Saturday, October 27, 2007

Horse Health - Bones and Muscles - Horse Anatomy

If you own a horse, it is very important that you understand several basic parts of the horse's anatomy to be sure you are caring for your horse in the best way possible. You can do this through studying on your own or you can talk to your vet to learn the basics.

First of all, you should know that laying down is very hard on your horse. If a horse lays down for any amount of time they are risking damage to their internal organs. A horse’s body is not meant to lay down for long periods of time, which is why you need to know that if your horse is laying down, there is something wrong with him. If you see your horse laying down, you have to be sure to call your vet immediately, because it is an emergency.

Your horse’s legs are the most important part of his body. Not only do they carry all of his weight, and support him while he is sleeping or while he is awake, they are very thin and are easy to damage. If a horse gets a broken leg, there is going to be a lot of problems because he won’t be able to lie down to mend it, which means that the healing process can be quite painful. What this means for you is that you have to be sure to always, always take care of your horse’s legs and feet. This is very important as a horse owner.

Another thing that you have to be sure to take care of is his skin and his coat. These are things that you have to focus on because they keep out a lot of problems and keep your horse happy and healthy. You should be grooming your horse each day, and especially should be grooming him after each time you ride him.

It is also important to note that a horse has a very advanced heart and lung system that can allow them to keep running or walking for long periods of time. This doesn’t mean that your horse never needs to rest; it simply means that you can exercise your horse more than you are going to be able to exercise yourself!

Keep all of these things in mind if you own a horse. You always want to be sure that you are doing the best that you can do to care for all aspects of your horse.

Friday, October 26, 2007

Horse Health - Baby Horses - A Foul is Born

There is always excitement when you have little ones that enter your life or the life of your animal. Something that you should know a lot about right from the get go is that caring for fouls is a very important part of raising horses

First of all, make sure that you have tended to the mother before she gives birth. Be sure that you are feeding her a food that is going to help her maintain good health, giving her things that help her to gain the strength and nutrients that she is going to need to be the kind of mother she should be. Make sure that you talk to a vet if you have never taken care of a mother horse before, be sure that you get a vet’s advice if you have never had a foul before.

When the time comes for the foul to be born, you probably want to help as much as you can, but mostly you should stay out of the way. There are some circumstances where you are going to have to help, this is why it is important that you talk to a vet about what is normal for a horse giving birth and what is not normal. Make sure that you understand how to tell what is normal and what is not. You want to be there, but at a distance, you need to be ready to help if the mother needs it. Be prepared for this by talking to your vet and by having things on hand that you might need.

Remember, when it comes time for the mother to give birth, even if you don’t need to help you still want to be on hand just in case. With fouls, as well as with other animals, if at all possible you want to leave the mother and the baby to do the things that they have to do. Animals have been doing this for a long time and it will often go best if you let them alone. If you have to help, try to be as discrete as possible, and be sure to do only the things that you absolutely know how to do.

Think you can't teach a new horse old tricks? See
Educate Your Horse!