Indholdsfortegnelse for Summer 2020 i Practical Horseman

When COVID-19 swept through the United States, it took a toll on human life and the economy. As hospitals sprang into action, businesses shuttered and the scramble for provisions began, animal rescue organizations started bracing for the worst, knowing that surrenders and possible starvation cases weren’t far behind. At Drifter’s Hearts of Hope, a 501(c)(3) equine rescue in Franktown, Colorado, President Jacqui Avis and Director of Fundraising Rachelle Nye sought to head this problem off at the pass. They knew better than most that it’s seldom cheap to feed or care for horses, having rescued more than 460 to date. “We had experienced an increase in owner-surrender requests [people who ask to relinquish ownership of a horse to the rescue] and had seen a decrease in people interested in adopting…

The horses are surprisingly calm as they walk down the bustling steel and concrete corridor of New York City’s Fifth Avenue. A few of their riders are somber, subdued by the gravity of the ride’s purpose. Others are giddy, happy to be here---to be alive. Bright yellow ribbons ornament the horses’ manes, fluttering gently as they catch the breeze. The ribbons aren’t festive decorations, however. Each bears the name of a veteran lost to suicide. Mitchell Reno was almost one of those ribbons. By 2004, combat tours in Afghanistan and Iraq had left the former infantryman shattered—both physically and mentally. Unprepared for re-entry into civilian life, Reno spent the next decade intent on self-destruction, mired in dark thoughts, chasing comfort through alcohol and pills. “When I say I was at-risk,…

If you love a sparkling-clean horse as much as I do, you might be tempted to bathe your horse frequently, even when you’re not showing. This can be beneficial: Dried sweat can lead to skin irritations, and really dirty, dusty horses tend to rub their manes and tails, breaking off hairs. But washing your horse too frequently or with caustic products can lead to dry skin and even cause hairs to fall out. During the hottest, stickiest part of the summer, it’s OK to rinse your horse off daily, but try to limit shampooing to just a few times per month, if possible. Save bluing or whitening shampoos and rinses for pre-show baths, unless you’re working on a really yellow tail, which might take multiple soaks/washings over several weeks to…

Whether you keep a horse at home or board one elsewhere, chances are you have been affected by COVID-19. Here are some additional tips and links to assist horse owners financially strapped by the pandemic. To help reduce costs, the United Horse Coalition suggests the following: • Turn out horses as long as possible to save on the costs of feed, hay and bedding.• Increase hay consumption and decrease grain and supplements as much as possible.• With your farrier, discuss the possibility of pulling your horse's shoes.• Reach out to others and share resources in community collaboration. Do you need to stop riding? As long as you feel healthy and observe reasonable precautions—and as long as your facility is open—you might consider continuing with your routine. Exercise is good for…

1 First impression: Both the rider’s position and turnout are excellent. Leg: Her foot is correctly in the stirrup and the angles in her ankle and knee are appropriate for this size fence. She seems to be pinching with her knee a little, causing her lower leg to slide back. I’d like her to relax her knee and have her calf a little more against the horse to let her lower leg establish her balance. Seat: I like the rider’s hip angle, and her seat is nicely out the saddle. Release: She’s demonstrating a nice short crest release, giving enough for the horse to use himself. Upper body: Her back looks relaxed but not roached, and her eyes are up and ahead, looking at the next fence. Horse: He looks…

Dressage clinics tend to have a reliably serious tone and atmosphere, but this year’s Adequan®/USDF FEI-Level Trainers Conference combined quality instruction with ample doses of entertainment, thanks to the synergy of the four featured experts. Ashley Holzer brought bright energy and wisdom to the event, while fellow Olympian Lars Petersen contributed practical advice and clever quips that stirred the crowd. FEI***** judge Anne Gribbons revealed time-tested observations from her years of training and judging, which were peppered with parallels to greater life lessons—“Timing is everything in riding, as in life,” she mused at one point. Rockwell, also a five-star judge, with his unmistakable deep voice and polished ways, offered honest but fair observations. Retired five-star judge Lilo Fore moderated the event with her upbeat nature and a broad grin. Held…

After thoroughly rinsing the shampoo off your horse, consider using a diluted apple cider vinegar rinse to bring out the shine of his coat and repel bugs. The best way to clean a gray horse or get socks and stockings sparkling white is with a diluted bluing rinse. Use a white bucket so you can judge the color accurately (too much bluing can literally turn your horse blue!). You can combine vinegar and bluing in the same rinse. 1 Fill the bucket with warm water and add just enough vinegar to turn the water brownish. If you’re using bluing, add enough to turn the water one or two shades darker than sky blue, but not as dark as navy or royal blue. 2 Dunk the tail into the bucket and…

For me, the warm-up is first and foremost the building block toward what we want to achieve with the rest of our ride. For this reason, I prefer a very structured, systematic approach to my riding that begins with the warmup. Whether I’m riding green or Grand Prix horses, the warm-up is about knowing I can do three things: 1. Check and train my horse’s reactions to my seat, leg and rein 2. Check and test my ability to regulate the length of my horse’s stride 3. Check and test my ability to control his overall shape Every moment I am sitting on my horse’s back, I am teaching him something, and the warm-up is no different. The work has to be directly relatable to his training. I want to…

The featured photo shows Suzanne Whitman on her 12-year-old Dutch gelding named Contego. They have shown First Level, are ready for Second Level and are schooling some Third Level movements. For Suzanne, it is especially important to learn to ride with light aids, as she says that she has chronic illnesses that make it particularly challenging for her to develop strength in her own body. Fortunately, riding is the one sport where strength is not necessarily the most important factor in success. This enables women and men to compete equally, and it enables riders to compete even when they get older. For example, only in the equestrian sport is it possible that top riders like Steffen Peters and Laura Graves can compete on the same team. Coordination, balance and a…

Wearing a wireless headset and sitting in his wheelchair while teaching a jumping lesson, Kevin Babington didn’t hesitate for a second when asked whether he thinks about riding again. “If I could get up on a horse, I would do it in a heartbeat,” replied Kevin, who was left a quadriplegic from a spinal cord injury sustained in a fall August 30 at the Hampton Classic in Bridgehampton, New York. On the screened-in porch that has a view of the ring at his farm in Loxahatchee, Florida, Kevin is a long way from being the rider who finished fourth individually in the 2004 Olympics. But he’s also a long way from the man who was left nearly motionless after his top mount, Shorapur, fell with him in the Long Island…

Your horse’s joints are made of three basic components, each of which needs to stay healthy to maintain the integrity of the joint. These include the bones, the connective tissues that form both an inner lining of the joint (joint membrane) and its outer envelope (joint capsule) and the elastic connective tissue covering the ends of each bone surface (articular cartilage). All joints deteriorate over time as part of the natural aging process. While classically a breakdown in the cartilage layer has been deserving of the label “osteoarthritis,” inflammation of any of these three fundamental structures can contribute to degenerative joint disease. Regular observation of your horse’s legs can reveal telltale signs that a joint problem is developing. An early sign of joint inflammation is increased fluid within the joint,…