Wildcat Springs Performance Horses

05/01/2025

05/01/2025

Its cold this week 🥶

FUN FACT FRIDAY!

Are you familiar with the many adaptations that help your horse stay warm during the cold winter months?

🌾 Hindgut digestion of hay produces the most heat, acting as a small furnace inside of the horse. This is why free choice; good quality hay is so important in the winter.

💪 Horses have a huge muscle mass and muscle activity produces heat. This includes running and playing and even shivering if their body temperature starts to drop. It is important to remember that these activities also will result in a bigger caloric demand so free choice hay and in some cases, grain, is often needed.

🧥 To blanket or not to blanket is a constant debate but either way, as it starts to get cold your horse will grow a thicker coat. If you decide to leave your horse unblanketed you may notice that they look “fluffy”. This is due to a phenomenon called piloerection where the hair stands up to better trap air within. Two layers of the coat also help with warmth. The inner layer is softer and has air pockets to create an insulating layer. The outer layer is coarse and has oils that keep moisture from penetrating the insulating layer and keep the horse warm.

⚖️ Wild horses go into the winter heavier than ideal, and the fat serves as an extra layer of insulation. However, if a horse is going to be kept heavily blanketed and in a barn during the cold weather months this is unnecessary and can lead to obesity related issues.

🦵Their distal limbs (below the knees and hocks) are made of mostly bones and tendons, tissues that are resistant to the cold temperatures.

🦶The hooves have an alternative route of blood circulation through larger vessels that can be used in low temperatures. This is why horses can stand in snow without detrimental effects.

👃A horse’s nose has a robust blood supply and is rounded so that it is less susceptible to frostbite than a human’s nose.
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Courtesy of the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee

02/01/2025

⭐️ Round Bale Feeders and Hay Waste ⭐️

Time for a research recap! This one is an oldie but a goodie and was actually published shortly before I started grad school at the University of Minnesota by one of my advisors, Dr. Krishona Martinson. She has been a long time mentor and inspired me to focus on applied research and finding ways to communicate the results to horse owners! Now onto the research!

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate different round bale hay feeders to identify which ones were most effective at reducing hay waste for horses. We all know horses are expensive so it is a great way to determine cost savings opportunities associated with feeding hay.

Materials and Methods: Twenty-five mature, idle horses (Quarter horses and thoroughbreds) were used in the study and divided into 5 groups with 5 horses each. Each horse group was housed in a different paddock with a different hay feeder for four days. Hay was weighed prior to being placed in the feeder. Hay waste was collected daily and hay remaining was measured on day 4 to determine consumption. Horses then rotated paddocks with a new feeder and new hay bale. This process was repeated over 40 days until every horse group consumed hay from all 9 hay feeders as well as the no hay feeder control. To determine payback, 2010 prices were used for feeders and hay was valued at $110 per ton.

Results: All hay feeders significantly reduced hay waste when compared to the no feeder control (P

01/01/2025

I created this tracker for my Daughter's and I thought I would share. Pick a colour and a horse or activity you'd like to track for 2025 and chase those goals! Feel free to share.
📢If you don't already please follow us so we can see your tracker at the end of the year!📢

31/12/2024

Im signing up for a challenge and it is open to all. Lesson students are encouraged to join. Let me know and I will turn in entries as a group 🐴

29/12/2024

The wonder pony is adding more skills to his resume in the ‘off season’ for JR rodeo/play-days. No cart yet but maybe soon!

24/12/2024

Some lucky kids are getting a brand new pony tomorrow 🤫🎄🎅🏻 Pumpkin pie has been with us since August and headed off to her new home (finally!). We enjoy our repeat clients.

23/12/2024

Still have time to enter! Has a 6 month expiration so you can wait until the weather is nice 🥶

🎄🎁✨ Feeling Lucky? In need of a last minute stocking stuffer? We might have the thing for you!

We are thrilled to announce another lesson giveaway for the Christmas season as we would love to see some new faces join our barn and learn how horses can enrich your life! Please see the entry details below ⬇️.

23/12/2024

Save the dates for 2025!

21/12/2024

THANK YOUUU Pampa Riding Club for putting on another great playday series. We can’t wait for them to start up again in the spring.

18/12/2024

🎄🎁✨ Feeling Lucky? In need of a last minute stocking stuffer? We might have the thing for you!

We are thrilled to announce another lesson giveaway for the Christmas season as we would love to see some new faces join our barn and learn how horses can enrich your life! Please see the entry details below ⬇️.

15/12/2024

If you received one of these at the Pampa Christmas parade, you are in the right place! Welcome! You may check the back of the business card for a free gift from us. Let me know if you have any questions. We do provide gift certificates for the holiday season if you’re looking for that last minute gift. 🎄🎅🏻

10/12/2024

03/12/2024

Learning to trot off the lunge line is a challenge but goes smooth with our great horses.

30/11/2024

This fish needs a new home. PM for details 🫶🏼 Meanwhile we’ll just be out on more adventures.