.: Caring For Your Horse During The Winter
Category:Home / Pets and Animals
When you care for your horse, it is important to make preparations for the winter months. Horses need to be able to tolerate the cold weather and stay as healthy as possible. During the winter horses will have special needs which you as the owner will have to address. It is important to prepare for winter in advance.
Horses are naturally tolerant to cold weather. In fact, horses handle cold weather much better than hot weather. Despite this, there are some basic things owners will want to do to make sure their horses stay healthy. You will want to make sure the horse doesn't have any parasites, and has been immunized. The costs for doing these things will greatly pay off during the winter. The costs of feeding the horse will be lower.
You may also want to work with your vet in setting up a health plan for your horse. Preparing your horse for cold weather will help it lower the need to eat large amounts of food in order to maintain its weight. Your horse should never lose weight during the winter. Allowing your horse to gain a small amount of weight will help them during the winter months, as the extra fat will work as a cushion to provide the horse with energy when it becomes stressed. During the winter you will want to give your horse some extra calories.
The best protection for a horse during the winter is its natural winter coat. When it is allowed to grow, it will act as a natural heat blanket which will reduce the loss of heat that the horse experiences in cold environments. The coat is also slick and will brush off snow and ice. If you keep your horses outside, you will want to make sure their coats grow long before winter.
To check the condition of your horse, you will want to rub its ribs. A large winter coat can easily hide the fact the horse may be losing weight. Your horse should weigh enough that you are not able to see the ribs but can feel them when touching the horse. Your also want to feel the ears of the horse. Do they feel cold? If so, this is a sign that the horse is cold.
Like all animals which are warm-blooded, horses must maintain their body temperature in order to survive. It is important that they conserve heat during the winter, and as the owner you must make preparations to make sure they're healthy.
Article keywords: horse
Article Source: http://www.articles32.com
All of the horse people meet at the Horse Gathering Place - A free site that includes horse news, buy/sell horse related items, horse discussion forum plus more.
.: New Pets and Animals Articles
1). A First Aid Kit For Your Dog
In a time when "always be prepared" is a mantra repeated by everyone, pet owners would do well to take up that mantra as well.
2). Choosing an Obedience Training Class for Your Puppy or Dog
If you have decided to enroll your four-legged friend in an obedience training class, there are a few tips to keep in mind to make sure that your choice is the right one. Choosing a dog trainer requires much more than simply selecting a name at random from the phone book and, when it comes to your pet, nothing but the best will do.
3). The Truth Behind Creepy Guinea Pigs
Guinea pigs are one of the cutest animals on the face of the earth, they are plump little fur-balls that love to play and squeak. However some people say that they have creepy guinea pigs!
4). Tips and Tricks Caring for Adult Size Ferrets
Through the lifecycle of ferrets, they are born quite small, and grow quite quickly until they are fully grown adult size ferrets. When they are at this size they are almost the length of two male hands, and they are quite long and slender with short limbs, which makes them quite humorous to look at.
5). Learn Everything There Is To Know About Parrots Sounds
Nowadays parrots have become very desired and popular pets for bird-fanciers. Of course, one the reasons is the bright colors of the birds plumage. But another and the most important motive is parrots ability to reproduce human speech.
6). Some Reasons To Get Yourself A Pug Mix Breed
Pug mix is a cross between a Pug and another breed. Nowadays a term designer dog is wildly used to name hybrid dogs that have been selectively bred.
7). Dog Beds - Are They Fun Or Functional?
Is a dog bed really necessary or just another toy? Find out the answer and how to select the right dog bed for your dog in this article
.: Top Pets and Animals Articles
1). Winter Dog Agility Training
Yes, its cold outside, but don't stop your dog's agility training. Depending on where you live, there might be snow on the ground from November through March, but thats no reason to give up your agility training. Bring your training indoors, right at your own home.
Get creative with your training locations. Do you have a hallway, basement, or garage? Then you have a place to train! Before it snows and your equipment is frozen to the ground, store some in your garage, shed, basement, or put a tarp over it.
2). Stop Dogs Eating Dog Poop (Coprophagia)
Dogs eating poop is a disgusting and nonsensical habit from our human point of view. Find out why your dog does it, and how to put a stop to it.
3). Dogs That Refuse to Eat - What Causes This and How Can it Be Resolved?
When a pet dog refuses to eat, the problem is either physical or psychological. When a pet dog refuses to eat, his owner pleads with him and tries to tempt him with food fed by hand. If the dog is sufficiently neglected and bored he may try this to get attention. An intelligent owner will counter this common canine play by giving his dog companionship by playing with him and taking him for a daily walk.
4). The Mixed Breeds – More than Mutts
Many of the world’s best pets, most loved companions and smartest dogs are mixed breeds, or "Muts". But think about it, all of today’s most popular breeds were at one time unrecognized. Today’s mixed breeds may very well appear in tomorrow’s dog shows.
5). Stages of Whelphing a Litter of Puppies
Your dog being pregnant can be a nerve racking time for owners who have not had the experience before. Just like with human babies the first is the most challenging and if you intend on doing this often – don't worry it gets easier with practice.
Follow some of these tips for making the birthing process as easy as you can for your dog.
Labor
Generally dogs give birth after about 63 days of pregnancy.
6). The Oranda Goldfish
Learn about this beautiful gold fish that has been fancied for centuries.
7). How To Stop A Dog From Chewing
Most normal dogs will bite and chew. While you cannot completely erase this behavior, you can regulate it and influence the dog’s behavior.