Hindgut Happiness: Forages and Their Alternatives

HorseSport.com - Full Article

Good-quality forages can provide a horse with all the energy he needs, most of his protein requirements, plus many minerals and vitamins.

By: Shannon Pratt-Phillips, Ph.D. | March 23, 2022

Forages are long-stem plants and include pasture, hay (cut and dried plants) and haylage (cut and fermented plants). They typically provide the bulk of the equine diet and for good reason. The horse’s digestive system, with its well-developed cecum and large colon full of microbial organisms – or hindgut – is designed to digest and ferment these high-fibre plants to provide useful nutrients.

The fragile ecosystem of the horse’s hindgut needs a constant influx of fibre and it is well recognized that diets low in fibrous plant material can increase a horse’s risk of digestive upset such as colic. In feral horse populations, and even many domesticated populations, animals will spend up to 70 per cent of their day “foraging” and eating plant material as they meander around their location...

Read more here:
https://horsesport.com/magazine/nutrition/hindgut-happiness-forages-their-alternatives/

Does Your Horse Need Probiotics?

Thehorse.com - Full Article

By supplementing horses with the same kind of beneficial microorganisms that colonize their guts, probiotics might help reestablish healthy balances in the gut microbiome without causing harm. Learn more in this article from the September 2021 issue of The Horse.

Posted by Christa Lesté-Lasserre, MA | Sep 27, 2021

If your horse’s gut microbiota is out of whack, microorganism-packed products might get him back on track

Inside the digestive system live millions of microscopic organisms that play vital roles in the horse’s digestive—and general—health. Many of these of bacteria, protozoa, archaea, and fungi help break down food and usher nutrients efficiently into the bloodstream. They play a role in metabolizing fiber, generating energy, and promoting proper intestinal transit.

While scientists still don’t know what makes up the ideal equine gut microbiota, they do know it’s a question of balance. “All these microorganisms live in a kind of symbiotic relationship when they’re in balance,” says Kathleen Crandell, PhD, a nutritionist with Kentucky Equine Research, in Versailles...

Read more here:
https://thehorse.com/1104644/does-your-horse-need-probiotics/

Equestrian Adventuresses Podcast: Traveling Mongolia by Horse Cart

EquestrianAdventuresses.com Podcast - Listen

by utetonia
March 23, 2022

If you love books, this is the perfect place for you. Once a month, Heather, Ute, and sometimes Krystal, will talk about their favorite horsey book. In today’s episode of the EQA Book Club, Ute is talking with Ruth Cox about her book Exodus, a classic traveler story about her incredible journey through Mongolia with a bunch of hippies, two horses and a cart...

Read more and listen here:
https://equestrianadventuresses.com/2022/03/23/horse-podcast-ep-248-travelling-mongolia-by-horse-cart/

Equestrian Adventuresses Podcast: Horse - Ukraine: From Horse Tour Operator to Relief Worker

EquestrianAdventuresses.com - Listen

by utetonia
March 18, 2022

The Ukraine still tops the news and the war is on-going, soon to enter its fourth week. Millions of people are fleeing the bombings and they bring their animals too if they can. Horses sometimes cannot be taken along as roads and bridges are destroyed and fodder is almost unavailable. In today’s episode I am talking to Pawel Jasinski from Poland who normally operates horse trails in different countries including the Ukraine. Poland shares a long border with Ukraine and is the prime spot to get relief aid into the war-torn country as well as welcoming refugees.

Pawel speaks Ukrainian and has a lot of friends there, bringing groups of riders several times a year. When the war started he decided to do something to help the Ukrainian people. He started a fundraiser and personally drives convoys of aid to the border where it is received by his Ukrainian horse riding partner who makes sure it will be distributed to those in need. In today’s episode he tells us about the Ukraine and his views on the war.

Listen:
https://equestrianadventuresses.com/2022/03/18/horse-podcast-ep-246-from-horse-tour-operator-to-relief-worker/

New York: Riding the local trails for a good cause

LockportJournal.com - Full Article

March 17 2022
By Jacob Fries

During the early period of the Covid pandemic, many sports and hobbies had to be put on hold. However, horseback riding was one activity that could still be done, as it’s inherently socially distanced. Considering how their activities were able to go on uninterrupted by the pandemic, a few riders from the Western New York area decided to put their hobby to good use through their riding group “RiDE,” or Riders Donating Everywhere.

“It started out of a sense of gratitude for our hobby, and the fact that we’re so fortunate to be able to do the things we do,” said RiDE member Lynn Schauer-Bewley from Newfane. “We’re able to ride our horses in our neighborhoods and communities because we have so many people who support us. We just wanted to do something to give back.”

Many of the members had known each other for years through endurance riding. They decided to make donating to charity a regular thing near the beginning of the pandemic after traveling on horseback from Burt to Olcott to deliver homemade masks...

Read more here:
https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/riding-the-local-trails-for-a-good-cause/article_568fe07c-0db8-53b5-b8c3-5e7787bc77df.html

Equestrian Adventuresses Podcast: Travel Tips for Your Next Horse Riding Holiday

EquestrianAdventuresses.com - Listen

by utetonia
March 14, 2022

Holidays are the best time of the year and you want to make sure that you enjoy every single minute of them! As the world is slowly opening up, we are back looking for amazing horse riding opportunities around the world. Today Heather and Ute talk about some important points to consider while choosing and booking your next horse riding adventure.

Listen:
https://equestrianadventuresses.com/2022/03/14/horse-podcast-ep-241-travel-tips-for-your-next-horse-riding-holiday/

Gastric Ulcers as a Cause of Poor Performance in Horses

Thehorse.com - Full Article

Learn how gastric ulcers affect equine performance and the best ways for treating them in actively competing horses.

Posted by Alexandra Beckstett, The Horse Managing Editor | Mar 4, 2022

Poor performance in horses can result from a single cause or a combination of factors, ranging from injury to illness. When trying to diagnose a medical reason for poor performance, veterinarians should always consider gastric ulcers as a potential problem. This is because these painful lesions are incredibly common in athletic horses. Fortunately, treatment and management methods are quite effective.

Frank M. Andrews, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM (LAIM), LVMA department head, equine committee professor, and director of the Equine Health Studies Program at Louisiana State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine, in Baton Rouge, described the association between gastric ulcers and equine performance and how to treat the condition during the 2021 American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention, held Dec. 4-8 in Nashville, Tennessee...

Read more here:
https://thehorse.com/1109363/gastric-ulcers-as-a-cause-of-poor-performance-in-horses/

Horse Foot Bruises

Thehorse.com - Full Article

The average horse is more likely to encounter a foot bruise than any other lameness. If you recognize the causes of foot bruises and understand their treatment and prevention, you can stave off discomfort in your horse and perhaps avoid an abscess.

Posted by Tracy Gantz | Feb 15, 2022

Understanding what causes foot bruises and how to treat and possibly prevent them can save your horse from sore feet.

While laminitis and navicular disease pose more dangerous threats to your horse’s feet, the average horse is more likely to encounter a foot bruise than any other lameness. If you recognize the causes of foot bruises and understand their treatment and prevention, you can stave off discomfort in your horse and perhaps avoid an abscess, which is a more serious problem that can develop in a bruised hoof...

Read more here:
https://thehorse.com/150651/horse-foot-bruises/?utm_medium=Health+enews&utm_source=Newsletter

Faced With Scary Objects, Is Your Horse Left- or Right-Brained?

Thehorse.com - Full Article

Researchers studied which eye horses used to look at new objects. Their findings were unexpected.

Posted by Christa Lesté-Lasserre, MA | Feb 6, 2022

Horses tend to look at scary or surprising things with one eye—but the eye they choose depends on the individual horse.

Previous study results have suggested horses investigate new and scary objects mainly with the left eye and, hence, the right brain. New research by Italian behaviorists, however, has revealed the “unexpected” finding that horses use whichever eye—and brain hemisphere—they prefer on an individual basis when they’re tackling sources of potentially negative emotions...

Read more here:
https://thehorse.com/1108480/faced-with-scary-objects-is-your-horse-left-or-right-brained/?utm_medium=Behavior+enews&utm_source=Newsletter

Can I Tow This Horse Trailer?

Trailmeister.com - Full Article

February 28, 2022
by Robert Eversole

“Can I tow this horse trailer?” It’s a common question that I hear regularly at my horse camping clinics.

Safely towing a horse trailer can be confusing. It seems that there are a million different acronyms to learn and know. GCWR, GAWR, Tow Rating, Payload, and many more. What do all these things mean? Understanding these acronyms and numbers can be confusing without a degree in “Towology.” And, if you get it wrong, you or your horses can get hurt.

Let’s take the mystery out of one of these figures and talk about PAYLOAD Ratings – What it is and how to find yours. Most of us have an idea about towing ratings. But payload is something else entirely. We’ve all heard it – I’ve got a ¾ ton truck, and the dealer says it can tow 21,000 lbs. That’s nice, but what can it carry? You see what you can tow and what you can handle are two different things...

Read more here:
https://www.trailmeister.com/can-i-tow-this-horse-trailer/?utm_source=MailingList&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=MAR+2022+general