Horses rarely need a blanket/rug in winter. Some that are not acclimated do, or ones that never grow a winter coat, but most are fine with NO covering, up to some really cold temps, too.

 

As a continuation:

"You are making your horse a "hard-keeper."
While some horses are genuinely hard-keepers, I have heard people call their underweight-although-fed-twelve-pounds-of-sweet-feed-daily horse a hard-keeper. As it turns out, once the horse is fed free-choice, good quality grass and hay, they are not a genuine hard-keeper.

 

To the no blanketing, much depends on the weather. Any stock will take sub zero temperatures but driving wind and rain will chill them to the marrow.

We have been getting very wet winters in the U.K. for several years. I have had horses standing with their tails to the weather, heads down and hunched backs shivering a weeks worth of grub off in a couple of hours.

They are somcold that they do not want to move from where they are standing even for hay and feed. Blanket them and they are fine.

 

Yes, to the no blanketing, I have found it necessary to blanket my 21 yr old gelding. He hates the cold. He does grow a good coat, but coughs when it gets very cold (and it gets VERY cold here). So yeah, one thing I've learned about horses is that just when you think there's a hard and fast rule, a horse comes along and forces you to reconsider that.

One opinion I have that seems unpopular, at least around my parts, is that I don't believe you need to make a horse fear you. I personally get much more out of my relationship with my horses by spending a lot of time bonding with them, rather than teaching them that I'm the boss. I've tried a lot of different approaches, and while I do not allow my horses to have dangerous behaviors, I do spend a lot more time just bonding with them, playing, rubbing, and just hanging out rather than making them do my bidding. It might not be the way to win the most ribbons, but it makes me happier, and my horses too.

 

"Mother Nature and Father Time heals most things."

Too many people want to try the latest gadget they've seen advertised. Or jump to injections. Or start pestering their vet for stem cell therapy (sometimes even before they have a diagnosis!). Or heard about blistering from someone and want it for the slightest sprain.

Often if we let nature and time work with a horse's ability to heal, the horse has a great outcome.

All the above is why I only take referrals on horses whose owners I know, who are working with veterinarians I know.

 

"If a horse is only sound when shod/booted, then the horse is not sound."
I understand that shoes/boots can be helpful, but if your horse must wear shoes/boots from birth to death or otherwise will be lame, then the horse is not sound. I am not talking about horses that are uncomfortable on uneven, hard ground; I am talking about horses that are lame without shoes/boots on flat, soft ground (like a sand arena). I am cautious of those who say, "My horse is perfectly sound, but..."

 

"Your horse does not need to be clipped."
Clipping is a good consideration if you have a horse with cushings, very badly neglected coat ("makeover"), not properly acclimated to the weather, or if you ride hard in the winter. Otherwise, your horse does not need to be clipped.
Unless the horse grows a thick winter coat and the winter is very mild, most backyard riders do not need to clip their horse. For very hard-working horses, clipping may be a good idea, but riding a couple of times per week is not "hard-working."
Most healthy horses with a proper summer coat do not need to be clipped simply because it is summer; they do a very good job self-regulating and do not need our "help."

 

"Some horses just need to be twitched/sedated/pained in order to be clipped/bathed/farrier/etc."

Nope, you need to throw your clock out the window and work through whatever problem that you believe needs to be resolved with pain/sedation, with no time requirement to get results attached.

Building a relationship with a horse before forcing uncomfortable/scary things onto a horse often decreases the reaction you will get. Building a relationship + introducing the scary/uncomfortable things in a low pressure situation often has any reactions disappear.

Any show barn I've been at or worked in, there was always chains, twitches, and melatonin available while clipping horses (experienced, regional show horses). The first time I clipped my mare, she had never seen the clippers before, but I spent time building our relationship. When the clippers came out, I just had to talk to her, and I was able to roach her mane in one go, with no fuss. Same for her first bath, no fuss, just trust in me. And when she had a deep puncture wound that required first aid treatment, she was in pain but she had trust. And all of this was done with a mare that I bought with zero leading/handling/catching ability when I started.

Just slow down, people.

 

I couldn't gree more with you

 

Keeping horses in a stall for most of the day doesn't make them safer or happier in most situations. Usually, the opposite is true.

I was reminded of this today when my boss was talking about a barn fire that happened recently where horses were almost trapped inside if they weren't let out on time. On the same day a few miles away, a giant tent held up by thick metal poles began collapsing onto show ground stalls while horses were inside them during a thunder storm. My boss's horse was safely removed from the tent but then got a nasty bite wound on his face from having to share a trailer with a stranger's horse during their emergency escape.

 

Keeping horses in a stall for most of the day doesn't make them safer or happier in most situations. Usually, the opposite is true.

I was reminded of this today when my boss was talking about a barn fire that happened recently where horses were almost trapped inside if they weren't let out on time. On the same day a few miles away, a giant tent held up by thick metal poles began collapsing onto show ground stalls while horses were inside them during a thunder storm. My boss's horse was safely removed from the tent but then got a nasty bite wound on his face from having to share a trailer with a stranger's horse during their emergency escape.

right! Keeping horses in a stall is unethical and it goes against all natural instincts. Please let a horse be a horse... If your horse is hurt and needs to stand still I can understand, but otherwise... No. Just no.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Good-Horse-N...rds=a+good+horse+is+never+a+bad+color&qid=1595643465&s=books&sr=1-2&tag=mh0b-20




:smile:

 

Having rehabbed many injured horses I can say that if a horse has to have stall rest, they do not need to become total nut cases.

Most of this depends on the type of stable they are stalled in. A larger stable with plenty of light and air and the ability to see what is going on and they soon settle to their changed situation.

As for clipping, all horses that were in work during the winter were clipped fully and stabled (they did get turn out on their day off) it is nigh impossible to keep a horse fit for Fox Hunting or racing if they have a full coat. They just sweat to much, take to long to cool down and often will break out in a cold sweat hours later

 

I like lots of these!

Here's my offering: not all rescue horses should be rescued. Look on the rescue websites and you'll see a lot of very old, chronically unsound, or very difficult horses. These animals use up a lot of the care, feed, and acreage that otherwise could go to usable healthy young horses. In a more practical time, they would have been put down, and quite probably turned into meat and leather and horsehair.

 

"It is good for a horse to be "sour" (barn, buddy, herd, et cetera.)
Of course, it is bad if the horse is constantly fighting to get back, but otherwise, it is good. Should you become dismounted and your horse runs off (like during a big spook), you know where they will be going. If you trail ride and you get lost, drop the reins and the horse will take you back. I ride alone and my directional skills are absolutely abysmal. There is often not good cell service and no maps, so I have needed to ask my horse to take me back. My "sour" horse probably has saved me for I would be been forever lost.

 

Not sure how "unpopular" most of these opinions are. How about things like:

1 - There is no great value to keeping heels, hip & shoulders in a vertical line. In fact, it is often bad riding to do so.

2 - Horses don't "round" their backs. They can't. Nor is there a 'circle of energy'.

3 - "Heels down" is grossly overrated. Same for "Toes front".

4 - Moving up to a curb bit is A) NOT moving up in pressure, and B) Useful with many nervous / bolting horses. In fact, snaffle bits are overrated and a curb bit can be gentler than a bitless bridle.

5 - Collection isn't "proper movement" for a horse. Horses know how to move better than we know how they move.

6 - Sitting trots are needlessly hard on a horse's back.

7 - It is fine for a western saddle to extend onto the loin. They pretty much ALL do.

8 - If your horse is nervous, it can help to dismount and lead them past scary things. If your horse views your dismounting as a reward, then what does that say about your riding?

9 - "Ask, Tell, Demand" is often used as an excuse for abusive behavior. So is, "Make the right choice easy and the wrong choice hard."

10 - Many "horse sports" are human sports and many riding lessons are counterproductive to understanding horses.

I've taken heat for all of those. PS: A horse who knows his way home and is happy to go home is not a "barn sour" horse, IMHO. Barn sour refers to a horse who resists leaving home, or who will try to take over and race home.

 

"We should accept non-compliance from a horse."
Horses are not machines and never will be; they will never be 100% compliant. However, most people train for the most compliant horse possible, stating that we should never accept when a horse says, "no." Actually, a horse that says "no" can be safer than one that always says "yes." Horses know. There is a reason that there is a saying: "when in doubt, let your horse do the thinking." I asked my horse to cross a meadow (one that we never been to before), but she said "no" through balking. Me, being the "boss", booted her forward. Little did I know that the "meadow" was actually a marshland, completely wet. She sank in the mud chest-high and got stuck almost immediately. I sank and got stuck too. We were out in the middle of nowhere with no cell service. Bad situation. It took us a while to get out and we were both tired. Long story short, I should have listened to her telling me "no." My mistake, but I learned from it. The next time, when I asked her to cross a creek, she said "no". I dismounted and checked the footing. It was quick-mud, like that "meadow." Good horse. Self-preservation is a good thing.

(Of course, "no" should not be the horse trying to kick your head off or take advantage of you.)

 

My unpopular opinion: I don't like rope halters.

 

The kindest thing you can do for a horse is train it well.


I don't understand people who keep a horse as an untrained pasture pet just because they never got around to saddle breaking it. I'm not talking about injured or retired horses here. Life happens. If suddenly you can't care for that 7 year old barely halter broke horse, where do you think it's going?

On the other hand, one of my horses is a 20 year old grade gelding with arthritis. He's utterly safe and trustworthy with kids. I plan to keep him for the rest of his life, but if I ever had to sell, I'd have people lined up to buy him. He's nothing special on paper, but his training almost guarantees him a good life.

 

Well, there are other sides to this one, although in theory I completely agree. My mare, now nine, was picked up from the SPCA as a filly by my friend who intended to train her for her niece. Well, my friend has a rare bone condition and she got bucked off a different horse, broke her spine, and once recovered decided to follow her doctor's advice and stay off horses. Now she's got a halter broke filly in a 30 acre pasture with other horses (and cows and sheep and goats). The filly is grade, plain brown, small, untrained -- this isn't a saleable horse. What to do with her other than send to the auction to be sold by weight? That was the puzzle until she hit on the idea of giving her to me.

Then there's my free pony, out of somebody's pasture where she was gathering moss -- also quite pretty, middleaged, and apparently unbroken. When I got her I thought your thought -- I have to put some training into her so in case something happens to me she'll be saleable. Guess what? She did NOT want to be trained. This pony was thoroughly ruined by someone early on, and it would take a genius trainer to bring her back from that. And it would take, yes, years of exquisitely patient work. There are horses like that. I have one. She is a pasture companion pony, and that is all she can muster herself for.

So, like I said, in theory yes, in practice, not so simple.

 

"Backyard breeders are selfish."
There is no good reason for a backyard-breeder to breed. There are literally thousands of good horses without homes and going to slaughter. You do not need to breed your unknown breed, grade, or questionable-lineaged mare. The reasons that I have heard are selfish. "I want the experience." You can buy a foal or untouched horse. You do not need to put your mare at risk for the "experience." "I want the money from the foal." Pumping out sub-par foals by an okay-stallion out of an okay-mare is not a good source of income. Sure, the foal may be decent and do well in competitions, but there are many good-quality horses out there and your "just okay" foal is not one of them.

 

"Foals do not need to be imprinted."
It is good to work with foals and teach them young, but they do not need to be imprinted, especially by the inexperienced. Let the mother and the baby bond; let what has been naturally happening since the beginning of the horse happen. Inexperienced people read these imprinting articles about making the horse "like people" and "easier to handle before it gets big" and try it. They usually do it incorrectly and overstimulate the baby and/or ruin the bonding process between the mare and foal. When that happens, they blame the mare for rejecting the foal. If you must imprint the horse otherwise it will become too hard to handle when it is older, then you have no business with horses, breeding, and imprinting. The horse is the best teacher of the horse. Some of the best horses are the non-imprinted ones left to bond with the mother and put out with other horses to teach them some manners. Imprinting often plays with the feelings ("aww, poor little baby") and causes a lack of discipline. Lack of disciple is the real danger - not the lack of imprinting.

 

Okay here we go! :p



Riding horses is ethically questionable. They never gave us permission to crawl on top of them and ride around. We ride horses because we enjoy it. Most people mostly look at their own enjoyment and don't consider the perspective of the animal enough.



Riding with a bit is needless.


Equestrian sports: a lot of horses really hate this. (some of the horses genuinely love it though)



Horses try to communicate really badly with us but we (often) don't understand.



Getting your mare together with a stallion you picked is getting her raped. You don't tie up a horse and let her have intercourse with another animal. Animals do have feelings and characters.


Insemination: okay but too bad horses can't enjoy some free ahem... They would benefit from it

 

oh yeah I have some more :

Horses are entitled to their opinions. Some of them really don't like their jobs (we created for them btw...) and don't want to be ridden. We need to leave these horses alone and certainly not breed them.

Breeding horses for color is not that smart, you should breed them for character and health

A lot of colors and breeding practices are bad. There's a reason mother nature made horses look the way they look. If you alter too much it goes wrong.

I have seen a lot of so called equestrians with years of experience that handle their horses like crap. If your own horse doesn't even like you I for sure don't trust you. Sorry not sorry.

If my friend her horse dislikes someone there must be a good reason and I am suspicious about that person too even if he/she seems so nice


dressage is boring and english saddles are mismade. Why would you make tack that makes it more difficult for the rider?



Riding schools are living hell for most horses. They must be bored out of their minds. A sad existence for most (there are exceptions)

 

Another one "Your horse doesn't have to be outside so much". " Most of the day they just stand around anyway, so they don't really have to be outside"

 

@bsms 5,8.9 YES! (some) English riders... what's up with letting the horse curl it's head so extreme and pull on the reins? That's not natural. I also don't understand that if a horse free jumps he extends his neck and head but if a human is on top they pull back the head?? It looks painfull and irritating for the horse. Also I am not entirely sure if it is needed to jump with horses...

 

I think it is good to distinguish between a preference and an opinion. I dislike riding in western saddles but I do not think they are wrong. I think they are wrong for me. I'd also like to gently suggest that, while horses have their opinions, and no one likes to be forced to do anything, human beings themselves are daily obliged to do things they would prefer not to. Theologically, that is called "The Fall". We earn our bread by the sweat of our brow and so do horses. I can't think there is something inherently wrong with it. Of course it is wrong to make it any harder than it must be. Everything we do has a consequence. Everything. So it behooves us to be aware of that and to treat all with as much attention and compassion as we can bring to bear. That is going to vary.

Domestic mammals virtually never get to pick their mates. That is in fact the earliest and most persistent sign of domestication -- controlled breeding. You aren't going to get away from that if you keep any kind of animal at all. From my limited observation of horse breeding, the majority of effort is to catch the mare when she is receptive, as it is both dangerous and futile to do otherwise. So your idea of horse rape is erroneous.

 

I'd also like to gently suggest that, while horses have their opinions, and no one likes to be forced to do anything, human beings themselves are daily obliged to do things they would prefer not to. Theologically, that is called "The Fall". We earn our bread by the sweat of our brow and so do horses.

I agree with this. Once I had an instructor, who was a well respected professional, voice his thoughts on horses being worked. He said that people work 8 hour days (if they're lucky!) and asking a horse to work for 1 is not abuse or wrong or inhumane.



It really does put it into perspective that, for example, my horses get to goof off all day doing their own thing. I however, am going to work, cleaning their stalls (do you really have to pee that much!?), getting hay out of the fields and putting it into the lofts (why is it always on the hottest day of the year?!), doing household chores and errands (I absolutely HATE driving around and shopping!). So after all that, I want to saddle up my horse that's loafed around all day and go for a ride--that is perfectly acceptable.



Also, I wonder, if riding was no longer considered humane, what would happen to horses? They are expensive to keep and care for. They are hard work. What would their future look like?

 

Some of mine:

Almost everyone handles jump refusals totally incorrectly.

Leading a horse with a hand right under the chin is a bad practice (unless the horse is a biter), and most people should learn how to do it right (and teach the horse to be led correctly). If you can't lead your horse on a slack line, you both need to go back to school on that.

If a horse wants to avoid a "spooky" area, I turn them before we get there, and then gradually work back towards that place once we've both calmed down. Instead of expecting them to "suck it up" and push them into it. Most big spooks can be avoided by this kind of awareness.

Horses learn not to make mistakes by being allowed to make them, and being shown the correct alternative. Constantly micromanaging a horse to prevent them from making an error is less productive during schooling.

Sometimes you have to "let them win" to get somewhere in training.