Snow Flakes and Icicles

Winter's arrived!! In some regions of the country it came in with a howl......in others with just a whimper. Here in California winter came in cold but we sure could use some rain and snow in the high Sierra. Water is running sort of slow and pastures haven't started to green up fully yet which means still have to feed those pasture horses.

With the cold nights comes long hair. Even with a blanket on, horses get long hair not so much because it's cold but because there's less sun light so Mother Nature just provides for her creatures by growing longer hair. Less sun means less warmth.

If you've got a blanket on your horse, be sure to take it off and check the hair and skin condition underneath. Blanket may keep the horse warm but hair can get matted and skin needs to be brushed at least once a week. If the horse is in pasture, make sure to keep blankets on straight and they don't get to hanging on one side or the other where a hoof can get caught up in the straps when the horse lies down or rolls. And horses with blankets on WILL roll!!

Don't forget to regulate feed with the cold, snow and wet weather too. Horses require more calories to burn when the temperature starts to drop so extra feed in the form of hay or grain or pellets should be available. With my horses, I feed extra amounts of hay at night so the horses have more to nibble on when it's dark. It keeps them busy and by keeping busy they keep the body warmer. Calories burn and provide body heat. So adjust that night time feeding to include something extra.

With winter hair you can't really tell how fat that horse is. A horse with a lot of hair will look -- and feel -- fleshed out but in reality, needs some more groceries to put more weight on. Come spring a lot of 'fat' winter horses suddenly take on a thin look because winter hair starts to come off and the true condition of the horse's body is shown.

Christmas has come and gone and New Year's is looking us in the face right now. Time to start thinking about New Year's resolutions -- not the normal ones everyone makes but ones you're going to keep this year. One good resolution would be to "ride my horse more". And if you can't "ride more", plan to get out to the barn and be "with" the horse at least an extra day a week. With jobs, families and other responsibilies all fighting for our time just "riding" can take extra planning. So plan that resolution to include riding. You'll not only be happy you did but so will your horse -- he'd like to see ya' more often and get out of the pasture and barn and onto a trail!

Take care and Happy New Year to everyone.........

Bonnie Davis
horsecamping@comcast.net