Adopting A Horse For The First Time
Adopting A Horse For The First Time.
by Henry Locke
When you’re adopting an animal and letting it come into your life, you must be aware that they require a particular type of care. Taking in a horse under your wing might seem daunting at first, but being prepared can help you and the horse ease into each other’s lives. You must also understand that they are expensive animals to take care of. The following are ways to prepare when you’re about to welcome a horse under your wing.
Determine Your Goals And Expectations
Remember that you’re taking in a life under your care, so you will need to understand why you want to have a horse in the first place. You also need to give a thought to your experience with horses, what kind of a rider you are, and your expectations. Do you need a horse because you’re joining riding competitions? Are you getting a horse for a hobby?
Getting a horse simply because you’re fascinated could make you realize that you’ve bitten off more than you can chew. If you’re brand new to getting a horse, learn how to ride first. Identify what kind of rider you are and the riding discipline you want to take up. Riding is only one of the ways you can connect to your horse. If you’d like more information on ways to tell your horse is happy, look for legitimate sources on equine behavior.
Get Acquainted With The Needs Of The Horse
It takes a considerable amount of time and patience to take care of a horse. You will need to work out a schedule to make sure it gets proper nutrition and exercise. Ensuring that the health isn’t compromised is also your duty and responsibility.
That’s why you need to work closely with veterinarians, trainers, and farriers. You can also enlist help or get information from friends and family who know more about horses. Like caring for children, it takes a collection of people to sustain a horse’s life.
Learn About Basic Horse Care
While you can leave them to graze all day, you still need to supervise their care because they don’t know how to regulate what they eat. It’s crucial to measure their food when you feed them twice a day. Fresh and clean water is also important and they must have a steady supply of it. Aside from grass, fodder and water, you might want to let them take supplements to give them a balanced nutrition.
If you have a stall ready for your horse, making sure that their dwelling is clean also counts for taking care of their health. The stables should be clear of manure and other forms of waste. It’s not only their resting area, but also where mares give birth. Daily cleaning is crucial for stalls and barns. Make sure to keep the stables free from cobwebs and dust.
Note that horses will also be wearing a saddle, bridle, lead rope, and halter. The leather should be kept soft so that it will be comfortable for your horse. Launder blankets and saddle pads to keep them clean and clear from dirt and sweat.
It does seem like it’s a lot to take care of a horse, but being well-fed and comfortable helps keep them in a good mood and they can, in turn, get along well with others.
Look For A Proper Home
A horse is an animal in need of open space. They need to run around to get some exercise. Making sure that you have enough land and pasture helps keep them healthy and happy. You need to consider if they will be spending most of the day in a stall or they will be in the pasture. If in a pasture, will they be with other horses?
You will also need a field about one and a half to two acres per one horse. A shelter is also needed to shield them from the heat of the sun and from rain and snow. Keep in mind that if the field doesn’t have enough grass, they will need daily sustenance of hay and water.
Understand The Costs Of Equine Care
Not only does it take a village to care for a horse, but it’s also true that caring for them can take a chunk of your budget. It can reach up to USD1,828.65 or $5.01 per day to sustain the needs of a horse per year if you estimate the basic cost of care. The costs will include the following needs but not limited to:
- Trimming by farrier at USD$35 every six weeks
- Loose mineral supplement for 6 months at USD$30
- Once a year dentist visitation at USD$125
- Salt block for $14
- Basic vaccinations for equine influenza and rabies at USD 95.00
The potential cost can rack up depending on other factors such as paying for sudden veterinarian visits, providing expensive food and supplements, preparing your horse for a competition, breeding to produce a foal, rising fuel prices, and more. Having a stable income can help you properly care for yourself and your horse.
In Conclusion
Caring for a horse requires a lot of work, patience, the proper home, and tools to be successful. Horses, like humans and other animals, can also feel emotions. They will show if they are not happy at all. And sometimes, their health will be affected as well. So, if you’re going to adopt one, it’s best to prepare now as you have quite a ground to cover. But for those who love horses, a labor of love is easy to give.
