The Humane Society of the United States Complete Guide to Horse Care
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TO HORSE COMPLETE CARE GUIDE COMPLETE GUIDE TO COMPLETE GUIDE TO HORSE CARE Both novice and experienced horse caretakers will benefit from The Humane Society of the United States Complete Guide to Horse Care. It’s a beautiful book with vital information, and it will be a great source of information for years to come. HORSE —From the Foreword by Doris Day Founder, The Doris Day Animal Foundation The horse is nature in its finest form. This book asks us to treat horses not as disposable machines, but as living, thinking, feeling animals who teach us to value relationships and take us on a never-ending journey of self improvement. Through horses, we discover our potential, we fuel our CARE dreams. No wonder they still deserve such honor in our modern times. —Pat Parelli Author, Natural Horse-Man-Ship Coauthor, Keeping a Horse the Natural Way A refreshing addition to every horse lover's library, The Humane Society of the United States Complete Guide to Horse Care challenges readers to be responsible stewards of their horses. Erin Harty combines an interesting perspective on the horse's relationship with mankind with practical advice on compassionate care. —Cindy Hale Contributing editor, Horse Illustrated and horsechannel.com Author, Riding for the Blue; A Passion for Horses; Horse Sense and Nonsense erin harty and the Humane staff of Society the humane Press society of the united states erin harty and the staff of the humane society of the united states Erin Harty is a freelance writer and former moderator/administrator of The Chronicle of the Horse’s online discussion forums, which have more than 32,000 registered members. She received her B rating from the United States Pony Clubs and competes in eventing. The Staff of The Humane Society of the United States contributors were Keith Dane, Eric Davis, D.V.M., Holly Hazard, and Deborah Salem. Copyright © 2008 by The Humane Society of the United States. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. Reference to commercial products does not imply endorsement by The Humane Society of the United States. First edition ISBN 798-1-934785-00-3 Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Harty, Erin. The Humane Society of the United States complete guide to horse care / Erin Harty and the Staff of the Humane Society of the United States. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-934785-00-3 1. Horses. I. Humane Society of the United States. II. Title. SF285.3.H36 2008 636.1’083–dc22 2008001876 Printed in the United States of America Humane Society Press The Humane Society of the United States 2100 L Street, NW Washington, DC 20037 Printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper, processed chlorine free and FSC certified, with soy-based ink. Contents Foreword . vii Acknowledgments . ix chapter 1 The Mystique Versus the Reality . 1 chapter 2 The Species . 19 chapter 3 Horses and Humans . 37 iii chapter 4 Should You Get a Horse of Your Own?. 55 chapter 5 Finding Your New Horse. .71 chapter 6 Disciplines . 95 chapter 7 Breeds . 119 chapter 8 Housing . 141 chapter 9 Feeding . 169 chapter 10 Veterinary Care . 191 chapter 11 Farriery . 235 chapter 12 Riding and Training. 245 chapter 13 Competition. 275. iv chapter 14 Stewardship . 287 chapter 15 Activism. 311 Glossary. 333 Index . 345. v Foreword when our animal welfare partners at The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) told us about plans to write and distribute its Complete Guide to Horse Care, I was delighted. Much-needed attention is being paid to the plight of America’s horses, and I know how many people have stepped in to help, with everything from donations to legisla tion to adoption and fostering. vii This project brought back a lot of memories from decades ago of our work to help people care for their dogs and cats. For twenty-five-plus years much of our mission has been to provide information about pet overpopulation and the numbers of companion animals being sacrificed because of a lack of good homes. Happily, animal welfare advocates spurred people to adopt dogs and cats for the first time or to add to the numbers of pets who were already family members. That meant we had many people who either had little or no experience caring for companion animals or were faced with new challenges as more animals were added to the family. We mobilized as information providers, with vehicles such as call-in help lines and newspaper columns. The HSUS’s earlier guides for cat and dog guardians were extremely helpful and are great templates for the necessary information this book provides about caring for horses. Now, even with some seven million horses in the United States, there is a general lack of knowledge about how to help and care for these special animals. People are concerned, but they do not know what to do. Fortunately, The HSUS is stepping in to provide another worthy public service, this time for our horses. The Doris Day Animal Foundation was invited to help fund The Humane Society of the United States Complete Guide to Horse Care, and it was a privilege to say yes. This is a wonderful educational project. We know that, with the right information, people will be better equip - ped to care for their horses. Our message—that caring for horses, like caring for dogs and cats, is a lifetime commitment—will reach those interested in caring for horses. Both novice and experienced horse caretakers will benefit from The Humane Society of the United States Complete Guide to Horse Care. It’s a beautiful book with vital information, and it will be a great source of information for years to come. We’re proud to be involved. Doris Day viii Acknowledgments The authors are grateful for the support of Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, and The Doris Day Animal Foundation and for the contributions of Stacy Segal (research), Paula Jaworski (art direction), Jean Bernard (copyediting), and Fran Jurga and Amy Kolzow (photography). ix CHAPTER The Mystique Versus the Reality few among us likely remember our first introduction to a dog or a cat. But a horse? If you don’t recall every detail of the encounter, there’s almost certainly a photograph tucked away somewhere in a family album that memorializes i t. Perhaps you were riding a pony at a birthday party, patting a police horse on a busy city street, or perching on an equine retiree on a neighbor’s farm. The moment’s significance stems from the fact that horses aren’t common fixtures in the lives of modern-day Americans, so meeting a horse tends to be pretty memorable. But there’s more to it than that. You can see the emotions writ large on the face of a child who’s meeting his first horse—it’s a mixture of wonder, awe, and curiosity, with a dash of trepidation thrown in for good measure. Horses are big. Very, very big. Bigger than most animals we encounter in daily life. That’s the first thing most people notice as they cautiously inch toward a new equine friend. Horses are also strikingly beautiful. Those large, expressive eyes exude a depth of character and intelligence, even in the plainest of horses. The powerful and fluid way a horse moves almost demands admiration and seems to embody the phrase, “poetry in motion.” Horses are just different. While cats and dogs, wonderful creatures in their own rights, trigger our “Aww!” response, horses truly inspire awe. And, of course, a little bit of “Aww!” as well. Although humankind has forged many friendships across the divide that separates us from the rest of the animal kingdom, our relationship with horses is unique, as are the animals themselves. In the beginning, the relationship was a utilitarian one. Generally docile and relatively easy to domesticate, horses were used as beasts of burden and machines of war. We human beings harnessed their strength to plow fields and pull heavy loads, and we carried out on their backs our quest to explore and expand our horizons. As our knowledge grew and technology advanced, horses were replaced with machinery that could transport human beings faster and carry heavier loads. Our relationship changed from one of necessity to one primarily of recreation. Most horses still have “jobs,” however, and are expected to earn their keep in some fashion, whether it’s as a backyard pony who gives rides to the grandkids or as a stakes-winning racehorse with millions of dollars in earnings. For many people, the relationship between an owner and a horse may mirror a boss/employee relationship: human beings, as the “bosses,” are the authority figures. Owners expect their horses to behave as they’ve the humane society of the united states complete guide to horse care 2 been trained to do and to follow human beings’ instructions. They select horses for their “job openings” on the basis of the animals’ qualifications and potential, much as an employer selects a new employee. And owners expect their horses to try hard to succeed in those jobs. There is a dichotomy in this relationship, though—one with which numerous horsemen struggle. In t he past, horses have been thought of primarily as tools, as a means to an end.