Horse care is the most important aspect of ownership. The topics that Young Rider has covered include: behavior, deworming, grooming, farriery, dentistry, adoption, welfare, charities within the industry, overall health (such as diseases and conditions), injuries, wound care, lameness, mare and foal care, nutrition, pest control, safety, seasonal management, senior care, vaccinations, and much more. To help your equine be healthy, you will want to work with an equine veterinarian, farrier, and equine dentist. In addition, there are alternative practitioners, such as equine chiropractors, physiotherapists, massage therapists, etc. Always review the qualifications of someone before you let them help you with your equine best friend.
Horse Care
Dental Care
Learn all you can on horse dental care. Scheduling dental exams annually is a critical step toward keeping his health, wellness and behavior in check. Annual oral and dental examinations are a recommended baseline of care for horses. The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) recommends an annual dental exam for most horses, although age and performance level may indicate more frequent exams. A dental exam takes approximately 10 to 30 minutes and assesses internal and external structures. It requires sedation and a full-mouth speculum for safety. Equine vets have stepped up the horse dentistry game big time, and advances are taking place all the time. Keep up to date on equine dentistry on Young Rider's website.
Deworming
Deworming a horse is a necessary part of horse care to prevent infection from internal parasites. The vast majority of horse owners continue to deworm following an outdated protocol, simply rotating between different dewormers, also called anthelmintics. However, nowadays researchers and experts are recommending fecal egg count testing in order to know what the parasite load is before choosing a medication. And in some instances, one herdmate, or even several, may not need to be dewormed. Now that parasite resistance to anthelmintic drugs has become prevalent, many of the rules about the process have changed. And if you’re not changing with them, you could be doing your horse a huge disservice.
Grooming
Learn more about grooming a horse to improve his overall health and hair coat and help him look his best. Articles include topics such as tips from the pros for looking good at the shows, mane and tail care, how to wrap your horse's tail, body clipping, braiding the mane and tail, secrets to a shiny coat, ways to optimize your grooming time, tips for bathing a horse, the tools used for grooming, and so much more. In addition, learn how to clean your brushing and other tools with proper maintenance. Compiling a basic kit for your horse is part of good horsemanship. Grooming your equine on a daily basis gives you a chance to look him over for wounds, hoof maladies and general well-being.
Hoof Care
Hoof care includes farriery, picking out the hooves, and dealing with problems with a farrier and veterinarian. Articles include topics such as helping your horse have happy feet, how to pick hooves, dealing with issues (such as lost shoes, a horse that leans, etc.), using boots for protection, finding a farrier, tips from farriers and veterinarians on foot care, dealing with sore feet, helping your horse deal with the farrier, behavior involving the feet, and more. If you want to keep your equine partner's feet in good health, then check out the archives of Young Rider for answers to all of your pressing questions involving the equine feet.
Horse Adoption, Welfare, and Charities
Horse adoption, welfare, and charities are important to the equine industry. There are a number of horse charities that tackle issues in the equine industry. Young Rider has covered news regarding horse adoption, horse welfare, and the work of various organizations working to better the industry. Adoptable horses are becoming a really great option for those seeking a new equine partner, for recreation or for competition. In addition, organizations, such as The Right Horse, adoption agencies, and others are making people aware of the benefits of giving horses new careers. We also cover timely topics in the news on horse adoption, welfare and charities issues, new and changing laws, what national and local horse charities are working on, etc.
Horse Behavior
Young Rider's articles on horse behavior involve how to bond with your horse, how your horse reacts, what your horse is thinking, normal behavior, and more. Topics can include desensitizing your equine partner to various objects, how riders can create misbehaviors, how to motivate your mount, how to interpret actions and what they mean, how to avoid issues while on the ground and while in the saddle, how to be the leader with the herd, how equines behave in the wild, the latest research, how the equine brain works, and so much more. If you want to understand how the equine mind works and how you can get the desired results with your partner, then look no further.
Horse Health
Young Rider has hundreds of articles on horse health topics, such as certain diseases and conditions, how to improve horse wellbeing, and how to help your sick horse. Find articles about veterinary exams, dental exams, horse diseases, horse conditions, research studies on horse health, supplements, veterinary treatments, surgeries, diagnostic tools and their uses, equine emergencies, and more. Learn how to help your horse behave for the vet and the farrier, how to budget for veterinary bills, more on stretching and equine chiropractic care, rehabilitating a horse, etc. Conditions discussed include colic, laminitis, Cushing's, ulcers, arthritis, infectious diseases (West Nile, strangles, etc.), hives and other skin conditions, and many more. For owners wanting to help their equine partners feel their best, we have it all.
Injuries, Wound Care, and Lameness
Learn how to deal with injuries, wound care, and lameness for your horse, including first aid for your horse from articles from Horse Illustrated magazine. Articles cover emergency response, creating a first aid kit, how to bandage an injury or take care of a wound, joint supplements, and more. Clinical signs, diagnosis, treatment, and recovery are covered. Lameness issues include joint issues and arthritis, laminitis, catastrophic wounds, fractures and other leg injuries, tendon and ligament issues, navicular disease, ringbone, stringhalt, abscesses, nerve issues, bone cysts, etc. When it comes to equine ownership and care, at some point riders deal with an injured horse. Knowing what to do to prevent emergencies, horse first aid and what to do during an emergency, and how to care for the horse afterward are critical for horse owners.
Nutrition
Horse nutrition is a big topic for horse ownership and horse care. Horses need to receive the best and most appropriate nutrients and types of feed in order to perform at their best. Topics include forage, water, pasture, concentrates and grains, treats, supplements, and more. Articles cover joint supplements, how to evaluate hay quality, healthy treats for the holidays, how nutrition can affect or cause disease, colic, nutritional management to prevent ulcers, what to feed during a hay shortage, feeding the senior horse, how to find the right horse feed, feeding across different seasons, how to make homemade horse treats, when to add supplements, and so much more.
Pest Control
Pest control for horses involves controlling pests on the farm, such as mosquitoes, flies, rodents, snakes, bats, birds and other small animals, such as opossums, skunks, raccoons, etc. Pest control helps cut down on disease risk. Keeping unwanted pests out of pastures, paddocks and barns is a challenge for most horse owners. And understanding the health threats these animals present and why it is important to keep their numbers in check on a farm can be an important way to keep our horses healthy. Let Young Rider's articles give you more information about the various techniques for controlling pests on the farm for all of the various unwanted critters, especially when it comes to fly control, which is one of the biggest issues that horse owners deal with during the warmer months. We all hate flies. Learn a bunch of ways to control these little pests to your horses and yourself so that your riding time can be more peaceful and you don't come home with bites yourself. Your horse will thank you for it.
Safety
Focusing on safety with horses is key for every young equestrian. Learn how to keep you and your horse safe in the barn and during riding excursions with Young Rider. Our articles provide basic guidelines for safety while riding, working with horses on the ground, and a variety of other horse situations. In addition, readers can learn more about barn safety since being safe at the barn and safe on the farm is of utmost important. Farms offer a lot of opportunities for mishaps and accidents, that is unless the proper precautions are taken to ensure all areas of the farm are safe for people and animals alike. Young riders should always look for a safe barn to ride at so safety practices can be modeled and riders can learn from example. Proper techniques when doing certain things are important as well, so learning how to do things properly initially can help prevent an accident or injury and also teaches the young rider how to eventually teach others. Articles from Young Rider written by experts or using expert sources can show you how to do things step-by-step way, with informative photos, such as how to tie a quick-release knot or how to safely mount and dismount a horse.
Seasonal Horse Care
Seasonal horse care includes special care topics for summer, spring, winter, and fall since every season has its own horse management concerns. For instance, spring horse care involves introducing horses to lush pasture safely, spring cleaning the barn, cleaning tack areas, removing blankets, changes in feeding requirements, etc. Meanwhile, winter horse care involves possible changes to nutrition requirements, buying and using blankets, changes in shoeing or hoof care for dealing with snow and ice, how to stay warm while riding, tips for grooming the muddy winter horse, and more. Summer horse care involves added fly control and pest control methods, increasing hydration for the hot weather, showing tips for those in the midst of their show season, how to cool off a hot horse, bathing tips, keeping the horse safe while trailering in hot weather, etc. And fall horse care helps people start prepping for the colder months, such as stocking up on hay, bringing horses in during early cold snaps, whether to clip a horse in preparation for winter blanketing, dealing with possible hunters while out on the trail during hunting season, and many other topics. With the plethora of seasonal horse care topics, readers turn again and again to Young Rider as the seasons change for all of the most pertinent horse care information.
Senior Horse Care
If you have an older horse, learn more on senior horse care, senior horse diseases and conditions, and how to care for an older horse. While the official definition of a "geriatric horse" varies, a horse is considered geriatric from the mid-teens on upward. And, it’s estimated that 17 percent of horses in this country are more than 20 years old. Today, the average horse in the United States can expect a longer, healthier life than his ancestors. To keep him living longer, Young Rider finds it important to provide plenty of information on diseases and conditions that older horses face, such as laminitis, Cushing's Disease or pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID), metabolic syndrome, lameness, arthritis, dental disease, hoof care issues, and more. In addition, learn what you can do to help combat some of the problems of old age in your older horse. However, don't let any possible health conditions scare you away from senior horses. Teenaged horses often make the best first mounts. They tend to be more sensible and far more experienced than young horses. They’ve seen more of the world and will help an inexperienced rider become more confident and capable. Some senior citizen equines are worth their weight in gold!
Vaccinations
A horse vaccination program is critical to prevent spreadable diseases, such as rabies, tetanus, West Nile Virus, Eastern and Western Equine Encephalitis, and others. Vaccinations can be confusing to owners because there are many different ones available. How do you know which ones your horse needs? There are two categories: core vaccines and risk-based vaccines. During a veterinary check-up, it is important to get all shots up to date for your horse. A non-core horse vaccination program should tackle equine influenza, equine herpesvirus, strangles, equine viral arteritis, rotaviral diarrhea, anthrax, and botulism. Risk-based vaccines should only be given on the recommendation of your veterinarian. These are given for specific reasons, and may vary from year to year. Vaccination recommendations by your veterinarian will vary by location, the horse’s age, breed, overall condition, whether they are likely to come in contact with wildlife or other horses, as well as other risk factors. Other topics to discuss with your veterinarian include when to have them vaccinate your horse, side effects, timing of vaccines, frequency, immunity, disease risk, and more. Veterinarians and other horse care experts weigh in on this very important topic in articles by Young Rider magazine, the magazine for youth ages 8 to 15.
