Caring for your Horse

The correct selection and fitting of gear is very important if you want your horse to be relaxed and to be able to work for you without being uncomfortable or in pain.

Restrictive nosebands, which are increasingly popular in the equestrian disciplines of dressage, are designed to prevent horses from opening their mouths during competition. Sometimes designs, such as the ‘crank’ nosebands, have a pulley mechanism that allows them to be fastened very easily.

A domestic horse needs access to shade and shelter. A free living (wild or feral horse) can seek these out when necessary but a domestic horse can only make the best of what is provided for them. So it is important that you provide these facilities for your horse/s.

For domestic horses the answer is yes, no, and maybe!

Horses naturally live in herds and a normal horse is never alone by choice. These facts drive the behaviour of horses and cause them to do some of the things that can seem irrational to us – such as panic if they get separated from other horses.

Horses require lots of daily exercise because they are essentially grazing athletes. When you own a horse you need to know that exercise is a very important part of caring for a horse.

Grooming should be undertaken as part of your routine horse care. Basic grooming involves brushing the whole of the body in the direction of the hair growth to remove mud and dust, and also picking out the feet.

All horses must have access to clean drinking water 24 hours a day. Horses should always be provided with more water than they need so that there is no risk of them not getting enough to drink. How much water does my horse actually need?