My Soapbox for Equestrian Writings
Cribbing is in Freedom’s DNA. He is not as bad as some cribbers: he can stand on a trailer for hours without cribbing, but without a collar, he will crib consistently. In fact the days before I ordered the Dare cribbing collar, he walked over to the fencepost near the gate and cribbed while I […]
Read MoreFreedom is a confirmed cribber. He came to me as a cribber and even with 24 hour turnout, free choice hay, lots of grass and a cribbing collar, he will crib. Over the past few months he’s pulled a few posts out of the fence line and generally made a nuisance of himself. As an […]
Read MoreCribbing is one of those stable vices that can easily make your horse equis non grata at boarding facilities. In fact, many boarding barns won’t accept cribbers at all. Cribbing and wood chewing can be destructive (although they are different) and there’s a concern, mostly unfounded, that the vice will spread like a virus through […]
Read MoreFreedom is recovering well from his cribbing collar rubs. He now lets me touch them (yay!) which means it’s easier to apply a salve. A friend loaned me a spray on herbal product that was very helpful at the beginning since there was no way I could actually touch him behind the poll. I wasn’t […]
Read MoreFreedom is a cribber. It’s controlled using a collar and so he’s worn one for the past few years almost all the time. I take it off whenever I’m at the barn to give him some time off. But I didn’t make it to the barn yesterday. I don’t feed on Mondays and it was […]
Read MoreWe had a great hunt on Saturday. The weather was perfect, the footing was great, and the territory was beautiful. Freedom started out nice and calm in the second field. He was nice and calm with no jigging. In fact he was so well behaved that I decided to move him up to the first […]
Read MoreAn article published today in The Horse, Cribbing is Not a Learned Behavior, supports many of the conclusions that I’ve come to as the owner of a cribber. While many people assume that cribbing is, essentially, contagious and don’t want their horses to be stabled near one, the research shows that genetic predisposition is a […]
Read MoreIt’s very tempting to go to the racetrack for your next project horse. Off-the-track-Thoroughbreds (OTTBs) are often inexpensive, beautiful and definitely in need of a new career once their success on the racetrack has diminished. I’ve owned three OTTBs and have looked at several more during my horse purchasing adventures. Over the past week I’ve […]
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