8 Horse Care Training Questions Every Horse Owner Should Answer

Whether you own a horse for sport, pleasure, training, or competition purposes, learning proper horse care is necessary in keeping your riding buddy in good health and in best condition.

In this blog post, we’ve enumerated several horse care training questions that can help you assess if you’re feeding, grooming, exercising, and generally taking care of your horse properly.

Keen to learn more about horse care? We’ll run straight into the questions below as part of our discussion on equine studies.

1. Is Your Horse Drinking Enough Water?

Horses must drink 25-45 litres of water per day, depending on their weight. Just like humans, they need it to survive and thrive, especially during the summer season. A horse that is deprived of food but drinks enough water can survive up to 20 to 25 days. Ensure your horse is fueled up daily.

View Our Horse Care Course Now

2. Is Your Horse Eating Enough High-Quality Food?

A horse’s digestive system is designed to process large volumes of grass and high-quality hay, free of fungus, mites, and dust. Aside from that, you must also feed your horse with food rich in protein such as tick beans and lupins.

The amount of recommended feed is based on the body weight of the horse, its age, and energy requirements. You can ask a veterinarian about these, and you can also have a careful weight check using a livestock scale.

3. Is Your Horse’s Environment Satisfactory?

Protecting your horse from extreme heat, rain, and snow will benefit not only your horse’s health but also his/her running performance. This is why your horse’s stable must provide the much-needed shade and protection against mites and insects. If you have enough space, provide a larger home for your horse wherein he/she can lie down, properly rest, and achieve deep sleep.

At the same time, you must invest in keeping that shelter clean, and free from manure and waste to prevent any kind of infection or sickness.

4. How Much Exercise is Your Horse Getting?

Moving is second nature to horses. No wonder why exercising them is a must. Horses shouldn’t be confined in the stables all day unless required by a veterinarian. You can do this by allowing them to walk, run, and jump across the paddocks, or by riding them.

If you’re aiming to boost your horse’s running performance, endurance and overall condition, follow an exercise routine that can help him/her gradually improve. Never force a new horse to run at a certain speed or it might end up injured or strained.

5. Do you deworm your horse at least every two months?

Moving is second nature to horses. No wonder why exercising them is a must. Horses shouldn’t be confined in the stables all day unless required by a veterinarian. You can do this by allowing them to walk, run, and jump across the paddocks, or by riding them.

If you’re aiming to boost your horse’s running performance, endurance, and overall condition, follow an exercise routine that can help him/her gradually improve. Never force a new horse to run at a certain speed or it might end up injured or strained.

6. Do you visit a horse dentist at least once a year?

The teeth of horses grow continuously which makes them prone to having painful teeth edges and points that can cause difficulty and pain while eating. Consequently, a horse’s teeth should be checked by a veterinarian or an equine dentist once or twice a year to know if there are rotting teeth, pointy teeth, or other dental problems such as foul breath.

7. Do you trim the horse’s hooves at the right time?

For proper horse care training, hooves must be trimmed every six to eight weeks. If you’re not confident in trimming your horse’s hooves on your own, it’s best to hire a farrier who can ensure that it’ll be done the right way. You can also ask about shoeing options whether for competition, change of weather, or any other reason.

8. Do you invest in horse vaccinations?

There are different types of vaccinations for horses, including protection against equine herpes, tetanus, equine encephalomyelitis, rabies, and equine influenza to name a few. Stay in touch with your horse’s veterinarian to know which among the many types of vaccines apply to your horse. Never miss vaccination schedules to prevent health issues.

We hope the questions above have helped you assess if you’re providing proper care and training to your horse/s. If you’re interested in taking horse care to the next level, inquire about our online Horse Courses offered through Woods & Co Education today. You can view the course details, including the fees, course duration, and modules by clicking the orange button below. For a more comprehensive understanding of equine care and management, explore our equine courses.

Cheers to safe and fun rides with your horse! Thanks for reading!

View Our Horse Care Course Now