Natural Horse News & Events
Weathering Winter-
When asked to describe the most common wintertime equine health problem in their areas, veterinarians and horse owners around the country respond with near unanimity: colic. Even in the Southwest, where frigid temperatures are extremely rare, cases of impaction and sand colic spike during the winter months.
Three cold-weather practices converge to increase the likelihood of intestinal blockages (impactions) this time of year:
- Horses tend to consume less water in colder weather, either because they don't get as thirsty as in the summer or because their water sources freeze over. In addition, the roughages common in winter rations contain less than 20 percent moisture compared to the 75 percent or more water content in spring and summer grass. With insufficient liquid in the digestive tract, the food being processed becomes too dry to be moved along by peristaltic action and blocks a portion of an intestine. The stemminess of poor-quality hay contributes further to blockage formation.
- When the temperature drops, caretakers are inclined to boost their horses' grain rations to meet the increased energy demands of keeping warm. This disproportion of carbohydrates to fiber can upset digestion.
- The digestive system depends on body movement to help push food along. At pasture, a horse spends the bulk of his time wandering from one grazing spot to the next. The inactivity enforced by confinement in stalls or small paddocks may slow the movement of ingesta along the digestive tract.When one or more of these influences produce an impaction, a course of intravenous fluids may be all it takes to soften the blockage and cure the colic, in which case the prognosis for long-term survival is excellent. If the blockage persists and requires surgery, the survival rate is greatly diminished.
Cold weather may conspire against your efforts to keep water flowing to your horses, but they are crucial to preventing colic. "We have gotten many of our clients to give their horses warm water and electrolytes [in their feed] during cold spells," says Jeffrey Witwer, VMD, of Camden, South Carolina. "Anything that can be done to keep the horses drinking reduces the incidence of colic." Your particular "anything" may be purchasing water-trough or -bucket heaters, carrying hot water to thaw frozen buckets and pipes or trekking twice daily to the stream to break a hole in the ice and check on the footing.
Leave your horses turned out as much as possible to ensure sufficient digestive stimulation. You won't be endangering their health in other ways, as horses in good condition with heavy winter coats or adequate blankets and access to windbreaks can withstand temperatures as low as 40 degrees below zero. Unless they are being pelted by drenching rain or stinging ice, they are better off outdoors.
Finally, reach for an extra flake, not scoop, when temperatures start to drop: It's hay, rather than grain, that provides the most efficient heating fuel. And roughages don't produce the carbohydrate overload that can trigger endotoxemia, a system-wide toxicity that's reflected in colic and/or laminitis. This story was excerpted from the article "Weathering Winter", originally published in the January 1997 article of EQUUS magazine.
Winter Feeding Tips from Nutrena-The Feed Room
As I was reviewing the feed program for one of my client’s lesson horses, she mentioned ordering corn to add to the feed for the winter. She felt this would provide the horses extra warmth in the cold weather. This is a common winter practice with many farms, and I explained to my client that she was correct to increase the horse’s caloric intake with falling temperatures. There is a much better alternative to corn, though – it is much more efficient and effective to increase the forage portion of the diet to help create internal heat in the winter. This is due to the fermentation process the forage goes through in the hindgut, and the heat that process gives off.
The term “critical temperature” is used determine at what temperature a horses nutritional requirements change to maintain normal body temperature. I use the temperature of 40 F as a benchmark for calculating winter diets. In essence for every 1 degree below critical temperature, I increase the horse’s caloric intake by 1%. So, if my 1000 pound horse were receiving 18.6 Mcal (18,600 calories per day), I would increase his diet by 1860 calories when the temperature goes to 30 degrees (10 X 186). If my hay has tested at 10Mcal (1000 calories) per pound, an additional 2 pounds of hay will help my horse maintain his body condition at that temperature.
I also encourage my clients to feed a well fortified concentrate during the winter months. The lack of fresh pasture, limited sunlight hours, and often diminished hay quality require better fortification. Make sure your horse feed provides adequate levels of vitamin A, D and E. Feeds offering probiotics and prebiotics, as well as biotin are also encouraged. If you are feed a grass hay or alfalfa hay, make sure your calcium and phosphorus levels are also balanced accordingly in your feed.
Water consumption is imperative during winter months. Make sure that the buckets are free from ice and frozen debris. In the winter horses will consume 10 to 12 gallons of water per day. Ideally the water temperature should be at 50-65 F to encourage drinking.
healthy horse!
This really made me think-
From Anna Mae Gold blogspot: The Language of Energy
One of the fundamental principles of Natural Horsemanship is that we learn the language of the horse by observing how they communicate with one another instead of insisting that they learn our language. By making the effort of truly understanding another by not only learning their language but also understanding their unique perspective of the world, we communicate that the other is important to us. We communicate that we are interested in them, that we are willing to see the world through their eyes and walk a mile in their shoes, run on their paws and trot on their hoofs.
When we make an effort to speak somebody's language, we enter their world, their reality. Before we can actually engage meaningfully with another being, be it human or animal, we need to understand how they perceive the world, so we can create some common ground. We don't need to agree with their version of reality but we do need to know that they have another version that is true for them. Just as much as our version of reality is true for us. Allowing another their truth without judgment is key to an empowered relationship.
When we interact with horses, making an effort to speak their language is also simply being practical. Arabians do not speak Arabic, a Dutch Warmblood doesn't speak Dutch and Tennessee Walkers don't have a Southern accent. Horses communicate through body language and facial expressions. They also perceive energy. How to communicate effectively through energy is the slice of reality that we focus on in Empowered Horsemanship.
When we talk about energy in this context, we talk about the state of mind that we are in and intention that we have in the moment. Our energy communicates what we're up to, what we want and how we really feel. Energy never lies. We can say one thing and mean another, but energy always communicates the truth of who we are being and what our true intentions are. Because horses perceive energy, we cannot fool them. We cannot trick them into anything. They know!
Human beings are perfectly capable of perceiving energy. Children do it all the time. They know how we really feel and call us on it. Often this meets with disapproval because adults want children to listen to what they say and do as they are told. As children we have been actively trained to ignore what we feel and know is the truth and have been taught to simply accept what others tell us to be true. By the time we are adults, we have lost our ability to consciously perceive energy and trust our intuition.
The focus of Empowered Horsemanship is to re-awaken our innate ability to perceive energy and know what is really going on. We learn to become sensitive again to our own inner state of being, our own thoughts and feelings, as well as what others are truly communicating through the energy that they are projecting so that we, like horses, can no longer be fooled.
We also learn to bring ourselves in integrity, so that what we think, say and do is in alignment with our truth. We no longer want to be fooled, nor do we want to fool ourselves or one another into believing that we are something that we are not. We learn to be present to who we are moment to moment and to be real about it. Once we are fully present to as well as real about who we are, we can be the cause of our experience by choosing consciously and deliberately who we really want to be. We become masters of our reality and our experience. This is the journey of Empowered Horsemanship.
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For ride information and to sign up
Christmas Cookies for Horses-Healthy and Yummy
Old Fashioned Oatmeal-1 Cup
Flax(buy at grocery store)- 1-1/2 cup
Flour-Wholewheat- 2 Cup
Soy oil and or Coconut Oil- 1 Cup
BrownSugar- 3/4 Cup
Molasses- 4 Tbl.
Applesauce- 3/4 Cup
Cinnimon- 3 Tbl.
Salt-1/2 Cup
Mix all together to form a cookie like ball and drop in muffun tins by large tablespoon-should cover bottom of tin about 1/4 full, to help hold shape and cook up nice and crunchy. Bake 15 min at 350.
I wanted to make a healthy/tasty cookie to add in other nutritionals such as biotin or msm. the loads of flax and soy are great for hair coat and added fat for hard keepers, also lots of salt to encourage drinking in the heat
I will make again and add brewers yeast,msm,and biotin hoof formula,
for an older equine of mine. Have fun and play witth this recipe, even the most
picky eater will go nuts over these cookies.
Nancy
Winter Horse Cookies
I thought I would share this salty/sweet cookie recipe i came up with to deal with to keep horses drinking in cold weather.
Measures are approximate-
2 cups real oatmeal
1/2 cup salt
1/2 cup brown sugar or sugar in the raw
1/2 cup Soybean oil
1 cup wholewheat flour
add a bit of water if mix is too dry
optional- crushed peppermints, cinnimaon, shredded carrots, shredded apples-depending on what your horse enjoys.
mixed together until you can form a soft/non-sticky ball, i did not cook, but you could if you wanted a crunchy cookie. Store in fridge until ready to feed.
My horses were sweating alot in the passture and not using any salt block, so i thought this would be a good way to get some salt in them to help with the hot hot weather.
Supporting Jester Park Riding Trails and their fantastic theraputic riding program. We had a great time! Jester Park has much to offer, I will be back to enjoy this beautiful horse facility.
Jester Park Equestrian Center- Granger, Iowa
Tack Swap and Demonstrastions, Wagon Rides, Pony Rides, Trail Rides, Poker Ride, Food, Organic Jerky and much more. Free Admission.www.jesterparkec.com Newly added Demonstrations- Roping, Barrel Racing, and Chiropractic.
Green Horse Organics will have a booth- Come enjoy the fun!
Green Horse is in this months issue of Equine Wellness-A must have for all Natural Equine enthusiasts!
We are also featured in their online newsletter! Go Green!
Wow, What a wonderful Iowa horse fair! I met so many amazing people, talked about all kinds of natural horse related ideas,questions and opinions. I was thrilled to speak with countless people that are concerned about those awful pesticides and want to Go Green with their horses. Green Horse Girls having fun at the trade show. A great big thank-you to my sister, I couldn't have done it without you!
Mark your Calendars for the 2012 Iowa Horse Fair!
April 9-11, 2010
Get the details at:
Green Horse Organics will Have a Booth!!
Come and see Us!
.
More Great Cookies for HorsesEASY HORSE COOKIES
1 cup carrot grated
1 apple grated
2 Tablespoons corn oil
1/4 cup molasses
1 tsp. salt
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup flour
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheet. In a large bowl, mix carrot, apple, corn oil and molasses together. Then fold in salt, oats and flour until well mixed. Spread dough out in one big piece on the cookie sheet. Score dough with a knife to make it easier to break apart after baking. (Or try rolling dough out and cutting shapes with cookie cutters) Cook for 20 minutes or until brown. Let cool, break apart and serve.
I made these for my horses and they Loved them, so did our dogs! I doubled the recipe and turned them and cooked another 20 minutes so they were nice and crunchy. Super easy, fun and your horses will have a great healthy treat.
Best Wishes to All My Horse Friends,
Nancy
OATMEAL CARROT COOKIES
1 cup uncooked oatmeal
1 cup flour
1 cup shredded carrots
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons corn oil
1./4 cup water
1/4 cup molasses
Mix ingredients in a bowl in the order listed. Make small balls and place on cookie sheet sprayed with vegetable spray oil. Bake 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
OATMEAL COOKIES
1 cup of oatmeal
1 cup of bran
1 cup of water
1 tablespoon of salt
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1/2 a cup of molasses
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix ingredients together and spoon on a greased cookie sheet . Cook until hard on the outside. Leave out to dry and cool. Refrigerate any cookies that are not eaten promptly.
PEPPERMINT COOKIES
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup flour
1/2 (one half) cup wheat germ oil
1 cup water
1/2 (one half) cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 apple, peeled
2 large carrots, finely chopped
2/3 cup dark molasses
10 peppermints, crushed
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl, and bake until crispy and dry.
OATMEAL MOLASSES COOKIES
2 cups dry oatmeal
1/2 cup grated carrots
3 tablespoons molasses
1/2 cup brown sugar
Combine all ingredients. Add enough water to make a soft dough. Stir well. Form cookies and put them in the oven on 365º until golden brown and crisp.
MICROWAVE HORSE COOKIES
2 cups flour,
5 cups oatmeal,
1/2 cup corn oil,
1 clove garlic
1 cup diced carrots
Combine ingredients in bowl form into small balls which you press down with a spoon then place in microwavable pan or sheet and microwave on high for 6 minutes per batch.
HORSE AND DOG COOKIES
1 1/2 pint (or 500 ml) of molasses
1 jar of applesauce
1/2 c. of corn or veggie oil
8 c. of large flake oatmeal
4 c. of bran (horse bran or from the cereal aisle in the grocery store or a bran cereal)
1/2 c. of salt
1 1/2Tbsp. of baking soda
2 lbs. shredded carrots
10 c. of whole wheat flour.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix it all together and check for "cookie" consistency in the dough. Grease cookie sheets (with the molasses this is really important), Drop by large horse sized spoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes.
CARROT AND APPLE HORSE COOKIES
1 cup sweet feed
2 cups bran
1 cup flax seed
4 large carrots, shredded
1 cup molasses
½ cup brown sugar (one half cup)
1 cup applesauce
Mix molasses, brown sugar, carrots and applesauce in one bowl. In another mix the dry ingredients. Slowly combine the molasses mixture with the dry ingredients. Add only enough molasses mixture to form a thick dough, add more bran if necessary. Line cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Using a tablespoon, drop batter onto cookie sheet and flatten slightly to form portions about the size of a silver dollar. Bake at 300 degrees for about 1 hour. Flip and bake for an additional 45 minutes until they are dried out. Keep checking to make sure they don't burn.
PEPPERMINT PLEASER
1 Cup Molasses
1 Cup oats or oatmeal
1/2 (one half) Cup chopped carrots
1 Apple (sliced)
4 Peppermints
1 Tablespoon sugar
Mix molasses, oats, carrots, and sugar in your horse's food bucket. Lay the apple slices and peppermints on top of the mixture
