Foundation Morgan's at Otter Trail Farm

09/14/2024

04/10/2024

Unfortunately, from time to time we get a call to attend road incidents involving horses and ponies going through trailer floors or involved in road traffic accidents…. This is very distressing for all concerned and can have horrific consequences.
Here are some tips for maintaining safe transport.

External Trailer Checks:

Walk Around Inspection:
• Examine the trailer’s general condition for any damage, rust, or wear and tear.
• Check that the handbrake functions correctly.
• Ensure that reflectors on the sides of the trailer are clean, secure, and visible to other vehicles.
• Verify that the number plate matches the towing vehicle and is securely fixed at the back of the trailer.

Internal Trailer Checks:
Floor Inspection:
• Lift the rubber matting and check the floor:
• Ensure it’s sound, rot-free (for wooden floors), and dry.
• Always muck out the trailer after each use and ensure the floor is fully dry before closing the doors.
• Clean the floor’s drain holes out with a screwdriver – most trailers have natural drain holes built into the lower body and floor at the front and rear of the trailer.

Ramp, Doors, and Hinges:
• Inspect the ramp, doors, hinges, and fastenings:
• Ensure they are in working order.
• Carefully examine the roof for signs of leaks or weakness.

Partitions and Breast Bars:
• Thoroughly check that partitions and breast bars are secure and in good working order.
• Check any quick release pins

Electrical Connections:
• Verify that all electrical connections are secure:
• Look for frayed wires or loose connections.

Light Check:
Ask a friend to stand behind the trailer:
• Confirm that brake lights, sidelights, and indicators are functioning.
• Inspect light lenses for cracks or breaks that could affect the electrics.

Tire Inspection:
• Check tire pressure (refer to your trailer handbook for correct levels).
• Inspect each tire for wear, cracks, bulges, and splits in the rubber.
• Ensure tire treads are at least 1.6mm deep.
• Don’t forget to check the exterior spare wheel: remove the cover, ensure it’s secure, has sufficient tread, no cracks, and is properly inflated.

Coupling Up:

Confirm the following:
• Brake is off.
• Jockey wheel is raised securely.
• Breakaway cable is correctly attached (not over the towball) It should have a separate attachment point from the towball but on the same piece of metal.

Remember, thorough safety checks contribute to a smooth and secure journey for you and your horse. A well maintained trailer / lorry is a major factor for safe transportation, if ignored it could become your most significant heartbreak and financial drain as well.

If in any doubt get a professional to check... Travel safely 🐴🚚

04/05/2024

Gorgeous day for a ride

03/29/2024

HOW MUCH DOES A FOAL COST?
Behind every purebred foal is a BREEDER. I use capital letters to distinguish a breeder from a backyard breeder or a farm animal because there is no better word. A serious breeder does not breed foals without papers that protect the integrity of the breed.
Registration papers are ancestral records that document your bloodline and allow you to investigate possible health issues in your lineage
If you tell a breeder you don’t care about papers just tell him you don’t matter about foals health, you just want the cheapest you can find!
If you decide to buy a foal from a reliable and quality breeder, this breeder is responsible for the health of each foal.
This breeder will skip holidays and weekends, miss out on sleep and spend most of his personal time on his horses and their welfare. The truly passionate breeder who loves what he grows puts all his time into it.
Not only foals for sale, but for every customer who owns a piece of his heart and is now a member of his big family!
Breeders are worried about their babies after their extraction!
A breeder will get his hands dirty,often covered in everything that comes with birth. Cause that's what life is all about... In between birth and life there is death... that's a part of it. It breaks the breeder's heart. But it's the wheel of life that keeps turning.
A breeder performs ultrasound, analyses, emergency vet calls, vaccinations, registrations, researches pedigree, deworming, farrier appointments and offers the basic start for the future of foal in foal ABC, loading training, cleaning, injecting, leading, getting used to environmental influences...
After all, a breeder CHOOSES the family lucky enough to have one of their foals. Yes, read it right.
A real breeder decides WHO to sell. And that's never "above the price" either.
There really is no compensation that can compensate a breeder's investment.
A good breeder has different criteria for who wants to continue his bloodline or buy a foal from his offspring why? Because breeding is not a responsibility you take lightly, it's a lifestyle choice reserved ONLY for the few dedicated people who are willing to because a foal is never "just a pet" or a "recreational horse".
The foal is the breeder's legacy, a little boy's best friend, a little girl's caregiver, a therapy for the elderly, a family member, someone's whole world - until the day it moves out and from then on for the new owner!

Written in part by: Sr. Eduardo Loredo Muller
translated into english by: Angel Sophia Nogga
Modified for foal by: Stacey Mugrage
COPY THIS AND POST IT WITH YOUR OWN PICTURE ON YOUR PAGE.
Worth sharing, an article written with so much truth and heart bleed. Responsible breeding and ownership of multiple horses is a lifestyle and commitment that many fail to understand:
7 days a week, 365 days a year.
Our life revolves around horses!
Found written perfect and so true and therefore shared ❤

03/07/2024

02/27/2024

"Pulled this balloon and pieces of a couple others from the field this morn. My sheep had already been chewing on them. For those that let balloons go for celebrations or ceremonies, while the sentiment is sweet as are the intentions. The balloons don't actually go to heaven, instead they land in our fields or in our waterways or in forests, for curious animals to choke on. They never biodegrade and never go away."

(c) S. Gozales

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02/07/2024

Saturday March 16. Be prepared to help you equine friend in an emergency.