How do you handle a sweaty horse during the winter?

Question:

I’ve stabled my horses in the winter until we moved to northern Canada. They are outside this winter, and it is cold!

One of my horses barely grows hair at all and my other horse looks like a mammoth. I have blankets on them when I’m home. They are also groomed four to six times a week.

Is there anything else I can do? “Mammoth” takes two hours to cool down and dry after a ride, and both of them look scruffy and dirty. They’re on extra protein, hair shine vitamins and a good diet for older horses.

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Harvesting semen after a stallion’s death.

Question:

Is there any way to save semen after a stallion has died?

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Take a look at stalling a horse vs. keeping a horse on pasture through the winter.

Question:

For spring, summer and fall, I usually keep my horse out to pasture all day and all night. He has a covered shelter, and with our moderate weather during those seasons, he stays quite comfortable.

However, every year I always ask myself, “Should I keep my horse in a stall this winter, or should I keep him out to pasture?”

Are they any negative effects from keeping a horse stalled during the winter? Or am I better off keeping him outside?

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Does your horse have a scar?

Question:

My mare had to have a tumor removed, and I’m told that the patch under it will grow back white. The patch will be about the size of a quarter under her right eye.

Will I need to change her markings on her papers?

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Try your hand at foal-heat breeding.

Question:

What’s a good strategy to use to get your mare bred on a foal heat?

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Set your stallion up for behavioral success with tips from AQHA Professional Horseman and judge Gene Parker.

Question:

I’ve got a colt that was born this last spring, and he’s already starting to show stallion behavior. How do I work with him and train him so that he’ll be a good-mannered stallion? If he is too pushy, am I better off just gelding him?

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Find the perfect seat when riding hills.

Learn how to find the perfect balance in your seat when riding hills with AQHA Professional Horsewomen Angelia Robinette-Dublin and Jenny Lance.

Question:

I do a lot of trail riding with my American Quarter Horse, and we primarily ride in the hills. I’ve been trying to find my balance riding up and down hills, but I always feel like I’m getting in my horse’s way. How should I sit when I’m riding hills?

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Our expert explains an uncomfortable ear problem horses can face.

An America’s Horse Daily reader submitted a question about a horse who she thinks has horse ear mites.

Tom R. Lenz, D.V.M., M.S., Dipl. A.C.T., offers some sound advice about horse ear problems. Dr. Lenz is an American Association of Equine Practitioners member veterinarian and a regular columnist in The American Quarter Horse Journal.

Question:

I am pretty sure my 14 year old mare has horse ear mites in her left ear (her right ear is fine). She will not let me touch her ear and it is a challenge to get the bridle on (I had to take the bridle apart the other day when I rode her, and she was fine). I do not see any swelling or any kind of abrasions around the ear.

How do I get the mite medicine in her ear? Her ear must be very sore. She normally will put her head down for me to put the bridle on. She has already broken her lead rope twice by sitting back when I approach the ear. I do not have a stock to put her in. I have tried treats, showing her the bottle, rubbing the bottle around her face and she is fine with all that but the minute I get near the ear, she throws her head or sits back. Any suggestions?

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Does your horse have teary eyes? The American Association of Equine Practitioners sheds some light on the issue.

The American Association of Equine Practitioners offers great advice for this horse owner. AAEP is an AQHA educational marketing alliance partner.

Question:

My 8-year-old mare’s eyes are always tearing. I have had her tear ducts flushed and she has been on antibiotics for her eye, but nothing seems to help. It occurs all year, and she is outside most of the day.

Do you have any suggestions on how to clear it up?

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Are you trying to breed for a black foal?

Question:

I am breeding my chestnut mare with a black stallion and have been looking for reliable indications of what the foal’s coat color will be. Apparently the stallion has only produced black, bay and liver chestnut foals. The stallion has only black and liver chestnut heritage from the research I have done.

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Ever wonder how to make a neat, tidy horsemanship bun? Get the inside scoop from a former AQHYA horsemanship world champion.

Carey Nowacek, the 2010 Built Ford Tough AQHYA Horsemanship World Champion, explains how to make the perfect horsemanship hair bun.

You can read all of Carey’s tips in the December 2011 issue of The American Quarter Horse Journal.

Question:

I compete in horsemanship and I understand that it’s important to have a nice, tidy bun, but I can never seem to get the hang of it. I enjoyed watching the horsemanship competitors online at the AQHA World Championship Show, but their tidy buns made me jealous!

How do you make a neat, tidy bun?

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Do you know the difference between laminitis and founder?

Dr. Scott Morrison, a member of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, explains the difference between acute laminitis and chronic laminitis, or founder.

You can learn more about laminitis and founder from Dr. Morrison in “Living With Laminitis” in the October 2011 issue of The American Quarter Horse Journal.

Question:

If my horse has laminitis, does that mean he has foundered?

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