Horses can be a lot of work and responsibility to care for. There are many benefits of owning horses that can substantially help to improve your life. When you are considering horse ownership, it will be important to ensure that you are aware of all of the benefits of owning horses. It is also important to understand the care that horses require. For one thing, horses need a substantial amount of water in order to remain healthy. Providing them with adequate amounts of water can be made much easier with the use of an automatic watering system, like the one we provide at the Horse Drinker. Our Bar Bar A system can go a long way toward helping to ensure that your horses drink enough water throughout the day. You also need to pay attention to the necessary veterinary services and money involved in horse ownership.

Encourages Fitness

Horseback riding helps you to keep in good shape. These activities can help to strengthen your core and lower body muscles, as well as improve your fitness in many additional ways. When you own a horse, you are far more likely to be physically active which can be extremely beneficial for your long-term health. In addition, the care of your horse, such as exercising them and providing other care, can further increase your amount of physical activity. Getting in better shape is just one of the benefits that comes along with horse ownership.

Provides Stress Relief

Physical activity is often able to provide a substantial amount of stress relief. While the extra physical activity with horse ownership can reduce your stress, you will also find stress relief through the emotional bonding with your horse. Simply spending time with your horse can help to provide you with stress relief. This can be extremely valuable in improving your health and relieving you of harmful levels of stress.

Meet New People

When you own a horse, your social circles will open substantially. You will often find that you will meet new people that have many of the same interests that you do. By meeting new people that share your interests, you will often be able to find more social fulfillment. This can be extraordinarily beneficial to your overall happiness. Even in the process of purchasing a new horse, you will likely meet many people that have the same interests that you do.

Gives you More Confidence

Horseback riding is an activity that requires you to lead your horse. This is a solo activity that cannot be accomplished by another person in your group. When you make improvements in your horseback riding, you can be confident that the improvements came directly from you. This often helps to enhance your confidence and provide you with higher levels of self-esteem. Working with your horse can go a long way toward increasing your happiness and confidence levels. This extra confidence can be extremely beneficial in multiple aspects of your life.

Learn Better Teamwork

As previously mentioned, horseback riding involves you leading your horse and working closely with them. This can help to provide you with better teamwork skills, because you will learn to rely on your horse and cooperate with them. The development of these cooperation skills can be beneficial in many additional aspects of your life, such as working with coworkers or other potential activities.

More Responsibility

Taking care of a horse requires a great deal of responsibility. When you do this on a regular basis, you will become more accustomed to taking on responsibility. This responsibility, combined with the stress relief that horses can provide, often goes a long way toward enabling you to acquire an array of valuable skills.

Better Time Management

A horse will often require a significant time commitment. This can cause you to learn how to manage your time far more efficiently. Time management is an incredibly useful skill to master in all aspects of your life. When you have to care for a horse on a regular basis, you will learn how to manage your time more effectively, which can provide a broad array of benefits.

Spend More Time Outdoors

When you own a horse, you are far more likely to spend time outside. This can be extremely beneficial for your physical and mental health. The more time you spend outdoors, the more exposure to sunlight and fresh air you will experience. When you own a horse, you will certainly spend a significantly greater amount of time outside.

There are many benefits of owning horses. Your horse can provide you with both emotional and physical benefits. Horse ownership can also help you to develop an array of critical skills that can improve other aspects of your life. When you own a horse, it will be important to ensure that you learn how to care for your horse adequately. To learn more about the benefits of owning horses or the easiest way to help your horse stay hydrated, contact us at the Horse Drinker today!

Understanding the various conditions that your horse may face can help you to identify problems when they arise. This will help to ensure that you obtain the appropriate treatment to keep your horse healthy and comfortable. While kissing spines are generally not a particularly serious condition, they can cause your horse a great deal of pain. When you identify kissing spines early on, you will be able to provide the treatment that your horse needs to remain healthy and comfortable. Here are a few important things to know about kissing spines.

What are Kissing Spines?

The spine of a horse is very different from the spine of a human. Their spine contains multiple components that are called spinous processes. These spinous processes extend upward from the spine of a horse. When two or more of these spinous processes are located too close together, they may touch together. This can cause many negative consequences for the horse, including extreme back pain, the possibility of microfractures, and inflammation. In addition to these consequences, it is possible that kissing spines will cause the horse to alter their posture to compensate for the pain. This can lead to additional injuries caused by putting to much strain on certain parts of their body. Treatment for kissing spines can help to keep your horse comfortable.  

Common Causes

There is no singular cause for kissing spines. Due to this, it can be difficult to prevent it from arising. However, there are several steps that you can take in order to minimize the likelihood of kissing spines. For example, it is extremely important to ensure that you fit a saddle properly. A poor saddle fit can cause kissing spines to arise. It is also important to ensure that the horse is trained properly to maintain proper posture. This can help to minimize their poor posture from causing kissing spines. However, genetic factors may also attribute to this, so kissing spines are not always completely preventable.

Signs of Kissing Spines

It can be hard to detect the presence of kissing spines, because some horses don’t show any visible signs of them. However, the pain that kissing spines can cause can certainly lead to physical and behavioral symptoms. If you suspect that your horse is afflicted with kissing spines, it is often particularly beneficial to obtain an examination from your equine veterinarian. Common signs of kissing spines include a sudden hypersensitivity to brushing, tossing of the head, kicking out, bucking, hollowing the back, rearing, resisting the bit, and visible lameness. A horse’s performance may also fluctuate due to the presence of kissing spines. Pay attention to poor performance, trouble with transitions, refusing or rushing fences, and cross cantering. If these signs arise, you may want to consider obtaining an examination from your veterinarian for an accurate diagnosis.

How they are Diagnosed

Kissing spines can be difficult to detect, due to the possibility that the horse won’t show symptoms of it. A veterinary examination is absolutely crucial in identifying the presence of kissing spines. They will use an array of techniques to ensure that you are able to obtain an accurate diagnosis. X-rays are usually used to diagnose the presence of kissing spines, because they will identify the placement of the spinous processes. This can substantially help to detect the presence of kissing spines, which will allow you to provide the appropriate treatment for them.

Treatments for Kissing Spines

There are many different treatments that can be implemented to help with kissing spines. The right treatment will depend primarily on the severity of the condition. When you consult with your veterinarian, you will be better able to identify the best treatment for your particular horse. Most of the treatments that your vet will recommend are designed to make your horse more comfortable and to reduce their pain. Physical therapy is a common treatment for kissing spines. This method often involves the use of exercises to help stretch and strengthen the abdominal and back muscles. They also aid in stabilizing posture and improving mobility. Muscle relaxation will also help to treat kissing spines.

There are other treatments that may be utilized to aid with kissing spines. Shockwave therapy is often used around the affected area. Your veterinarian may also utilize injections of anti-inflammatories to the area or corticosteroid injections. In particularly severe cases, it is possible that your veterinarian will recommend surgery to aid with the kissing spines. These various treatment options are often extremely effective at reducing your horse’s symptoms of kissing spines.

Ensure Proper Hydration

Understanding what kissing spines are can go a long way toward ensuring that you are able to protect your horse and keep them healthy. It is also critical to pay attention to the amount of water that your horse drinks. Dehydration can lead to a large array of health consequences that can be devastating for a horse and their health. The use of an automatic watering system, like our Bar Bar A Horse Waterer, can go a long way toward keeping them healthy and ensuring that they always have fresh, clean water available. To learn more about implementing an automatic watering system to your property, contact our experienced team today!

Choosing an equine veterinarian is an incredibly important component in taking care of your horse. When it comes to the health of your horse, it is important to do your research and focus on providing the best possible care for them. Certain aspects of choosing an equine veterinarian will be a matter of personal preference, while others are dependent on the services that you want for your horse. This is important whether you need a veterinarian for an older horse or a foal. Here are a few of the best tips for choosing an equine veterinarian to meet all of your specific needs.

Experience and Education

First and foremost, it is important to ensure that you look into the background of the veterinarian. They must be licensed in order to provide the appropriate treatment for your horse. It can be beneficial to look into their particular education and the amount of experience that they have in the field. You will also want to look into specific components of their education and experience, like if they have any specializations or other important considerations. This will help you to make the best possible decision for your equine veterinarian.  

Personality

Take some time to talk to your veterinarian. Everyone is different, so it will be important to ensure that you find a veterinarian that you work well with. You will likely have to work closely with them in order to provide the appropriate treatment to keep your horse healthy over time. It is valuable to ensure that you get along well with them, as well as other members of their office staff. This will help to provide you with the most positive experience possible.

Equine Focus

There are many types of veterinarians, due to the many different pets and animals out there. It is crucial to ensure that you obtain the services of a veterinarian with an equine focus. This will help to ensure that the veterinarian is experienced and capable of providing superior care for horses. You will also want to pay attention to the horsemanship skills of the veterinarian and their staff. This will give you an idea of the quality of services that they will provide to your horse.

Collaborative vs Individual Practice

There are advantages and drawbacks to working with a veterinarian in a collaborative practice or an individual practice. For example, when you work with a veterinarian in an individual practice, you will be confident that you know who will be providing your horse’s medical services. However, these veterinarians may have more limited availability because they are a single person. A collaborative practice will have more availability, but it will be more difficult to screen veterinarians to ensure that you are working with one that you like. This is ultimately your decision, which will depend on your preferences and your specific needs.

Referrals

Ask other horse owners that you know for referrals regarding veterinarians that they have had positive experiences with. This provides you with a start to your search for an equine veterinarian. Asking for referrals can go a long way toward providing you with more information regarding other people’s experiences with various veterinarians.

Interview Veterinarian

Take some time to sit down with the veterinarian and learn more about them. This will help you to learn about their personality, their approach to veterinary care, and many other things. During your visit, you should ask them whatever questions you feel you need to. It is important to ensure that you feel comfortable asking them questions. When you don’t, you may not ask them questions that are important to your horse’s health. Choose a veterinarian that you feel comfortable working with. This can help to eliminate problems over time.

Services and Prices

You will want to ensure that your veterinarian provides the services that you need for your horse. From emergency services to general care, this will go a long way toward protecting the health of your horse and helping you to choose the right veterinarian. While price shouldn’t be your overall deciding factor for choosing a veterinarian, it is still an important component. You should ensure that you are able to pay for the services that you need for your horse. Keep in mind that caring for a horse is an expensive undertaking. Keep veterinary expenses in mind before you get a horse to ensure that you are able to provide it with adequate care.

Your Horse’s Interaction with Veterinarian

Give your horse some time to meet and interact with the veterinarian. Through this, you will be able to examine how they interact. See if your horse seems to like the veterinarian and how your veterinarian treats your horse. This will go a long way toward helping you to choose the best veterinarian to meet all of your specific needs.

Communication

Communication is an important component of working with a veterinarian. Pay attention to how they communicate with you and if they are clear in their communication. You will also want to note how communicative the office is. Ensure that they respond to you quickly and answer questions thoroughly.

When you choose the best veterinarian for your horse, you will be able to ensure that they obtain the best care possible when health mistakes arise. To protect their health, it is similarly important to ensure that your horse remains hydrated. An automatic horse watering system, like our Bar-Bar-A Horse Drinker, can help to ensure that your horse has constant access to clean, fresh water. This helps to keep them hydrated, which can prevent many additional health problems from arising. For example, dehydration is an incredibly common cause of colic, which can be deadly for horses. It is also important to understand the signs of other issues, such as equine laminitis or signs of pain, so that you know when to consult with your veterinarian. To learn more about how a horse watering system can improve the health of your horse, contact our team at the Horse Drinker today!