After about 12 years of being absent from the horse world, I bought a horse and put her into the first of several stables at which we would end up boarding. While I was not new to horses, there was still a lot of information that I did not know and had never learned from my high school and college days of playing with horses. I had no idea about the many challenges and learning experiences that would come with boarding a horse.
What follows below are some points to keep in mind, assembled from someone who learned by trial and error and had a few "daycare nightmares" along the way. It isn't rocket science but there are some basic principles to keep in mind and try to follow as best you can.
It really is critical to strive for a living environment that is as close to natural as possible. Stress impedes healing as well as leaving the body susceptible to disease. Your horse may not ever see a wolf or a cougar in its stall, but perhaps it feels just as unsafe simply from being closed in with no escape from the four walls and bars.
It has been my experience that driving further or paying more for horse boarding (though not in themselves a guarantee) are well worth it if you avoid some expensive vet calls, have peace of mind about your horse's well-being, and have a happy, healthy horse. Never feel bad about trying to do the best for your horse. You are your horse's leader, and they are literally at your mercy. If you choose to keep horses, you owe it to them to learn as much as possible about how to keep them healthy and happy. A very large part of that is where they live and where they spend most of their time; that can impact every single aspect of their health and welfare.
Living in a stall is just not natural for a horse; thus, the term "natural boarding" is an oxymoron. However, you will have a happier and healthier horse if you try to get something as close as possible to what your horse would consider natural (minus the predators of course...). Your horse has no say in the matter of home and will be living there 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Try and think about his home from his perspective. When choosing a boarding facility, remember these key points:
1) Horses were meant to walk for miles every day foraging for food eating small amounts of food all day long; their digestive system is not set up for two big meals with nothing in between. Aside from boredom, there are physical consequences to not feeding a horse the way it was designed to eat. They secrete acid continually, so the acid will sit there and potentially create ulcers or you will set up a situation ripe for colic or other illnesses.
2) Horses are herd animals that need - and ultimately thrive on - the companionship of other horses; they were not designed to be isolated in box stalls and taken out for a ride once or twice a week. Make sure your horse can be turned out with at least one other horse that it can build and maintain a bond with.
3) Ideally you will not keep your horse in a stall; however, if you do, these should be as large as possible with an attached paddock. If you truly cannot find an arrangement that has pasture with shelter or, at minimum, stalls with large attached paddocks, make sure that the turnout is frequent (daily) and for long periods of time and that the stall is as light and airy as possible.
4) Freedom to graze and run seven days a week for a few hours is not too much to ask for if you are a horse - especially if your facility has only box stalls without attached paddocks (which do not by themselves offer enough room to exercise) - but this unfortunately may be hard to find. If turnout is for fewer then seven days a week, then try to get out to see your horse especially on the off days when they would be standing in their stalls.
5) Feeding at least three times a day is ideal and best for the horse's mental and physical well-being, but again, it will be hard to find; the usual is two times per day. Ideally, a horse will be in some kind of pasture turnout with a chance to graze in between the AM and PM feedings.
6) Make sure that the facility feeds a high quality hay and preferably gets it from a consistent source.
7) Feed a high quality supplement to provide any missing vitamins or minerals in the horse's diet, and always provide free-choice salt/minerals. Water troughs and buckets have never been cleaned as often as I would have liked, and I have done them myself before.
8) A high quality daily herbal mix can have numerous health benefits to counteract the effects of the stress of living in a stall, toxins the horse encounters, allergies, and more.
Finally, remember that you are the needle of the compass; you determine the kind of care that your horse gets which includes coordinating the expertise of veterinarians, farriers, trainers, and stable management where you board. It is up to you to voice your concerns and pay heed to your instincts. It is possible to find caring, reliable stables at which to board your horse as naturally as possible, but you must be vigilant about your horse's needs and willing to speak up when there is a problem. Trust your guts - your horse does.
Eleanor D Van Natta Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eleanor_Van_Natta |
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