need to clip around the ears, i.e. for a “bridle path” (the part of the mane where the top of the bridle or halter rests), or administer medication. If your horse is sensitive around the ear area, you need to work to help him get over it.

So don’t just assume that things you’ve heard for years are true. Do some research, read some books, watch some Horse TV. Even risk sounding like a newbie by asking an experienced horse person a dumb question. I usually keep that one as a last resort.

Just like Gene and Roy

September 25, 2006 Bill Comments 3 comments

The Old West movie poster “I should have been a cowboy…just like Gene and Roy,” as the country song goes (Toby Keith). A few weeks ago we found ourselves in a little country diner in east Tennessee, seated at a table surrounded by memorabilia from the 1950’s and earlier. For 10 minutes while I waited for my lunch, I marvelled at all the old stuff, especially a poster about a Gene Autry western called “The Old West.” I knew who Gene Autry was and had seen his name all over the place out west but I don’t remember ever seeing any of his movies. Stick with me because this really is horse-related. I rented the movie on DVD and last night we sat back and took in scenes from a simpler time…1952, and sometime in the late 1800’s, as portrayed in the film. Now in westerns, horses play a major role and The Old West was no exception. The movie has horses in most of its scenes including Gene riding, a stagecoach race, bad guy chase scenes and even Champion, World’s Wonder Horse, helping Gene pick some wild horses for the big stagecoach race.

Seeing Gene Autry in this old western made me even more thrilled to have the privilege of owning a horse of my own and deepened my desire to strap on a saddle and go riding.

Here are some interesting notes about Gene Autry and horses:

There were 3 official “Champions,” Gene’s trademark horse. 3 other “Champions” were used for television appearances, touring and personal appearances while a few undocumented horses served as stunt doubles and stand-ins.
“Lindy Champion” made aviation history in 1940 by being the first horse to fly on an airplane from California to New York (for an appearance at the World’s Championship Rodeo at Madison Square Garden).
Lindy Champion was a registered Tennessee Walking Horse (just like Valentine!).
If you visit Graumann’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood, you’ll see “Touring Champion’s” hoof prints next to Gene Autry’s hand prints. Could this be the only horse hoof prints on the walk of fame?
According to geneautry.com, “Original Champion” could “untie knots, roll over and play dead, bow, shake his head ‘yes’ and ‘no,’ and come to Gene’s whistle.”
Although the original Champion lived to be only 17 years old, “Champion Jr.” lived to be 35 and “Champion 3” lived to be an amazing 41 years old, dying in 1990! Wow!
As an officer in the Army, Gene Autry was allowed to wear cowboy boots as part of his uniform. He was the only officer in World War II to be allowed this privilege, though I’m not sure if he wore them only for ceremonies or for day-to-day duties as well.

For more info on Champion, World’s Wonder Horse, check out:
http://www.geneautry.com/geneautry/champion/index.html

For more info on Gene Autry, America’s favorite singing cowboy, visit:
http://www.geneautry.com

And for more infomation on The Old West movie, visit:
http://www.geneautry.com/musicmovies/dvds/oldwest.html

No, you can’t sleep in on Saturday

September 9, 2006 Bill Comments 1 comment

I slept in today. It felt great and I really needed to catch up on my sleep. But when I woke up at noon I jumped out of bed and rushed to get my shoes on because I realized the horses had been in the barn since the night before and knew they must be out of hay and water by now. Sure enough, both horses were anxious to get out of the barn and graze and I felt bad for leaving them there so long without food and low on water. This reminded me that even if I stay up too late, I can’t sleep late.

Caring for an Injured Hoof

September 5, 2006 Mikki Comments 1 comment

As I posted a couple of days ago, Moonshine got an owie. We still don’t know exactly how she did it, but she did a good job of it. We’ve been caring for it for almost a week now, and (knock on wood), it’s going okay. Per our farrier’s instructions, we washed it out, coated it with antibiotic ointment and tried to keep her in her stall for a few days. The last part didn’t go so well – she HATED it and didn’t care who knew. She was inside all day Tuesday and part of the day on Wednesday. We freed her Wednesday afternoon and let her out again on Thursday, since she was caterwauling so loudly and because the pasture seemed just as clean as her stall…maybe cleaner than after she’d been in long enough to refill it with poo. On Thursday afternoon I noted some white goop around the top of the wound and decided maybe she’d better stay in after all. So she was in her stall again on Friday and part of the day on Saturday. By 2:00 p.m. we couldn’t take the ruckus anymore – and were afraid the ASPCA may be called – so we freed her. She shot out of the barn-like a rocket. Poor Valentine, we think she may have given him what-for out on the back 40, for not hanging out at the barn with her.

So here’s what we’ve been doing, per advice from the farrier, our vet-assistant friend and a couple of nice people on Horse City: Every morning and evening, we spray out the wound really well with a hose (boy does she love that – especially since it’s icy-cold well water). We douse it with iodine spray and let it air-dry for a few minutes while we walk her around the lawn. As a bonus, she’s getting really good at obeying lead-rope signals because of this walking time! Then I slather on a wonderful substance called ichthamol (or ichthammol) – it looks and smells like tar, just not as thick. Then she’s free to go out to the pasture for the day or into her stall for the evening, as the case may be. We also observe her carefully for any limping (none; she’s not even favoring it, and actually galloped across the pasture today) and feel the area for heat (a sign of infection) and inspect for pus (ditto). The injury itself looks bad because the hoof is actually separated, but the wound seems to be healing nicely.

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Willie Nelson Against US Horse Slaughter

August 25, 2006 Bill Comments 0 Comment

Eating horses? “It’s time for the cowboys to stand up for the horses”, country music legend Willie Nelson is reported to have said. There is a bill in Congress right now to ban the practice of slaughtering horses here in the U.S. as well as selling horses for slaughter elsewhere. The bill is being called The American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act, HR 503 for the House of Representatives and S 1915 for the Senate. Willie Nelson is lending his star-support through the Society for Animal Protective Legislation to encourage US citizens to get involved by calling their representatives.

So here’s the question I have for you today. Even though it’s not part of American culture to slaughter horses for food, should we outlaw it? I’ve been doing some reading on the subject today and there seems to be two issues here. The first is using horses as food, for human consumption or otherwise. Second is how well horses are treated prior to slaughter. People seem to either detest the practice of slaughtering and eating horses or …

Shoes or Barefoot?

August 23, 2006 Mikki Comments 1 comment

There is a huge debate these days about whether to go traditional and put shoes on your horse or leave them au naturel, barefoot and free. After all, horses in the wild don’t have shoes and they do just fine, right? So why do we even shoe them at all?

Domesticated horses do a lot of things that wild horses do not. They bear extra weight; they travel over rougher surfaces, such as asphalt. They work for us, whether in a field, on a trail or in a rodeo arena. It makes sense to give them some extra protection. However, more and more people are coming to believe that horses can do all those things barefoot, and many experts agree. If you practice proper hoof care, have the hooves trimmed regularly, and provide any dietary supplements you, your farrier and your vet decide may be necessary, most horses can go barefoot with no problem.

When we got Valentine, he was shod, except for his right rear where he had lost one (or “thrown a shoe” as they say). That hoof was so nicked up, and he was so sensitive on that foot, that we didn’t think it was a good idea for him to go bare. When we got Moonshine, she was barefoot all around and had been for some time. Her feet were pretty nicked up too, but the previous owner said she hadn’t had a trim for a while. The farrier said her feet looked really good, so we left her barefoot and just had her trimmed.

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