Basic Rules For Handling A Horse

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Basic Rules For Handling A Horse
Basic Rules For Handling A Horse

Video: Basic Rules For Handling A Horse

Video: Basic Rules For Handling A Horse
Video: How to Be Safe Around Horses (ESSENTIAL Info for Beginners) 2024, March
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Approaching the horse

Approach the horse on the left side, talking to it softly or whistling. Put on the halter or bridle without sudden movements, but boldly and confidently, preventing the horse from ripping its head out of your hands.

How to lead a horse correctly

Lead the horse on the bit by holding the lanyard or reins with your right hand close to the horse's chin and at a distance from the horse's left shoulder that he will not step on your feet (boots or thick boots are the best shoes for you). Collect the end of the rein (it should not drag along the floor, otherwise you or the horse may trip) and hold it in your left hand. If the horse starts to struggle, rears up or kicks backwards, starts to "goat", then it is best to dissolve the reins (lanyard, rope) from the right hand to the full length and, holding the end with both hands, calm the "playing" horse. Open the doors of the stall or the gates of the stables to the full width, and, as you lead the horse through them, be careful: make sure that it does not hit with its bumps or the back of the head or slip in front of you, crushing it in the opening. You must walk slightly ahead of the horse.

Hand touches the horse's face, photo photograph
Hand touches the horse's face, photo photograph

Cleaning and hooking a horse's hooves

So, you went to the horse's stall, called out to her, treated her to a treat (sugar, carrots). The horse is offered a treat by holding it on a fully open palm; the horse can accidentally "grab" the bent fingers with its teeth.

Now the horse needs to be cleaned

There are special tools for cleaning - a brush, a comb, a cloth, a comb, a hoof hook. Put a halter on the horse's head and tie it to a ring (it usually happens in a stall) or put it on junctions in the corridor. Start brushing from the head: gently, bypassing the eye area, brush the entire head from the forehead to the nose. Then move on to the neck, shoulders, front legs, torso and hind legs. Those parts of the horse's body, where the bones are close, must be brushed - with a comb, you can injure the periosteum. Usually they start brushing the left side, then the right. Take a comb in your right hand and a brush in your left. Stand at the left side of the horse and begin to drive in a circular motion with the scraper along the neck. Do not press hard, otherwise you will scratch your skin. After several movements, you need to knock the scraper on a special block. Now you can brush the neck with a brush (taking it in the right hand and the comb in the left): vigorously sweep over the coat (along the hair growth) and brush the brush on the comb. Repeat a few times, clean. Do the same with the torso. The feet are cleaned especially carefully.

Don't skip hard-to-reach areas such as the neck under the mane, the lower chest between the front legs, and the inner thighs. Be sure to clean your head under the halter straps.

When you have finished brushing the horse on the left, move to the right side and brush in the same sequence, starting with the head. After brushing, take a damp cloth and wipe the horse with it. So you remove dandruff, dust and open up the skin pores through which the skin "breathes".

First sort the mane, bangs and tail with your fingers, and then comb with a comb with rare teeth. Finally, wipe the torso, mane, bangs and tail with a cloth.

Processing horse hooves with a file, photo photography
Processing horse hooves with a file, photo photography

An important factor for the health and performance of a horse is taking good care of its hooves. You will need a crochet hook. Take it in your right hand, lift the horse's leg and scrape all the dirt out of the sole and frog well. The correct unhooking sequence is as follows: first the left front leg, then the right front leg, then the left and right hind legs.

Horse washing

In the warm season, the horse can be bathed (the water temperature is not lower than 20 degrees, and the bottom of the reservoir should be dense, without algae). If there are no conditions for bathing, then simply heat the water in a bucket and rinse the animal.

In rainy weather, the limbs and abdomen of the horse become very dirty, so after riding, you need to wash off the dirt with warm water from a bucket or hose. Be sure to rinse your feet under the brushes, otherwise so-called squats will appear - skin irritations.

And the horse is biting
And the horse is biting

Related article And the horse is biting

Once a month, stallions and geldings should wash the prepuce bag with warm water and soap. This is done with a soft sponge, removing dirt from each fold.

All horses (and mares, and stallions, and geldings) need to wash the external genitals with warm water daily. The udder is washed off the mares, cleansing it of fatty effusion (a product of the sebaceous glands).

Be careful. Whatever you do with a horse, especially in a stall, no matter how much you trust it, always tie it up when cleaning, rubbing muscles and legs, trimming and shoeing hooves, and treatment.

Have a twist to secure the horse's upper lip (lip roll) on hand.

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