Top Tips

TRAILERINGTIP

Stay in Control

Trailering your horse in inclement weather? Keeping forward motion and tension on the hitch can prevent loss of control from trailer sway. If your trailer starts to sway, don’t apply your tow-vehicle brakes. Instead, apply the hand brake on the controller to your trailer in brief spurts. This slows your trailer behind you and keeps your tow vehicle going forward, which should result in straightening out your rig. Don’t apply the brakes on your tow vehicle until your trailer is under control. — Neva Kittrell Scheve

Here are expert tips to help you overcome a few potential winter challenges. • Physical fitness. Your horse probably isn’t getting as much exercise as he did when temperatures were more temperate, so he may be losing some of his physical fitness.

The fix: Perform ground work, including longeing, to keep your horse in shape. When you do ride, warm up slowly. Stay alert for any signs of fatigue, such as heavy breathing, sweating, and stumbling. • Joint stiffness. Cold weather quickly stiffens areas of arthritis and old injuries.

The fix: A brisk rub with a warming liniment, plus stretching and flexing by hand, will help your horse loosen up. Wear heavy-rubber housecleaning gloves to protect your hands from the chemicals and the cold. Wrapping your horse’s legs overnight will also help keep his joints more flexible. • Icy ground. Ice is a particularly treacherous situation, as your horse can slip and fall, risking serious injury.

The fix: A barefoot horse will have better grip on ice than a horse in shoes. But even the barefoot horse will be safer on ice with hoof boots. Applying borium or studs on your horse’s shoes provide much better traction, but at the price of more strain on the joints, ligaments, and tendons. Hoof boots over shoes is another option. — Eleanor M. Kellon, VMD

SEASONALTIP

Overcome 3 Cold-Weather Challenges

CLIXPHOTO.COM When you ride in winter, be considerate of your horse’s fitness level, and be careful of the ground conditions.

Healthy Hooves

Here are nine ways to help keep your horse’s hooves healthy all winter long. • Think ahead. Meet with your farrier to discuss any adjustment of the shoeing or trimming schedule over winter. Set farrier appointments in advance. • Eliminate hazards. Around your barn and pasture, remove anything that could be an under-snow hazard to a loose horse. Fence off low areas where water collects. Inspect fences, and remove wire fences that can trap a hoof. • Create safe paths. Decide in advance which barn and pasture areas you’ll plow and where snow piles will go. Chart the safest paths between stalls and turnout areas. Consider using pea rock or wood chips to “pave” the paths to provide better traction in light to moderate snow conditions. • Stock up on traction aids. Keep a supply of shavings, old carpets, and sand on hand to spread on icy areas. • Limit sand and salt use. Use loose sand and salt for traction only on pathways, not in your horse’s turnout area. If your horse ingests sand and salt grains, he could suffer colic. • Increase turnout time. Allow your horse maximum turnout time to get used to footing changes. • Check blanket fit. Make sure that your horse’s blanket fits properly and straps are snugly in their keepers. Remove any excess strap length. Your horse can catch a shoe heel (especially one with added traction) on a strap and become entangled. • Plow turnout. Consider plowing a small turnout area for your horse, if the area is accessible and the snow is deep. • Let pastern hair grow. Pastern hair protects the hoof head in winter. Keep a hairdryer handy to dry legs if scratches (a lower-limb infection caused by prolonged contact with dirt and moisture) becomes a problem. — Fran Jurga

CLIXPHOTO.COM

Allow your horse maximum turnout time to get used to footing changes.

USRIDER MEMBERTIP

Sign Up for AutoRenew

USRider created the AutoRenew feature to simplify bill-paying for its Members. When a Member’s renewal becomes more than 30 days delinquent, a $29 fee is assessed to reactivate the membership. With the AutoRenew feature, the membership is automatically renewed each year on the credit card the Member has placed on file with USRider.

USRider sends a notification to a Member 30 days prior to the expiration date advising the Member that his or her account will automatically renew and on which credit card. If the credit card on file has expired, that information will be included in the letter. The renewal will be charged to the Member’s credit card 10 days prior to the expiration date; this gives USRider time to notify the Member if any problems are encountered. Keep USRider informed of any changes to your credit card you’ve placed on file. Visit USRider.org, and click on the Members Area.

HEIDI MELOCCO PHOTO With USRider’s AutoRenew feature, your membership will be automatically renewed every year using the credit card you’ve placed on file.