Childhood as it Should Be

by Lindsey Rains

The apartment is quiet. All around me I see spare water glasses, cereal bowls, hair ties, and half-completed coloring pages. I’m tired, but I feel full. This week has been different than most weeks because our life was pleasantly interrupted by two eleven-year-old Peruvian girls.

Full of sparkle, hugs and insight, the girls filled our lives with laughter and sweet company.

I work at a non-profit that finds sponsors for children who are orphaned or living in terribly adverse situations. Every year, upwards of twenty children from various countries around the world are chosen to come to the United States. They perform in a choir that raises awareness and sponsorship for other children in similar situations.

For several weeks out of every year, my husband and I host some of these visiting children at our home.

Of course, I’m always chomping at the bit to take any willing child to the barn. Most have never even been around horses, much less sat on one. This time was no different. My husband and I picked up the girls and headed straight to the barn. They were tired from a long day of practicing for their performance, but the kids insisted they weren’t too tired for horses!

When we arrived at the barn, Chip was in his sleepy post-dinner stupor. But he meandered out of his stall to enjoy all the pets and cookies the excited girls bestowed upon him.

Read more: Gratitude & Horses: Healing the Cracked Places

Kentucky Equine Research is proud to debut an improved version of EO-3™, its popular marine-derived omega-3 supplement, featuring a new flavor.

The benefits of omega-3 supplementation include anti-inflammatory effects as well as support of skin and coat health, and reproductive health for mares and stallions. Studies at the Kentucky Equine Research Performance Center in Ocala have also demonstrated changes to indicators of post-exercise recovery following supplementation with EO-3.

“EO-3 is one of our proven products for athletic and breeding horses,” explains Matthew T. Butler, vice president of sales. “With a dedicated customer base worldwide, it’s a top product in the line.”

One factor that limited the use of EO-3, however, was its palatability. While many horses consumed it without objection, others were turned off by its odor and flavor, particularly after it had been stored for long periods of time. Therefore, the research team launched a series of studies to understand and improve its appeal to horses.

Read more: From the Research Farm to Your Feed Room: Applying Study Results to Improve KER EO-3

by Dr. Eleanor Kellon, DVM

Your horse's health, happiness and performance depend on normal functioning of the nervous system and muscles. All nutrients have a role to play but some are particularly important.

The complexity within a single nerve cell is staggering but the horse's very life depends on the nervous system receiving proper nutrients to maintain its health.

Vitamin E is an antioxidant which becomes incorporated directly into the membranes surrounding cells and also structures within the cells. These membranes are made of phospholipids which are very vulnerable to attack by free radicals generated from toxic minerals or during immune system activity.

The nervous system is known to be particularly sensitive to oxidative damage from free radical attacks. The muscles are also at high risk even in good health because of the huge amount of free radicals generated during the production of energy.

Read more: Neuromuscular Support Nutrients

by Bob Burdekin

As I started to work with horses that had a large amount of stress that had been retained within their bodies I started to realize that there were other controlling factors that needed to be considered and addressed.

This is where the factor of PTSD (Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome) was first considered and researched; before I could start to help a horse that might be suffering from PTSD I had to understand what PTSD was, what caused it to occur and look at where it might have come from. Upon seeing some of the basic research that had been done with people I did realize that it was based within the workings of the brain and certain aspects or even a specific occurrence in an individual's life opened the door to PTSD. It was at this point that in order to fully understand how it might affect the horse I felt that I needed to look to a comparison between the human brain and the brain of the horse. What I found in that comparison was quite amazing; what I learned showed me that both brains are just a similar as they are different.

Initially, I discovered that the brain of the horse has an average size similar to a large grapefruit; while the human brain occupies most of the space that is available within the human skull. The next point of interest that was discovered was that any species ability to think through any specific problem (their cognitive skills) is directly related to the ratio of the size of the brain to the size of the body that it is contained within. The human brain is close to 1/50th of the total body weight and size, where the brain of the horse is 1/650th of their body size and weight.

The next logical step was to look to how the brain of the horse functioned and it was here that I discovered how and why horses think and respond the way that they do. Let's start at the very beginning when a horse is born that have to have to be equipped to survive from the moment they are born, I have heard this referred to as "ready for life". What I understand that to mean is that new-born foals are up on their feet and totally operational within the first hour of their life. Consequently, at this point in their life, all of their actions are controlled by their "brain stem", which is an integrated part of their "reptilian" part of their brain. This becomes very important since it is the reptilian part of the brain that becomes the storehouse for additional information as the foal grows and progresses. It is during this time of development that the main areas of importance are the aspects of controlling balance along with developing better use of both eye and head movements.

Read more: The Roadmap to PTSD in Horses

by Linda Tellington-Jones

Before starting any exercise, take the time to connect and listen to your horse with your hands. You can easily do this by mindfully running your hands all over your horse’s body. This simple Body Exploration exercise will provide you with valuable information regarding your horse’s state of body and mind as well as his level of trust in you as a handler. A horse that is very comfortable being touched all over his body will be better prepared for any experience under saddle than one that is defensive, ticklish, or tense.

Having a horse that is truly happy and comfortable about being touched is incredibly important. Not only does this signify relaxation and physical well-being, it also tells you a lot about how much he trusts you. This is also very significant for horses that are already trained but may be having specific issues under saddle. Going back to the basics and helping your horse become comfortable about being touched everywhere will often help seemingly unrelated training issues.

For instance, if your horse has a tight, clamped tail, you will often find that this same horse may be nervous about noises or movement behind him.

How to Use It

Begin by checking the horse’s body with your flat hand. It is helpful to have someone holding your horse, or you can work freely in a stall-sized area, rather than having him tied up, so you can observe his reactions. Stroke the horse on the shoulder before beginning your Body Exploration to prepare him so he does not respond just because he was surprised. For some very sensitive horses the flat of the hand may be too much. If this seems to be the case, try using the back of your hand.

Starting at the poll, right behind the ears, let your hands slide over the strong neck muscle, paying close attention along the way. Your hands are feeling for slight irregularities: swellings, change in temperature, quality of the tissue, hard muscles, twitching, knots, change in the hair, scars, or areas where the horse is uncomfortable being touched. It is best to start with a light pressure, which you can adjust if the sensitivity or reaction of the horse requires you to do so. Sometimes horses are surprised by the touch of the fingertips; therefore, it is important to check if it was a startle reflex, or the horse reacting because he is tight. A healthy horse that is not tense will usually show a light response to a light pressure. When going over the poll and neck this horse will lower his neck, while a horse that is tight will raise his head and possibly show pain or fear.

Read more: Is Your Horse Happy and Comfortable? Find Out with This Simple Body Exploration

by Mary L. Scott

The breed goes back to the late seventeenth century, to the northwestern corner of North America and specifically to the large area that covered what is now part of the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana. This was the land inhabited by the Nez Percé American Indians, and it is to their forward-thinking horsemanship and breeding practices that the Appaloosa owes its success.

Though the Nez Percé developed this spotted breed, the history of spotted horses is a long one, with images of spotted horses appearing in prehistoric European cave paintings from around 17,000 B.C.E. Spotted horses-in particular the Austrian Noriker and the Danish Knabstrup - were extremely popular in Europe and were in great demand from the sixteenth century to perform in the increasingly popular Riding Schools. Many of the hallowed Spanish horses, too, including the revered Andalusian, once exhibited spotted coat colorings.

Read more: Appaloosa - The Most Beautiful Horse Breed in the World

by Bob Burdekin

I would like to explain how we are continually moving forward into the area of working with horses that up to this time, has been completely ignored; and that area is emotional stress management in horses.

But before we can even discuss emotional stress management and how it affects your horse we need to look at how your horse's brain works and compare it to our own.

To start with horses do not think the same way that we do; their brain is structured in a totally different manner, and how your horse uses their brain along with your input becomes the causes of the various levels of stress that your horse may experience.

When we look at and compare the brain of the horse to that of our own, the most important area to consider is the area of the "frontal lobe".

In our brain the frontal lobe is extremely large and well-developed, for this is the part of our brain that allows us to be able to process all of the information that we receive daily and that adds to our personalities, as well as our ability to develop cognitively, or reasoning abilities.

The exact opposite is true for your horse when we compare the same area the frontal lobe of your horse's brain is much more undeveloped and therefore does not give them anything close to the ability to reason through a problem even close to the ability that you or I have.

Read more: Stress and Your Horse's Brain

by Jennifer L Dayton

Horses walking into small, confined boxes on wheels can be a scary thing. Depending on previous experience, it can be either more or less scary. As a responsible horse owner, this is an important thing to teach your horse to do well, and to do it confidently and happily. I believe all horses should learn this, although it is a much more significant part of the schooling of a competitive horse.

In general, whether the trailer is an angle-haul, straight-load, step-up, or ramp, a horse should follow pleasantly and comfortably behind the handler into any trailer. The horse should fit in the trailer, and not be hitting the ceiling or squished into the partitions.

To begin, most problems I have witnessed with loading have a lot to do with the horses' response to pressure on the halter. Body language is also important to recognize, as it is the horses' way of communicating with you. Some horses are terrified; some horses just say no, and have gotten away with saying no; and others have constant worries - not fitting properly, having had a bad experience, slipping or falling. (A note to all those who drive a horse trailer: from those of us humans suffering from motion sickness - many of you make us feel ill with your quick turns and rapid accelerating and heavy braking; we have to wonder how many horses suffer the same way, and endure rough rides, knocking them about and challenging their balance constantly... not a good thing for horses to want to go back in the trailer for.

The most common problems encountered with trailering involve: the horse backing up, pulling back rapidly, refusing to move at all, dodging from side to side, or a combination thereof. Again, respect for the parts of the halter will help immensely. If the handler applies pressure to the headstall of the halter, the horse should move forward. Pressure on the noseband should cause the horse to yield, and pressure on the sides of the halter should catch the side-to-side problems. The main pressure that needs to be responded to in loading is the headstall.

Read more: Horse Training Power Tip: Loading Difficult Horses Into Trailers