Out Around the Barn

I truly love my horse, Blaze.  I have loved animals all my life and horses were always a big part of that love.  As a teenager, I had a gelding named Rourke.  At that time in my life, I had ‘no fear’ and broke him to ride myself.  I had so much fun with him and it really hurt me to have to give him up when I left home.  For twenty plus years I wasn’t around horses and I missed that.  I did not realize that you can become fearful of the one thing that you once loved so much but, I had become afraid.  Not as much as afraid of the animal as it was getting hurt by it.  I had to face my fears and start over. 

So, I started slowly and then bought me a Paint mare, Dallas.  She seemed to ride well and do okay when we watched her in the arena.  Once home and on the farm I realized that I had made a mistake.  Buying her was the worst thing I did.  She was not with the program and seemed to have a mind all her own.  She threw me every time I’d try to ride her and that even made my fears worse.  It didn’t matter how much I done ground work with her she would go right back to her old habits and she became dangerous for me.  My daughter didn’t think I needed to keep her and that she wasn’t safe, as well as my partner so, I traded her for an 8 yr.old gelding.  Blaze was gentle to handle and I could ride him with ease.  It felt good to get some self confidence back.

Well, now that I have a horse, I thought I needed to look into buying a saddle and bridle.  Allen has several already but, I wanted my own.  Boy, was I surprised at all the information you needed to know on how to fit a saddle.  I soon discovered that just because a saddle looks good, doesn’t mean it will fit your horse.  If a saddle doesn’t fit right it can cause serious problems for your horse such as saddle sores or pressure sores.  A saddle built for a quarter horse, with a round back, will not fit a horse with high withers.  If a saddle does not fit snug and it constantly slides back and forth it can cause blisters to flare up or if the horse is not used to having a saddle on for any length of time this can also cause a problem.  If this should occur and you have to ride your horse, ride him bareback until the sores heal.

These are all things to consider when owning a horse.  Even when you get the saddle you want and it fits right, you have to have a saddle rack to store it on.  The saddle always needs to be free of mud and hair or any other debris, especially the girth area.  Make sure you wipe it down after each use.  Always keep it in a dry area and stored off of the floor.  A good saddle blanket is also a good thing to own.

It doesn’t take a lot to keep a horse happy.  You can put him on pasture and he’ll do okay but, we like to feed ours a little grain in the morning before we turn them out to pasture and then in the evening we’ll give them about 2 lbs. of grain when we put them in their stalls for the night.  Along with their evening feed we add horse vitamins and supplements to help with their growth and joints.  In the winter they are supplied with hay to keep them satisfied and full.

One thing to remember is to never put a saddle on your horse without brushing him/her first.  This can help prevent sores and your horse will love you for it.

Someone said the other day that they really liked horses but that he can’t ride because he gets sores on his behind and that he could not ever be a farm person.  I told him that just because he got saddle sores once does not mean that he can’t ride, he would just have to do it again and not for a long period.  Just take short rides and get used to it.  He didn’t think so.  I hear people all the time talk of their love for horses and how they want to come ride.  They just don’t realize the care you need to take in preparing one to ride. 

Like I said, I love my horse and every thing that we need to do to before we ride is worth the effort.  Our horses are our friends, pals, pets and for some money makers.  So here’s to our horses!