November 2008

Fade to Gray

November 21, 2008

Gray is a common horse color that’s tricky to pin down.

At age 2, All American Futurity winner AB What A Runner, owned by Dennie and Kris Hill of Blackfoot, Idaho, was a steel gray.

At age 2, All American Futurity winner AB What A Runner, owned by Dennie and Kris Hill of Blackfoot, Idaho, was a steel gray.

By Andrea Caudill

If your dream horse is a handsome dark gray and you want him to stay that way forever, he’d best be on a poster on your wall. The gray color is confusing and frustrating, because while a horse’s coat may be dark and dappled when young, it progressively turns white as he ages.

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Martingale and Draw Rein Safety

November 21, 2008

Avoid accidents by using training aids correctly.

Hook draw reins to the girth D rings.

Martingales and draw reins are important tools in many training programs. However, they must be used correctly in order to teach your horse how to carry himself.

AQHA Professional Horseman Tommy Sheets offers this advice on proper martingale and draw rein use, to keep these training tools safe and effective.

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Wrap it Right

November 20, 2008

Reasons to wrap your horse’s legs, and ways to do it right.

To prevent tendon damage, wrap a horse’s leg from the inside around the front of the leg. This means wrapping clockwise on right legs and counterclockwise on left legs.

A leg wrap has the correct amount of tension if you can get two fingers under it below the pastern and one finger under the wrap at the top.

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Types of Horse Shows

November 19, 2008

With so many showing options, there aren’t enough weekends in the year.

What type of horse show fits your lifestyle?

What type of horse show fits your lifestyle?

With the AQHA World Championship Show taking place right now in Oklahoma City, it’s easy to develop a show bug. Not sure how to get involved in the excitement of showing American Quarter Horses?

Check out these descriptions of the types of shows that offer AQHA points.

Then visit the online Show Schedule to map out the shows near you. All that’s left to do is hook up the trailer and hit the road!

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Your Horse’s Head Position

November 18, 2008

It’s important not to make problems worse by misusing training aids.

By Martin Black

Martin Black

Visit Martin Black's Web site

Why do some horses have more trouble with their head position than others? This is a common issue with horse people, regardless of whether it’s a trainer with performance horses or recreational riders. Often, the solution is tying the head down or using leverage gimmicks that apply more pressure. In most cases, the person ends up identifying the symptom as the problem.

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Moorhouse Ranch Honored

November 18, 2008

This legendary ranch won the 2008 AQHA/Bayer Best Remuda Award.

Buy Best Remuda photos!

Buy Best Remuda photos!

Moorhouse Ranch Company of Benjamin, Texas, recently won the 2008 AQHA/Bayer Best Remuda Award, which honors ranches that are preserving our Western heritage while raising quality American Quarter Horses.

The ranch is owned and managed by Tom Moorhouse and includes 50,000 acres. The ranch’s remuda has 32 mares, 65 geldings and two stallions. Today’s cattle operation includes 1,200 cows and 1,000 stockers.

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Your Very Own Racehorse

November 17, 2008

Share the fun of owning a racehorse and experience bigger thrills at the racetrack.

You can own a racehorse!

You can own a racehorse!

Perhaps the safest and most inexpensive way to get involved in racing is to become part of a racing syndicate or partnership. Basically, that means that ownership of a horse (or group of horses) is split among more than one party.

This reduces the cost for each party, but can still give the full experience and enjoyment of owning and racing an American Quarter Horse.

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Safe Hauling

November 14, 2008

Haul your horses safely by properly distributing your load and maintaining a reasonable speed.

AQHA Corporate Partner Exiss Trailers understands the importance of traveling safely down the road with our horses. Exiss provides tips and suggestions for safe hauling on its Web site.

Here are a few tips to help you make your next hauling adventure a safe one.

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