My Soapbox for Equestrian Writings
Research in gene therapy to help heal joint injuries in horses may provide breakthroughs that can be applied to humans. According to Dr. Laurie Goodrich, a veterinarian that specializes in equine lameness and surgery at Colorado State University, horses have a very similar joint anatomy, biochemical and molecular makeup as humans, and joint injuries in […]
Read MoreBack in 1872, there was considerable debate over whether all four of a horse’s hooves left the ground at the same time when galloping. Conventional wisdom at the time either thought this was impossible — that the horse always was anchored by at least one hoof — or a horse took on a “rocking horse” […]
Read MoreIn the search for answers on how to improve the safety of eventing, a report released by the Australian Government Rural Industries and Research Council offers a good start. Safety for Horses and Riders in Eventing is based on data from 1732 rider falls that occurred from 2002-2006 at 444 Australian events that were affiliated to […]
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I was sorting through my bit box last week, as I’ve been selling off some of the bits that I’m unlikely to use again. Since I went bitless with my Trakehner, I have a lot of expensive bits that are now gathering dust! It got me thinking about bit sizing. There is a lot of […]
Read MoreFor the first two weeks that Kroni was barefoot, I was pretty optimistic. His front feet were holding up and while looked ouchy when walking over the gravel driveway, he seemed okay when on grass. I was treating his soles with Durasole and even took him for a hack while wearing hoof boots. Then he […]
Read MoreThere has been a lot of discussion among the eventing community about how to prevent rotational falls — a fall where the horse hits a fence with its front legs or chest and its body somersaults over the fence with the fence acting as a pivot point. In a rotational fall, the rider usually is […]
Read MoreI wrote before about the bodywork that Gary Severson (the Saddle Doctor) did on my horses when he came to fit my saddles in the spring (part of an article about the impact of poll pressure from bridles). It wasn’t traditional massage; rather he released tension in their backs through a form of trigger point […]
Read MoreThis landed in my Inbox this morning and many of these statements do ring true! People who don’t take care of their own horses will be the first ones to tell you how to care for yours. You should never buy a cheap girth! A handsome horse who’s badly behaved will become a lot less […]
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