December 2008

  • Slush, Rain, Mud, and Fungi

    By lisala on 12/27/08 6:20am
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    The cold snap seems to have broken, and the weather system moving in from off the Pacific is bringing warmer temperatures and dumping rain, melting the recent snow and soaking most of the Puget Sound area.

    Rainy, warmer weather also help set up the environmental conditions for horses to rapidly develop rain rot, also called rain scald. Preventing rain rot isn't particularly complicated; you simply have to keep your equine buddy clean and dry. Unfortunately, that can be easier said than done, in our climate.

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  • The High Cost of Hay

    By erika on 12/21/08 10:19pm
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    The Seattle Times is reporting that skyrocketing hay costs and the economic downturn is causing horse owners - and their horses - a great deal of trouble.

    The cost of hay has increased as much as 60 percent in some parts of the country this year. According to an article published last summer by the Tri-City Herald in Washington State, the amount of acreage devoted to growing hay has dropped 11 percent since 2003.

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  • "Baby, it's COLD outside!" Part II

    By lisala on 12/14/08 5:38am
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    One of the contrary things some horses do to protest cold weather is stop drinking. This, of course, puts the horse at a much greater risk of dehydration, and that in turn puts a horse at risk of developing an impaction-related colic, because their digestive systems aren't exactly a marvel of efficiency, anyway. They need that water to process their feed. If you're not already monitoring how much water she drinks every day, you should be. Do start paying close attention, and even measuring water intake, if it's at all practical to do so.

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  • "Baby, it's COLD outside!" Part I

    By lisala on 12/13/08 6:38am
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    I know I promised to write about rainrot, and we've all been breathless with anticipation—but with the Puget Sound area cold-snap this weekend, I thought we'd postpone that discussion for a day or so, and talk a bit about cold-weather horse management, instead. There are a number of things you can do to keep you and your horse happier and healthier when the temperature drops.

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  • Rain, Rain, Mud, and Scratches

    By lisala on 12/12/08 4:40am
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    Sooner or later, if you keep horses in a wet climate, you're going to encounter a condition commonly called "scratches." Also known as dew-poisoning, greasy-heel, cracked-heel, or various other monikers—scratches can show up pretty suddenly. Your grooming routine needs to include thoroughly examining the backs of your horse's pasterns just above the heel bulbs. You're looking for crusty, scabby patches on the skin.

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  • Barn fires - every horse owner's nightmare

    By erika on 12/11/08 6:19pm
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    Yesterday evening, fifteen horses died in a fire at a boarding stable here in Washington state. Fire investigators are still looking into the cause of the fire.

    The specter of a barn fire looms over every horse owner - as it should. It's not uncommon for a barn to burn to the ground in the space of a few minutes. In cases where the structure remains intact, horses can die quickly from smoke inhalation.

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  • 'Tis the Season in the Pacific Northwest . . . for hoof abscesses, rain-rot, and scratches.

    By lisala on 12/9/08 10:58pm
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    So when your horse goes from sound to lame, seemingly overnight, and not just a little lame—but toe-pointing, leg-dragging, melodramatic lameness—what are you supposed to think? In the absence of obvious heat and/or swelling in the joints, ligaments, and tendons, you might well have a horse with an abscessed foot.

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  • Rain, Rain, Dark, and More Rain

    By lisala on 12/5/08 1:52am
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    Let's face it. Horses are glorious fun in the summer, when they've shed out sleek and glossy, and daylight lasts for hours after you get home from work. The warm weather and sunny afternoons and evenings make it a pleasure to spend time with your horse, in the arena or out on the trails.

    In the winter, though, when you wake up, clean stalls, feed, and go to work, all before the sun is all the way up? Less fun. And when you come home in the dark, then feed, and clean that stall yet again? Way less fun, still.

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  • About Buying that First Horse . . .

    By lisala on 12/3/08 1:02pm
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    So you're thinking about finally getting that horse you've always wanted, and you're noticing that with the slowing economy horse prices have come way, way down. Don't get in too big of a hurry, okay? There's a lot to think about, first.

    There's an old joke among horse-people about buying the horse itself being the cheapest part of getting and having a horse. No matter how old and hoary the joke may be, every time it's told, horse-people supply the punchline in unison, and everyone chuckles ruefully at the bone-deep truth of the basic observation.

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