First off, there is not really any quick guide to horse care, and taking care of a horse is not a quick job. Horse care is labor intensive and spans the spectrum from cleaning and grooming duties to feeding and exercising and keeping track of health issues. Which leads me to my second point: There is not really any easy guide to horse care. Some parts to horse care are simple – like, horses need a lot of love, so you should love them – but some parts are very complicated – like, learning how to build a rotation of de-wormers for your horse. But if you are beginning to learn about horse care, this will be a good resource for you to read through. And if you have never been thoroughly involved with horse care, but you are thinking about getting a horse for yourself or a loved one (perhaps your 10 year old daughter who keeps begging…), than you should read this to understand what sort of work goes into taking care of a horse.
Learn about these horse topics:
- Diet/Nutrition
- Stables/pastures
- De-worming
- Vaccinations
- Equipment
and more…
If you are looking for details of horse care then read on.
Most of horse care can be divided into 4 general areas: Nutrition, housing, health, and equipment. So, without further ado:
Nutrition
Horses need to eat for much the same reasons that people need to eat. Food provides energy for activity as well as for warmth, and it also provides the building blocks required for growth, repair, and recovery. The nutritional requirements for a horse are fairly similar to that of a human – you should aim to feed your horse about two-thirds of its caloric intake from carbohydrates, one-sixth from protein, and one-sixth from fat.
However, a horse’s nutritional needs differ from a human in a rather important way: Horses are much bigger and therefore they require a good deal more food. A general rule for how much a horse needs to eat is 2 to 2.2 lbs feed per day for every 100 lbs of body weight, but there are a number of factors that can influence how much food a horse will require. Obviously, the workload of the horse will affect how much the horse needs to eat, and depending on how hard the horse is working, you may need to change the composition of the horse’s diet. A hard working horse might need more concentrated foods. During the winter, horses need more food to create energy and keep their bodies warm. Like humans, horse metabolism changes as horses age; a younger horse might need more protein and more calories in general than an older horse.
Types of feed.
There are three main types of feed for horses: Pasture, hay, and concentrates. The total amount of food given to a horse in any given day should probably be split up between the three with a smaller percentage – perhaps a quarter – coming from concentrates than from pasture or hay.
A horse left to itself in a grassy feed will constantly graze. This type of feed is called pasture, and most horses with a light workload could survive on grazing given a sufficient pasture-land. However, a sufficient amount is typically at least an acre and a half per horse which may or may not be available to you. Another concern if your horse is primarily pasture fed is getting a sufficiently balanced diet full of all the different vitamins and minerals that he or she needs.
Hay is probably the type of feed that will make up the majority of your horse’s diet (unless you live on a large ranch or can board your horse at a large ranch). Hay is usually either grass, alfalfa, or a grass-alfalfa mix. There are a number of different grasses that can be used for hay, and what type you feed your horse will depend partly on where you live. Never feed your horse moldy hay – check your hay bales by making sure that the insides aren’t too warm or wet. Don’t feed your horse any old grass clippings because it can cause a problem called founder, or laminitis, in which the horse has painful, swollen feet.
The third category of horse feed is concentrates. These are more calorie dense grains like oats, barley, and corn; or sweet feeds like beat pulp and feeds mixed with molasses; or they might be synthetically manufactured compounds like alfalfa pellets. Hay doesn’t provide enough nutrition for hard working horses, so concentrates need to be added to their diets.
It is better to feed your horse less food more times than to feed him or her all at once, once-a-day. For some horse caretakers, it is only possible to feed your horse two or three times a day. This is the minimal standard, but it is better to feed your horse a little less, more times. Of course, a horse can eat too much, also. Most horses will not self-regulate and quit eating once they have had “enough”, and so you will have to keep track of your horse’s weight and watch to make sure he or she isn’t getting too thin or putting on too much weight. Regular visits with a veterinarian will help you know your horse’s proper weight.
Also, it is very important to be sure your horse has an adequate supply of water available at all times – except when you are cooling your horse down after hard work. Horses will typically drink between 5 and 10 gallons a day. Make a mineral-salt block available for your horse to lick free-choice and consult your vet as to whether your horse needs any other supplements.
Housing
Most horses can live outdoors year round, or nearly year round, but many horses benefit greatly from being stabled either part of the year or part of each day. The ideal environment for most horses would probably be to have open pasture-land with an optional shelter of some sort, so that during the hot summer days the horse can find a bit of shade; during the cold winter nights the horse will be able to find some warmth within the shelter.
Such “three sided shelter”, as they are sometimes called, should have 64 square feet per horse and ceilings that are at least 9 feet high. If the area on which the shelter sits doesn’t have good drainage, the ground should be built up some to assure that the floor in the shelter stays dry. Straw should be provided for bedding during the winter and if your horse is either very young or very old. As with anything build for horses, it must be of very durable materials – horses are big animals and tend to abuse/ruin anything that isn’t well-built, which will be a waste for you and dangerous for them.
Stabling horses can be useful if they are work horses, and can be an acceptable way for horses to pass the winter. However, before building a stable or stabling your horse, there are a few things that are important to consider in thinking about horse barns. Horse stalls should have enough room, at least 12 ft by 14 ft, which is more than necessary in an outdoor three sided shelter because in this case there is nowhere else for the horse to go.
As mentioned above, durable materials should be used for anything that your horse will come into contact with. Wood is cheaper, but brick is warmer for winter time. The floor might be either concrete or rubber, so long as it doesn’t cause the horse to slip. Again, bedding should be provided at least some of the time, depending on you and your horse’s preference. Be sure that your horse can’t get to any electrical wires or lights – cover any lights or wires with wire mesh.
Providing pasture-land for your horse is also important. As mentioned earlier, pasture-land should have at least 1.5 acres per horse, and ideally you should have more pasture-land so you can rotate your horse(s) from one pasture to another both to add diversity to your horse’s life as well as allow the fields time to recover and you time to clean up after your horse(s).
Fencing for your pasture-land is important to both keep your horse in and keep other creatures out. Fences could be made out of wood posts and crosses, PVC, or wire stretched tight. A “hot” wire – hot because it is electrified – can be used with any type of fence. Do not, however, use barbed wire on any of the fences keeping your horses in as this is just asking your horse to hurt him or herself on the wire. Check your fencing regularly for gaps or parts where your horse might get hurt. Try not to tether or tie up your horse. Horses are prone to spook and run away, and a tethered horse might hurt him or herself.
Obviously not every horse can live in ideal conditions and not every horse owner can afford such amenities. Thus, it is sometimes necessary to board your horse at a horse stable. If you aren’t going to be able to spend enough time taking care of your horse, this is the compassionate option for you – that way your horse will get fed at better times and get enough exercise even if you can’t stop by to see him or her everyday. Some people choose to board their horse during the winter and keep their horse at home during the summer when they are able to get out and ride more often.
Unless taking care of horses is your job, it is easy to get tired of taking care of your horse, and if he or she is at home, you cannot simply quit taking care of him or her. It makes it very difficult to do anything spontaneously because you have to consider who will care for your horse (I suppose it seems similar to taking care of a baby). There are good horse barns and horse farms in almost every area of the country and sometimes having your horse at a barn will make you more intentional in how you take care of your horse because you only have so much time with him or her. Certainly boarding is recommended for when you first start taking care of your horse so that you can learn how to take care of him or her from people more expert than yourself.
Health
There are a number of things to keep track of to keep your horse in the best possible health. Make sure to include a vet in your horse’s “health plan”. Vaccinations are a must for horses; you should have your horse vaccinated annually for influenza, tetanus, and a few other common horse ailments. Your vet might recommend something specific to the region you live in, or if you travel to shows often, you might want to vaccinate against a more broad spectrum of diseases.
Deworming is a constant process for horse owners because of the various things your horse can pick up eating grass and other stuff off the ground. You should deworm every 2 months or so, and most vets recommend using a rotation of dewormers so that the parasites don’t become resistant to whatever chemical you are using. If you decide to rotate dewormers, make sure you are rotating active ingredients and not just brand names; your vet can recommend some good dewormers to use. Any time you get a new horse in the stable, that horse should be quarantined for 24 hours while it is being dewormed.
In addition to vet care, you should make sure that your animal has an occasional dental checkup.
Grooming is an important part of horse care. One might think, Grooming? Why can’t my horse just have messy and dirty hair? It is uncomfortable for a horse to be forever matted up, and even more uncomfortable to be matted up and then have a saddle and other riding equipment put on for another uncomfortable ride. Grooming also plays a role in promoting circulation, which also improves overall health. If your horse spends most of his or her time outside, you should be careful not to remove all of the oil from your horse’s coat, as that helps to keep him or her warm.
Take care of your horse’s hoofs. Your horse needs a hoof trim every 6 to 8 weeks, and may need hoof cleaning every day if he or she is not very active. Keep up on your horse’s shoes and be sure to call the farrier when you think that your horse might need some new shoes. There are lots of problems that horses can have with their hoofs, so you should check them frequently, looking specifically for (but not limited to): Foul odor or discharge could be a sign of thrush or canker; corns or bruises; abscesses caused either by puncture wounds or severe corns; cracks in the hoof; inflammation, which can be an indicator of laminitis; and seedy toe, which is a separation of the hoof from the foot.
Make sure your horse gets enough exercise. This is important for your horse to be healthy and happy. Can you imagine if someone put you in a stable and made you stay there all day. You would be miserable and you would get into terrible shape. Aim to exercise your horse everyday. If you personally cannot do that, find someone else who can. Exercise can take many different forms for horses. Unless you are training your horse for a specific event or activity, it is good to get your horse to do a variety of activities.
Equipment
Proper use of equipment, also called horse tack, is an important part of taking care of your horse. The main piece of horse tack is the saddle, and most riders will only ever have one saddle. A few riders make it to the point of competition or expertise where they can justify purchase of additional saddles. There are two main types of saddles: English and Western. English saddles encourage the rider to sit in a central position and are used for all disciplines, including jumping. Western saddles encourage sitting “behind-the-motion”; they have large pommels and are generally thought to be more comfortable for long days in the saddle.
Bridles are another important piece of equipment. Horses are much larger than people, and bridles are one of the ways to have an amount of control over a horse. It is usually recommended to use the lightest possible bit because trying to force a stubborn horse usually just causes additional tension. Riders in the English disciplines often use a double bit where they can tug on each individual rein and in this way provide very gentle reminders to the horse.
Horse blankets might be necessary depending on your horse and what you are using your horse for. Using a heavy horse blanket might prevent your horse from growing a thicker winter coat, which you might not desire if you want to take your horse to shows. Riders who like to jump sometimes protect their horse’s feet and legs using special boots of a sort.
Every rider should be equipped with a hard helmet, a good pair of riding gloves, and shoes with a heal of sorts. Every horse-keeper needs a good grooming kit to help make his or her horse look and feel good. Additionally, you should have a first aid kit – and an equine first aid kit – easily accessible. A halter and a lead rope could be important for restraining your horse.
There are a great number of other pieces of tack that you can get for your horse – these are just the most basic pieces of equipment. Should get more into riding, you should probably find some more detailed resources than this.
Final words
I hope this little article has given you an idea as to what it takes to take care of a horse. If you are still thinking about getting a horse, either find more resources or, even better, find someone who takes care of horses and ask him or her about it.
Good luck and Godspeed with your horse adventures – May the horse be with you!
