Foot care is essential to ensure your horse remains sound and should be as routine as feeding and watering. Proper foot care and reasonable management can help prevent lameness. Most foot care maintenance can be done by you however it is important to contact your veterinary surgeon or farrier if you are unsure.The second image on the right is a diagram showing the main parts of a horses hoof.

Disease organisms concentrate where animals are confined, so cleanliness is important. Horses kept in a stall or small pen should have their feet picked or cleaned daily. Horses at pasture should also have regular hoof inspections and be picked and cleaned out. A fine bristled brush is also useful for cleaning the sole, frog, and hoof wall.A good protocol to follow is described below:
1. Begin by picking out the heel and use the hoofpick from heel to toe to remove dirt, mud and other debris. It is also important to clean out the cleft between the sole and the frog.
2. Once cleaned check the condition of the hoof in particular the frog.
3. Inspect the shoes to make sure they are in good condition and that there are no missing or loose nails and the nails aren’t projecting beyond the top of the hoof.

Your veterinary surgeon can advise you on an appropriate hoof conditioner or sealant to apply to the hoof. Also, your vet should be contacted if you have any doubts about the health of your horse’s hoof.

The legs of your horse should be inspected on a day to day basis to ensure potential problems are detected early. This inspection involves running your hands up and down all four legs looking for the following:

• Heat
• Swelling
• Scabs, scratches and cuts
• Lumps and bumps
• Bot eggs (forelimbs)
• Anything out of the ordinary

If you discover something, or are not sure, then phone your veterinary surgeon for further advice. It is also important that your horse is trotted up regularly both on hard and soft ground. This can help to detect any potential lameness problems early and, if spotted, it is important that your veterinary surgeon is contacted to obtain further advice.

Some horse owners feel that it is a good idea to ‘wash’ a gelding’s sheath and penis on a regular basis. The theory is that a gelded horse may not let the penis down out of the sheath as regularly as a stallion may, leading to bacterial overgrowth from poor hygiene. However, this has not been shown to be the case. Although regular cleaning may seem worthwhile in terms of overall hygiene, it can in fact create problems for the horse. A certain amount of “smegma” or discharge from the penis is normal and does not necessarily indicate the need for washing.

Why may sheath washing be a bad idea?
The problem arises from the fact that a horse’s penis normally contains a certain amount of commensal (good) bacteria and oils which keep it healthy. Overly frequent washing strips away the oils on the skin and the bacteria are removed by antiseptic shampoos. The lack of oils on the skin of the penis means that the skin will become dry and cracked whilst pathogenic (disease-causing) bacteria are able to invade not only the skin but also the cracks that are formed.

These infections can be very difficult to treat and can become prolonged. Therefore, if your horse appears to have a healthy penis and sheath, there is almost certainly no need to wash it at all. Some horses can produce large amounts of smegma or may need their sheath cleaned prior to a show and may benefit from occasional flushing with a mild saline solution.

In extreme cases some horses have developed smegma stones that need to be removed manually. In this instance it is best to seek the advice of your veterinary surgeon who can advise on an appropriate washing regime.

Stabling
Stabled horses are most commonly housed in “loose boxes”. It is important that these boxes provide adequate room for your horse or pony to lie down in. The minimum size for a stable is 3.66m x 3.66m (12ft x 12ft) and 3.05m x 3.05m (10ft x 10ft) for ponies. It is important to note that these are minimum figures and should be altered to your horse’s individual requirements depending on their size.

Bedding
Bedding is essential to provide warmth, comfort and protection against cold weather and injury. It should be non-toxic and provide effective drainage to maintain a dry surface and may consist of straw, wood shavings (or mixes), paper or chopped cardboard. Other less favoured alternatives include peat and sawdust, but these are not ideal.

Bedding must be dry and free of dust and mould so ensure you have a good quality supplier.

Stable hygiene
Droppings and wet bedding should be removed at least twice a day. Loose hay and feed should be swept out of the stable and both the stable and yard should be kept clean and tidy.

Fire hazards
All electrical wires and light switches should be out of reach of both horses and rodents and be properly earthed. Piles of used bedding should be stored well away from the stable yard and smoking should not be allowed in the yard area. All fire extinguishers and fire alarms should be checked regularly and fire exits should be kept clear.

The advantages of keeping a horse or pony at grass is that it is natural, promotes socialisation, which can ward off behavioural problems, and the costs of keep are less.

A shelter must be available if your horse is to stay out for long periods of time, especially during the winter months when they need protection from the wind and rain. In the summer, they may need shade from the sun at the hottest time of the day. Such cover need not necessarily be man-made since dense tree and hedge growth is very effective.

During dry summers and when the growing season stops as it gets cold, hay may be needed to supplement the diet.

Fresh water must be provided at all times. A horse’s daily water requirements can vary from 20 to 70 litres. Put feed and water buckets in a convenient place, near gates, to make it easier to check on a daily basis. In the winter months, any covering of ice will need to be broken, often a few times each day.

Horses and ponies will trample down a pasture very quickly, especially in wet conditions and even more so when paddocks are overcrowded. The grass also becomes heavily choked with droppings. In these situations, paddocks must be managed in a systematic fashion. Droppings must be picked up often and, at a minimum, every other day. This is important in controlling the worm egg and fly population in the warmer months. Periodic harrowing of large or numerous paddocks may be more practical than trying to pick up droppings by hand since the spreading of matter across the field will allow the sun’s natural inactivation of parasite eggs.

Cordoning off an area of the paddock to keep free from grazing will help the grass to recover. Then, when the grass has grown back, it can be opened up and another area can be cordoned off. If numerous paddocks are available, rotate their use. All fencing should be in good working order and safe. Post and rail is considered the most acceptable form of fencing as it less likely to cause serious injury to a horse that comes in contact with it. Electric fencing can be used in combination with fences or hedges to make the paddock more secure. Barbed wire should NEVER be used as it can cause serious puncture and ‘cheese wire’ injuries to joints and tendons. These injuries can easily lead to the end of a horse’s career.

In summary:

Fencing

• Must be suitable for the situation
• Maintain a good overall condition
• Secure enough to keep horses in and undesirables out
• No barbed wire present or other potential hazards such as sharp edges
• Horses are prevented from contact if necessary
• Gates are hung at the correct height and in appropriate places

Water Supply

• Checked to ensure it is clean and suitable for your horse to drink
• Troughs should be regularly cleaned out
• Sufficient quantities for your horse (especially important in the summer)
• If the source is a stream, ensure that there is sufficient depth to reduce sand intake (can cause sand colic)

The field itself

• The quality and quantity of pasture produced is adequate for your horse
• Topping can help to improve the quality of the pasture
• The pasture is free from poisonous weeds e.g. ragwort
• There are no items in the field that may injure your horse, e.g. sticks and stones
• There is adequate shelter and shade
• There are adequate dry areas for your horse to stand to reduce the risk of mud fever
• Dung is removed regularly or harrowed to prevent a build up of the worm burden.

Your veterinary surgeon will be able to offer further advice and answer any questions you may have regarding field maintenance.

A horse may be the next most expensive purchase that many people make after a house and car and, clearly, it is important to protect that investment. The cheapest policy will be the cheapest for a reason and may not always be the best or the most suitable for your needs. There are numerous policies available and it is important that you spend some time investigating the various ones. No one has more experience of insurance policies than your vet and it may be worthwhile asking their opinion. Do talk to your horse-owning friends to gauge their opinion.

Illness, injury, theft or accidents can happen without warning and can often be expensive. Accidents involving your horse may result in you being seriously injured or legally responsible to pay large amounts of compensation and legal bills. Insurance is designed to bring you peace of mind and allows you to concentrate on the enjoyment of owning and riding a horse.

Always check exactly what the policy covers; the following is a rough guide:

• Check that vet fees are covered and that the amount is adequate.
• Check that there is no limit on how long you can claim for each illness, chronic disease can go on for life. You will want a ‘life’ policy.
• Check that your horse is going to be covered in its geriatric years. Some policies stop vet fee cover when your horse gets older.
• Check for ‘third party’ cover. Your household insurance will not necessarily cover you if, for instance, your horse got loose at a show and caused a road traffic accident involving other people’s property.
• Ask other horse owners which companies they would recommend. You do not want the hassle of delayed payment of a claim, or find that you are excluded for some illness because you could not understand complicated policy wording.

Finally, you must make sure that your horse is kept fully vaccinated.