Horseriding Club

So, You Want To Buy A Horse – What Do You Need To Know?

Posted on Friday, September 23, 2011 by Discho in Uncategorized

Before you go to the great expense of buying a horse, you need to evaluate how good a rider you are, and just how much do you really know about horses and horse care.  Make no mistake, you need to really be honest with yourself as this is a huge commitment. Ask yourself what size and age of horse would work best for you as well.

 Okay you have just fallen in love with a flashy looking equine and now what?  What do you want to achieve and is THIS the horse for you? Are you going to be hunting, driving, barrel racing, trail riding or jumping?  Are you going to ride at all?  You can get horses just to drive.

 What about this horse’s temperament?  Quiet, feisty, pushy, amenable, or grumpy?  If you aren’t comfortable with horses, don’t get a pushy horse, as you will find it ruling you and not the other way around.  If you are planning to just trail ride, don’t buy an eventing horse.

 If you don’t have horse experience then do not buy a young horse and try to train it.  Two newbies who don’t know much do not make a good mixture.  Wait until you have more experience or pay the price for your mistakes – such as injuries to you and your horse because you did not know what you were doing.

Take an experienced friend with you to check out horses.  Better they help you assess the horse so you don’t wind up over horsed (buying a horse that is way too much for you to handle).  Your experienced friend can also ride the horse for you to assess if it would work for you.  If the current owner is riding the horse, and they insist you don’t need to try the horse – run, don’t walk as far away as you can, and keep looking.

Horse Language

 Yes, horses have a language of their own, and unfortunately many of us are not as aware of it as we should be.  It’s a big mistake to not to know their language, as it could mean problems for us in the long run.  Every swivel of the ear(s), hip movement, tail flick and facial expression means something.  This is the language horses use to speak to other horses and to us – if only we would listen. 

 We need to know what OUR body language says to them first before we can understand them.  Flapping arms while trying to get the halter on will cause concern. Running at them in a pasture rather than walking up to them calmly can make them think -  predator chasing me. We’ve all heard about bombproof horses – sorry, there isn’t any such thing.  Something, some time will spook your horse – any horse.

In the meantime, keep your body language quiet, slow, easy and calm.  If you are calm, this helps your horse remain calm.  

Horses speak to us with all body parts and that includes the front and back end.  Both ends can cause us untold grief if we do not pay attention to what they are saying.  For instance, most of us know that when a horse has both ears pinned back flat something is really wrong.  Chances are they are either frightened or angry.  In most cases it is anger.  So watch the front and rear very carefully.  Caution is best even if you think the horse may be listening to something behind them or bored.  Once you really know your horse well, you will know what the ears are saying. 

Ears perked up and forward mean they are focusing their attention on something and are either up to some mischief or they are on high alert about something they see, hear or smell.  Remind your horse you need his attention, especially if you are riding and the ears whip forward.

Brushing and caring for your horse is THE major bonding experience between humans and equines.  Don’t ever underestimate how powerfully you are communicating to your horse about YOU when you brush him.

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What To Watch For Buying A Horse At Auction

Buying a horse at an auction is a crap shoot at best, as usually there are reasons why the horse is there in the first place – reasons you might not want to find out if you take the horse home.

Generally, unless you happen to be a horse trainer or Vet, you won’t have the chance to do a pre-purchase exam.  In that case, all you can do is try to pick up red flags from the horses you are considering.  Yes, they can be really subtle and may also be masked thanks to drugs or even the fact the horse was rested prior to you looking at it (which would not show some forms of lameness).

 Start your inspection from nose to tail for any swelling or warm spots. Run your hand down all the legs (if the horse will let you and if not – red flag) and compare appearance and the feel of the left and the right. You might find a bowed tendon or a fluid filled knee  – an indication of arthritis.  Try flexing the joints if you can.  If there is arthritis they won’t flex too well

Now take a good look at general body condition (good, fair or poor), hair coat (sleek and shiny or dull), foot quality (well trimmed or chipped and cracked), muscle development (well formed or wasted) and attitude (bright and curious, dull and depressed or scared). Many of these things will give you an idea of how well the horse has been cared for and you need to pay close attention to them.  They are things that will also tell you how much training the horse has and the amount of exercise it has had.

Watch the horse move – walk, trot and canter. Does he move well or are his ears pinned and tail on a switch? Does the head bob up and down (lameness)?  What about his breathing? Does he roar or whistle or wheeze?   Make sure you see the horse ridden under saddle to get an idea of his attitude and whether or not he and you will get along.  You need to take your riding experience into consideration for this decision.  And try not to over-estimate your skills or you will get a horse not suited to your level of expertise.

Take your time sizing up a potential purchase at an auction.  There is no need to be in a rush.  You may miss a few things, but the more horses you inspect, the better you get at it.

Healthy Foods for Healthy Horses.

Like any animal that you own it is very important that you are providing your horse with all of the nutrition that is necessary for good growth and good development. A horse is something that you invest a great deal of time and energy in, and it is something that is going to be very loving and loyal to you. This means that you have to be sure to provide your horse with not just adequate nutrition, but excellent nutrition.

Remember that having a good horse feed is something that is important. You want to research your particular breed of horses and see what kind of diet they will do best on. Another thing to keep in mind is not only what kind of breed of horse you have, but what their lives are like. Are they racing horses, or working horses, or are they just horses that you keep as pets to ride. Do you show them, or are they simply farm horses? These are all important questions to ask, because the answers to these questions will help you figure out what the best diet is to give your horse.

After you have determined what your expectations are for your horse, and what kind of lives your horses are going to be leading, you can pick out a great feed that is going to bring out the best in them, while giving them great nutrition. There are many places to buy horse food, so you have to be sure that you have a feed dealer that you can trust that will help you make great decisions about what is best to feed your horse. Then you can be sure that you have a good supply of food.

Also, remember that depending on what your horse is doing in his life, the different seasons are going to act differently upon his body. It might become important that you switch his feed or change what you are giving him as far as amounts go, during the different seasons. This is also a question you are going to want to discuss with your vet, and make sure that you are doing what is right for your horse.

An important part of both training your horse and bonding with your horse is what you are giving him for snacks. He will come to love the snacks that you give him, as long as they taste good and are good for him. This means that you should keep a great supply of the snacks that you know your horse loves on hand, and be sure to talk to your vet about what is appropriate for your horse as well.

Basic Horse Nutrition

While you might think this is a simple thing to do – feed your horse – you’d be surprised at the number of horse owners that don’t know about the basics.  There is no real rule of thumb for feeding, as each horse’s nutritional needs will vary depending on age, weight and level of activity.

To start with, your horse naturally uses forage as a primary component of their diets. It is one of the MAJOR necessities for a properly functioning digestive system. When we speak of forage, we usually mean natural pasture and cut hay.

Mature horses usually eat about 2 to 2.5 percent of their body weight in feed every day. So a 1,000 pound horse will eat roughly 20 to 25 pounds of feed per day. This means high quality feed, not low quality high fiber feed (which can interfere with proper digestion).

In a perfect pasture world, your horse should eat a minimum of 1 percent of his body weight in hay/pasture forage daily. If your horse doesn’t do much work, they will do nicely on strictly forage, with no grain thrown in.  On the other hand, growing, breeding, or working horses must have supplements in addition to forage – such as grain or a supplement concentrate.  Think of it this way, forages should provide at least one half or more of the total weight of the feed eaten daily for optimum growth and development.

Before you can feed a balanced “meal” to your horse, you have to know the nutrient content and quality of your forage. Once you know that, you can figure out the right amounts of each to meet nutrient requirements.

The best source, and the least expensive one for summer feed is your pasture.  And, in most cases good pasture by itself can provide all the nutritional requirements your horse needs.  How do you figure out how much pasture is needed to feed a horse?  Here is a rough guideline to help you: (using a weight of 1,000 – 1,200 pounds)

Mare and foal 1.75 to 2 acres

Yearlings 1.5 to 2 acre

Weanlings 0.5 to 1 acre

Winter feed of course would be cut hay, and again, high quality if you can provide it.  It should be cut early, be leafy and green in color and as free as possible of dust, moulds, weeds and stubble.  This feed is usually rich in protein, minerals and vitamins.

Yes, you can use alfalfa hay, but be careful about the higher protein content if you are feeding to young growing horses, as it may contain an excessive amount of calcium in relationship to phosphorus.  Too much calcium is not good for growing horses.  If you’re not sure about hay quality, have it analyzed.