Is your horse's topline lacking? A good topline both improves a horse's appearance and makes it easier for him to carry himself properly. If you're looking to develop and strengthen your horse’s topline, these exercises can help you do that.

Before You Start

Before you begin working on your horse’s topline, remember that for these exercises to be…

Are you envious of other horses at your barn with long, full tails? While some horses and breeds are genetically predisposed to having thinner tails than others, there are a number of ways you can encourage fuller, healthier tail growth on your horse.

Start With Nutrition

The quality of your horse’s coat and his tail hair are closely linked to his health…

Horseback riding provides excellent exercise to both you and your horse. Many horses benefit from regular riding, but it’s important to keep your horse’s physical well being in mind each time you mount up. These tips can help you keep your horse healthy and in shape through riding.

Warm Up and Cool Down Slowly

Injuries are bound to occur if you…

If you have a horse who "gets fat on air" in your barn, then you are well acquainted with the "easy keeper." Making sure that your easy keeper stays at a healthy weight can become a particular challenge during the summer, when pastures are lush. Need some help? Here are some ideas. Use a Muzzle

Lush pastures and an easy keeper generally mean an overweight…

Do you have a special routine for your horse each time you come home from a show? Horse shows take a lot out of our horses, both physically and mentally. Here are some ways you can help your horse recover from the demands of horse shows.

Cooldowns

The first step that you can take in helping your horse recover from a show is to make sure that he…

If you work around horses long enough, you’ll learn how to handle all manner of scrapes and injuries. But have you ever had to deal with an eye injury before? Eye injuries can be some of the most serious in horses, and require immediate treatment. Knowing how to properly handle eye injuries may mean the difference between whether or not your horse recovers…

Caring for horses takes a lot of hard work and time, but the way that your fence your property can actually reduce your workload and save you time. If you’re planning the layout of your horse property, or if you’ll be redoing your property in the future, careful planning can pay off with big rewards in your daily work.

 …

When the temperature climbs over 90° and the humidity is high, sometimes it’s best not to ride your horse. And while not being able to ride is disappointing, the day doesn’t have to be a total loss. There are many ways to continue moving forward with your horse even when you can’t be in the saddle. Here are a few great ways to put a non-riding day to…

Hills on your property can be a great training and conditioning tool, and there are various ways to use hills to your advantage when riding and conditioning your horse. Here are a few tips so that you can put hills to work for you.

Keep Safety First

Hills help to condition your horse and develop his muscles in strength, but they are only…

Nobody likes finding ticks on their horses, but if you live in the Northeast part of the country, ticks carry with them an added risk: Lyme disease. If you’ve ever had to treat your horse for Lyme disease you know how difficult it can be. Is your horse at risk for Lyme disease and if so, what can you do to prevent it? We’ve got the answers for you.

What is Lyme…

Does your horse get nervous and stressed at shows? A stressed horse will likely put in a subpar performance, and stress can result in a distracted and nervous horse. You can help to keep your horse calm at horse shows in a number of different ways. Here are some ideas to get you started.

Be Well-Prepared

The better prepared you and your horse…

High Temperature

Your horse’s normal temperature should be between 99° and 101°F. If your horse’s temperature exceeds that range, he is becoming overheated and needs to be cooled down. It’s a good idea to bring a thermometer along with you to any shows or events that you’ll be riding at so that you can monitor your horse’s…

Arthritis is a common affliction among horses, and it’s especially common in aging horses or those who have heavily competed during their careers. Riding an arthritic horse can be beneficial for the horse, since gentle exercise can help to control and lessen the effects of arthritis. But there are some special considerations you’ll want to make when riding a horse with arthritis.…

The Fourth of July will bring with it celebrations, barbeques, and fireworks. But horses and fireworks do not go well together, and panicked horses are at the risk for serious injury. If you suspect that there will be fireworks near your barn, you’ll want to take some measures to help keep your horse safe and calm.

The first major decision you’ll face…

Horses are always the highlight of parades. With parade season starting up, are you planning to try out a new horse in a parade? It can be great fun to have a parade horse, but before you plan to bring along your horse, you’ll want to make sure that he’s really ready to be part of a parade.

The Challenges of Parades

Parades are one of the most…

Does your horse live in a stall?

I know there is a lot of conversation about the benefit of using Horse Stalls or letting your horse enjoy open paddocks. That conversation can go many directions.

Our management decisions found our horses spending most of their time in small pastures and usually brought in during inclement weather or prior to "Show Time". Everyone does not enjoy our mild Northern California climate and may need to provide more shade in…

Buying a used saddle brings with it many advantages: you are sure to save money over the cost of buying a new saddle, and you will save yourself the often uncomfortable process of breaking in a new saddle. But when buying a used saddle, you need to be on the lookout for a variety of issues that could signify that the saddle is damaged. Here’s how to avoid them.…

Do you know what to do in the event that a rider is injured and is left unconscious? Could you recognize the signs of shock, and do you know how to treat it? If you spend time around horses, then it’s possible that you will have to help a rider in a serious situation. Let’s review the First-Aid basics that you will want to know.

Dealing with a…