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So much of horse ownership is dictated by personal opinion and experience. For instance, some horse owners will not have their horses go without shoes for any period of time or any reason while other horse owners would never think of nailing a shoe to their animals hooves and prefer a more natural approach to hoof care. Some horse owners vaccinate their animals for every disease under the sun while others choose only to vaccinate for certain things. Even the things we feed our horses is a point of contention at times. Some owners feed sweet feed religiously while others will not allow it on their place.

If you are not an experienced horse owner, do your research, talk to other horse owners, speak to several different veterinarians, read everything you can, go to horse shows or rodeos and observe.

If you are an experienced horse owner, you well know how divided the horse industry is on so many topics. I personally like so much of the natural movement but still use some of the old fashioned methods and stick to some traditions from my Father‘s era. When I grew up and started taking care of our horses, I spent hours reading and talking to people and observing and this works well for me.

No matter where you land on this broad spectrum, there are certain things on which we can all agree and are considered generally accepted.

Nutrition

Horses were made to graze on grasses and they get the majority of their nutrients from those grasses. Grain feeding is a generally accepted practice but experts, as well as experienced horse owners will tell you, the bulk, 50% or more of their diet, should be high quality hay or grass. Horse owners who stable their animals use hay as the bulk of their diet. Many horse owners only feed grain in the cold winter months to supplement the diet of hay when grass is dormant. Cool, clean water should always be available to a horse. An average horse needs between 10 and 12 gallons of water each day. Depending on the horses job, one or more supplements may be needed. There are supplements available today for everything from coat condition to hoof health and digestive health.

This is a very basic belief across the board. No matter what you do with your horse, he cannot live without his feet. Their basic instincts, as well as their natural environments and daily routines, give them the ability to take very good care of their hooves in their natural, wild state but when humans domesticated them, they became unable to take care of themselves in that way. Whether you choose to have your horse shod or keep him bare foot, regular maintenance is essential to overall horse health. Consult with a good trimmer or farrier to help keep your horses feet in their best shape

Gone are the days (for the most part) of intimidating a horse into doing what you want. We have become a caring population and tend to think of our horses as family members. I will admit there are still a few bad apples out there but for the most part, we as horse owners work hard to treat our horses right. There are still such horrors as soring, horse tripping and tail alteration but breed associations and animal lovers everywhere have worked very hard to ban these practices. Some of the old time ways will always have a place with horses but humane treatment of these animals has become a priority.

Proper Tack Fit

Let’s assume you wear a size 10 shoe. Now imagine someone shoving a size 7 on your feet and making you run a barrel pattern with that ill fitting foot wear. Imagine how a horse feels when the saddle doesn’t fit properly or the bit isn’t adjusted right. The saddle is digging into your withers, the bit is gouging the roof of your mouth and you are being asked to run like the wind. You would be sore and cranky too. If you question whether or not your bit is adjusted properly or if your saddle fits right, ask a fellow horse owner or if you can, load him up and take him to a rodeo or open show and ask for some advice. Horse people are generally very kind folks and most will not hesitate to help.

Disease Prevention.

Like our dogs and cats and our children, we don’t want our horses to get sick. While certain things to vaccinate against is another opinion, it will ultimately come down to where you live. Rabies is a threat to your horse no matter where you live while other disease may or may not be prevalent in your area and it may not make sense to vaccinate against everything. As with preventing disease in your barn cats or your canine best friend, talk to your veterinarian about what you do with your horse, if you travel or not, and what vaccines or testing he needs.

Deworming.

Your horse, being the grazer he is, is going to come in contact with internal parasites. It is vital to the overall health of your horse to maintain a deworming schedule. As horse owners, we hear so much about rotating dewormers and it can be confusing. You can, as always, ask your vet but even among vets, their experience and opinions on this matter will differ. One vet may tell you to use an invermectin now, a moxidectin in 8 weeks and then an ivermectin/praziquantel combo in another 8 weeks and so on and so on. Then another vet may tell you to use an ivermectin for one whole year and next year, switch to a moxidectin, then a broad spectrum and so on. Your horse will never get rid of every single internal parasite in his system as it is the nature of the grazing animal to come in contact with these critters but you can keep the numbers low and therefore, decrease the impact on the health of your horse. It boils down to what works for you and your horse and of course, your own opinion.