10 common questions
A guide for new horse owners
by Dr. Patty Glover

It happens all the time; a new horse owner develops questions.  With said questions in hand, they set out to find some answers.  They talk to the local feed store, their best friend, their neighbor, their best friends’ neighbor, their trainer and their vet.  After all of these discussions – they have finally discovered the truth!  Ask the same question of six horsemen and you will gather six very different answers!  Some of the answers might be plain wrong and some right, but more often than not they are just different.  I suppose that is the beauty of free thought.  There is more than one way to do things and still end up with the same result.

In an effort to save horse owners, old and new alike, a little frustration I’d like to offer some horse ownership suggestions.  Some of my insight comes from years of horse ownership, some comes from my constant study of equine behavior and natural horsemanship, but most of it comes from my veterinary education! 

Here are my 10 most common conversations with horse owners:

1. There are no stupid questions!  Trust me I’ve heard it all, from can you use invisible fence for horses, to why does his sheath smell, to can’t you just feed them kitchen scraps?  While these seem like laughable topics to some of you, the important thing is they weren’t to the owner.  These were questions they developed because the owners just didn’t know.  If there is something you are unsure about, you should ask someone who knows more about it than you!  If my truck makes a horrible noise going down the highway, I call my mechanic.  If my kitchen sink explodes, I call my plumber.  When new horse owners have questions they often call me.  Better to ask and be safe, then to not ask and have an accident.  If someone asks you something, please be kind enough to answer respectfully.  The horses will thank you for it!
2. Pick someone who you trust and go to them consistently for answers.  It is absolutely fine to ask 100 people the same question, but then you can’t get frustrated with 100 different answers.  I suggest you ask your questions based upon area of expertise, your trainer can better answer the riding questions, while your veterinarian can better answer the health care questions.  While my best friend is hugely sympathetic that an exploding kitchen sink is not a great thing, she also doesn’t have a knowledge base to help me find a solution.  But my plumber not only knows why it happened, he knows how to fix it and leaves my kitchen safe and happy once again! 
3. Horses need shelter and safe fencing.  Large heated barns are lovely, but they aren’t necessary.  What horses need is (a) safety and (b) protection from wind and driving precipitation.  There are at least ten different types of horse fencing that I see on a daily basis.  Which type you use isn’t of consequence to me as long as its safe fencing.  Safe fencing could be defined as sturdy so as not to be pushed over, of adequate height to keep your critters in, no sharp edges/nails/screws poking out and a continuous construction so it doesn’t have gaps in it.  Horses were designed for outdoor living and do extremely well living outside with a three sided shelter or lean-to.  Ideally the opening of the shelter would point south or east to protect them from the northwesterly winds. 
4. Horses need veterinary care.  When picking a veterinarian it is not only important that they understand how to best care for your horse, but also that you get along well with them.  While most clients see their veterinarian for routine visits, inevitably if you own horses long enough you will have an emergency.  Our clinic has multiple doctors, and it is common for clients to develop a relationship with a particular doctor.  However, when an emergency arises most clients are glad they saw different doctors on routine appointments so they had a comfort level with them prior to a high stress situation. 
5. Horses need routine vaccinations and deworming.  There is some variability in what they need when based upon their exposure to other horses, what they do for a living and their age.  Your veterinarian can set up the best vaccine and deworming schedule for your specific horse.  On average horses need to be dewormed every two months and vaccinated every six months.  We have sample vaccine and deworming protocols on our website at glequinewellness.com.
6. Horses need their teeth cared for annually.  Horse teeth continuously erupt, which means they get taller as the horse ages and are then worn down as they chew.  When they are young they have a long tooth root inside their cheek bone, when they are senior citizens there is only a short bit of tooth root left inside their cheek bone.  Because horses grind their food in a circular pattern, and the fact that the upper jaw is wider than the lower jaw, they develop sharp points on the outside of their upper teeth and the inside of their lower teeth.  These points can cause them pain as they chew or when wearing halters and bridles.  Veterinarians “float” the horse’s teeth using hand or motorized tools and essentially rasp off those points.  Many horses have major abnormalities in the shape of their teeth, such as hooks or ramps; these can be corrected at the time of floating too.  As with any exam, having their teeth looked at annually allows us to catch minor problems before they become major problems!  
7. Sheath cleaning should be performed as a regular part of your gelding or stallion’s preventative health care routine. The “sheath” (or the anatomically correct term, prepuce,) refers to the folds of skin surrounding the penis.   Inside the sheath they develop a buildup of smegma, which is primarily dead skin cells, sweat, oils from the skin and dirt.  This smegma can build up on the penis as well and forms a “bean” or firm ball of build up inside the urethral grooves as well.  Smegma accumulation also causes discomfort and is a common cause of tail rubbing.  Incidentally, mares can develop a smegma build up on their udders and will rub their tails as well.  Because smegma is carcinogenic, horses have a statistically high rate of a certain cancer that grows on the penis.  Regular sheath cleaning is recommended to remove the smegma, and thoroughly examine the sheath and penis for any tumors or pre-cancerous changes in the skin.  If caught early the cancer can be easily treated with a topical chemotherapy cream.
8. Horses are grazing animals.  Horses were designed by their grand creator to eat small amounts of roughage (grass or hay) all day long.  Wild horses graze upon vast areas that are primarily arid desert or mountain regions.  These areas looking very little like our lush green pastures.   When we domesticated horses and discovered we could use their speed and energy we got the bright idea to feed them grain.  While the grain worked to offer them a power boost, so to speak, we forgot to change their intestinal tract to better digest it!  Horses need roughage and their diet balanced on the basis of protein, vitamin and mineral.  What horses do not need is a lot of excess calories or a high level of simple sugars (simple carbohydrates).  Ideally most horses would be fed hay, possibly pasture and then a ration balancer to make their diet well balanced.  Ration balancers (such as Buckeye Grow N Win, Progressive Ration Balancer or Purina Born to Win) are pelleted feeds primarily composed of protein, vitamin and mineral.  They are not high in calories or starch.  Some horses (BUT NOT MANY) may need extra calories because of their job in life and thus might need “grain”.  It is fine to feed grass hay or alfalfa hay!  In some parts of the country grass hay is hard to grow so they primarily feed alfalfa to their horses and yet somewhere along the line horse owners got the impression that alfalfa is the devil.  Alfalfa is higher in protein and calcium than grass hay, thus your ration balancer will be slightly different and most alfalfa in WI is grown for dairy cattle so it is often too stemmy for horses.  But if you had a nice soft alfalfa, it isn’t the end of the world to feed it to your healthy horse.  On that note, alfalfa won’t make your horse “hot” either.  I often hear people suggest that protein made their horses too hot to handle.  Protein won’t make them crazy, sugar does.  Think of your kids after 5 cokes and a snickers bar!  Most grains, sweet feed and green grasses are LOADED with sugar and this will not only make your horse a chubby marshmallow pony but it will make them nuts!  Talk to your veterinarian about what diet best suits your horse.
9. Horses need consistent hoof care.  Horse’s feet are best picked out every day and usually need to be trimmed every six to eight weeks.   A good farrier is not only integral to the health of your horse’s feet, but they are also worth their weight in gold.  I do my best to make my farriers’ job easier by having my horse clean and ready when he arrives.  I have a clean, level and well lit space available for him to work in and I teach my horse to politely pick up his feet.  While farrier’s are very adept at picking up a naughty horse’s feet I am pretty certain they (a) don’t love having to do it and (b) their bodies complain about it later!
10. Horses need leadership. Horses are not robots. Horses are amazing, lovely, living breathing creatures with their own mind and the ability to make decisions.  Like any person, some days they make great decisions while other days their decisions may be more trying.  The horse you buy may be very well trained when you bring them home, but they are not designed to stay that way without any input.  Having a trainer or taking lessons is an excellent way to ensure that your horsemanship skills continually improve thus allowing your relationship with your horse to blossom.  The most dedicated experts in any riding modality may continue to take lessons all of their lives, there is no “knowledge limit” on when one must stop taking lessons.  In fact, the smartest people I know always say they learn things every day just by being around other people in their profession. 

Horse ownership can be a lifelong endeavor in finding the ideal blend of all the different aspects of care I've discussed.  Please do not hesitate to contact our office at 920-779-4444, we are happy to help you in finding the best balance for your equine companion(s)!