East Coast Wild Mustang Adoptions

07/07/2024

Why???? 😩

20/03/2024

😂

20/01/2024

Kissing spine is just about the bones right?

While kissing spine is a radiographic diagnosis and is a disease affecting the spinal processes, it’s important to recognise and understand how vital a role the soft tissues surrounding the vertebrae play in the prevention or manifestation of the disease.

Both the muscles and ligaments surrounding the spine are implicated by domestication, both directly and through effects on posture.

The recent webinar I did with Dr Neidhart was described as “The most comprehensive dissemination of information on kissing spine I have ever seen”

Don’t miss out! The recording is now available…

https://equineeducationhub.thinkific.com/courses/kissing-spines

07/11/2023

Hahahahahahaha….

❤️ 🙋

20/02/2023

It was during a visit to my equine chiropractor, when a cowboy from a nearby ranch pulled into her yard with his loaded trailer.

We chatted amicably for a while about the price of hay, yearlings and all the ice underfoot. He then said that I might want to stick around, to observe one of his ranch horses that he’d brought in for treatment. I am in such admiration for those crusty old souls who are now realizing that their trusted partners, these horses who help earn their living and keep them safe, are deserving of body work and all the care in the world.

You know, before it’s too late.

Uncomfortable memory reminds me that in our family, it was not always this way. Too many excellent working horses went to their early graves without ever having had a saddle fitting, a chiropractic work up, a deworming, or a dental visit. Yes, that shadow reaches across my memories, though forty, fifty years ago and more, we just didn’t know there were kinder ways.

I can only vow to do better with what I’m learning on my journey. Anyway, back to this man we’ll call Joe, and his horse.

“It’s the darnedest thing. I can do anything with him, rope and tie off on any cow. But no matter how many years I’ve known and ridden him, every single time I pick up a saddle blanket, it’s as though he’s never been touched by the human hand. He’s a stranger to me. We work through it, I think it’s better and we go off and do our day job. The next time, you’d never know it. Every single day is day one. Is he just quirky, or what?”

Well, that perked my interest and after seeing to my own horses, I followed Joe and his Quarter Horse into the barn.

This was a solid and proud middle-aged gelding. Brave, wise, high-mileage, he gave absolutely no clue as to what his owner had just told us. He was obviously well-handled and trusted his man implicitly. There was no outward evidence of poor saddle fit. There was no sign of trouble at all, really, until the chiropractor reached up to put a little cloth on the horse’s back for some routine massage.

Suddenly, the doe-eyed gelding threw his head in the air and all four feet left the ground. No matter how much he was allowed to see and sniff the little blanket, he would not allow it onto his back. Watching, I could see that the horse was not afraid of the object. No, he was afraid of allowing anything to touch him from above. Worse, somehow, was seeing his shame and upset at not being able to be ‘good’ for Joe.

A few minutes later, we learned of the likely reason why.

“I’ve seen this before,” said the chiropractor. “Come and feel with the ends of your fingers underneath his coat, all along his back.” We had to really concentrate and work our fingers as close to the horse’s skin as we could and then, the answer was revealed.

There were ridges, about three or four inches apart, scarring this horse all the way from mid-neck, to his loins. Over and over again, we could feel something like faint claw marks in parallel lines, running from front to back.

Cougars, or mountain lions, are plentiful along the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, the place where so many ranch horses run out and call home. The chiropractor, who specializes in these hard-working horses, has seen a surprising number with similar ‘behavioural issues’ and tracks along their backs. She went so far as to surmise that this is why the northwest part of the continent is known for producing these 'broncy' horses. That whether or not the attack was first hand experience, as Joe’s horse had survived, this fear of predatory cats is now built in to their very DNA.

We have owned a few such horses, looking back. Even now, there will be mornings I’ll go out to do chores and the whole herd is pulsating with fight or flight. They’ll almost run to stand on top of me, the air is so electric. Big cats are a fact of life here, living as we do in these hills along quiet, tree-lined creeks. Most times, we’ll go our separate ways but every now and then, our worlds collide.

“What am I going to do with him, then?” asked Joe. A practical man, he just wanted to know if this could be worked around, or if his partner was always going to have to relive this trauma upon every saddling. He was advised to simply let the horse know that he was understood, that this had been a bad thing to happen but that it didn’t mean he was a ‘bad’ or stupid horse. Basically, Joe had only to honour this horse’s story and say that he understood. He would simply stand and hold space—that is, just wait—until the horse was ready.

The older cowboy and I exchanged glances, for that seemed altogether too woo-woo. How could a lifelong quirk be made better by simply telling a horse that you believed his story?

A few months later, I ran into Joe in town. “How’s your horse doing?” I asked. “Is he any better to saddle, or…?” Joe interrupted me with a smile.

“He was wide-eyed and worried when I went to ride him next time. So, I figured, what the hell? I told him I knew that a lion had tried to get him but that we’d be okay. I said that I wouldn’t school on him for being daft and by God, if he didn’t put his head down and just let go a huge sigh. I did the same thing and then, we saddled up and went to work. I think if someone else tried, he’d go back to being jumpy but you know, it’s amazing, what happens when they know that you know.”

It's a powerful story of trust and rebuilding relationship that I’ve long thought I’d like to share with you. Horses or humans, we hold an incredible life force that allows us to rise again… if only we’ve been heard.

15/09/2022

How a farrier’s observations about hoof problems led to a better understanding of what balanced diet for a horse really looks like. Hint: most supplements are worthless at best, detrimental at worse.

The very best hoof care can only go so far. We must properly feed our hooves if we want the best out of the horse and we must properly feed our horse if we want the best out of our hooves. Over the years I noticed that no shoeing or trim mechanics could grow healthy walls, laminae, soles or frogs on...

28/06/2022

https://equusmagazine.com/horse-care/preventing-heat-stress-in-horses-8351/

On summer days, it can be difficult to distinguish normal fatigue and sweatiness from dangerous heat stress in horses. Here's what to look for and how to safeguard your horse's well-being.

16/06/2022

30/04/2022

“The Cañon City Wild Horse and B***o Facility has been placed under quarantine and laboratory tests are being completed to identify the fatal illness that has killed 95 horses since the outbreak began on April 23. “

https://www.blm.gov/programs/wild-horse-and-burro/herd-management/herd-management-areas/colorado

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

07/04/2022

I lost a gelding to Botulism a couple of years ago. It’s rare but happens. There is a vaccine for 1 of the 3 strains. Resources in the comments.

18/02/2022

Join Ashley Ahearn as she visits working ranches across the West to meet the women who are reimagining the way we raise meat. There are a lot of problems with the industrial meat system in this country. Ahearn saddles up, microphone in hand, to bring us a series of sound-rich portraits of women ranc...

29/01/2022

Set it up so your horse releases himself.

"Wait for his feet. No matter if you miss your lunch, just hang in there. He is trying to push and get you to yield. He is on his own pressure, you are just fixing it. Don't try to move his feet. Leave that to him." - Tom Dorrance Books & DVD's

Check out www.tomdorrance.com for more insights from Tom! The website is overseen by Margaret.

30/11/2021

Blanketing is not a real issue in Florida, but this is great information.

Whenever we’re faced with our first weeks of minus temperatures, the questions start rolling in about whether—or not—to blanket horses. I don’t have all the answers but I can tell you this: I trust a great deal in common sense.

I blanket: cold horses… wet or shivery horses… clipped or slicked-off horses… those that are losing condition or who are hard-keepers… those who do not have enough room in their turnout pens to stay warm… horses who are feeling ‘off’ or are recovering from sickness… those who have been newly turned out to pasture after years of being stabled... those kept in strenuous work.

Many times, these horses only need blanketing for a spell of bad weather, before returning to their natural state.

I do not blanket: overweight horses or native breeds of ponies, as dealing with cold gives them a much-needed metabolic reset… or those who are hairy, healthy and in good flesh, no matter their ages.

I watch my horses and pay attention. I do not colour my decisions by the size of the cheques that purchased them, or the fact that I do not particularly enjoy winter. Their comfort is my guide.

I find that previously stabled horses will come to me in the yard, tucked up and shivering, for their blankets. I help them, of course but find that over the next few years, they will acclimatize, growing fat and hairy and eventually, wanting nothing to do with being rugged up. This is good news and proves again that it can take three years for horses to fully adapt to ‘turned out’ life. Being turned out is a far different scenario than having ‘turnout’, a point that many of us don’t yet understand.

Common sense can tell us when our harder doers are needing help. Older horses who are beginning to outlive their teeth require us to be watchful. Once they start losing condition, it is an extremely hard trend to reverse. A warm horse needs far less feed to stay in shape.

Many hard keepers, it seems to me, are dealing with either ulcers or nervous digestive upset. So, what do we tend to do? We bring them in and feed the dickens out of them with hot, commercial feeds. Their bowels turn watery and despite our best efforts, they grow fretful. Their weight continues to fall off. I’ve learned that if I can keep these horses warm and turned out with the greater herd, they will happily thrive with free-choice grass and hay on which to pick.

I don’t leave my horses blanketed for long periods. The pressure most heavy blankets exert on the top of the withers—whether or not they are high-necked (which is best) or cut-back—paired with the pressure on the points of the shoulders, will actually shorten their free range of movement over time. If and when I have rugged up horses, I am committing to spending a certain amount of time checking and resetting these blankets, daily. I do not wrap them up and then, forget about them.

Horses always appreciate a chance to roll and stretch without their blankets, to have a good itch and to graze without any pressure on their fronts. If it warms up a bit, my few blanketed horses will have their clothing pulled, going for the midday hours au naturel.

Too many horses are left wearing winter weight rugs when the need has long passed.

Keeping turnout rugs in good repair can get expensive. Some horses will honour their blankets and these will look like new after months or years of wear… Other ruffians require a rotating wardrobe whilst I run around looking for torn-off surcingles and leg straps.

Blankets, even the best of them, can come with their share of hazards.

One day, calling the horses up to the yard, I could see Pilot standing off alone along the far fence line, while the rest of the herd raced in. He stayed behind, motionless, and the pit in my stomach told me to make haste and go out to him. Good thing I did, for the big gelding had snapped himself by the front of his blanket to a half-mile of barbed wire fence. I was lucky that day. I’m very careful, any more, to make sure the front snaps open towards, and not away from, a horse's chest.

Do I prefer to keep my horses unblanketed? Yes! Am I too proud or set in my ways to offer blankets with horses that could use the help? Nope, no matter the scientific studies and opinions passed around online.

Rather, I have learned that very old or thin horses are cold horses… and when the temperatures dive, cold horses need a lot more feed. Remember, too, that wet or windy cold is a far different scenario than dry, still cold. Shelter is everything. If our horses can’t get out of freezing rain or fierce winds, they can drop an alarming amount of weight. Depending on the individual horse, this may, or may not, be a good thing.

Using ordinary common sense, staying watchful, I’ve been able to bring my fat horses through the winters, slim and healthy, while my hard-doers can make it to springtime, just round enough.

Some days, some of my horses need blanketing. Most days, most of my horses do not.

***

PS: If you've time for a virtual coffee, I'd be grateful, thanks.
buymeacoffee.com/horsewoman

31/05/2021

There are some great presenters on this virtual event.

Legendary Horsemen Share Expert Secerts In Free Online Event. Check out this really cool virtual event happening soon. 70+ Industry experts have come together to motivate and inspire you from the comfort of your own home, and right now you can get in for free.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ What is so great is that...