| How many times have you forgotten or decided | | | | don't be afraid to remind him to hold the hoof up |
| to skip the chore of checking your horse's | | | | a little. Practice and patience go along way with |
| hooves? With all of the tack checking and | | | | this one. |
| re-checking, the barn chores, the riding | | | | 4. Hold your horses. The connective joint of the |
| preparation details, the maintenance and care | | | | front legs and rear legs are different in horses. |
| around the ranch and with your horses, we may | | | | Bringing the hoof up directly under the horse is |
| sometimes neglect at least one thing. Our horses' | | | | the most natural balance position, such as when |
| feet, should not be that thing! You ALWAYS | | | | the horse gaits at a walk or trot. It is a common |
| double check the tack, the clasps and cinches | | | | mistake to pull the leg off to the side, which |
| before you ride, but have you ever skipped the | | | | actually can throw off the balance of the horse. |
| hoof check? | | | | The leg does move circularly and most horses will |
| Your horse always has the same manure or sand | | | | comply, but the best way for them to relax in |
| packed in under the hoof and you have scraped it | | | | your grasp, is to keep it natural and comfortable. |
| out countless times while your horse leans all of | | | | 5. As with any standing (preferably tied) grooming |
| his weight in your hand. Or, perhaps you fight to | | | | activity, please do not feed your horse to keep |
| get that hoof high enough to look underneath and | | | | him still. It is important to allow the horse to relax |
| every time, your horse jerks it out of your grasp | | | | and comply because they actually trust you. A |
| to stomp on to the ground. Is it defiance? Is it | | | | horse will eat and swat multiple flies at the same |
| refusal? Is it uncomfortable to stand on three legs | | | | time, but that is not how you want them to |
| when he has four? | | | | respond to your requests. |
| 1. ALWAYS check with your veterinarian FIRST, | | | | 6. Listen, pay attention. You may be asking that |
| to rule out any and all medical issues that could | | | | of your horse, but you need to also give that to |
| possibly be associated with the horse's ability to | | | | your horse. It is surprising what they can actually |
| comply with your requests. | | | | tell you, when you pay attention. Horses have a |
| 2. Time to determine the cause. | | | | multitude of ways to communicate with |
| Sometimes, a horse's refusal to stand on three | | | | body-language and cues that you can easily |
| legs willingly indicates a lack of "ground manners", | | | | understand when you are paying attention. This |
| or perhaps a lack of "ground rules". You must | | | | knowledge will improve your experiences with |
| establish to your horse that it is pleasant to | | | | your horse and make you a safer handler. Pick up |
| comply and that you will not hurt or scare the | | | | a new book on how horses communicate and try |
| horse into submission. Respect is an earned | | | | to become knowledgeable of the horse language. |
| response, where you will need to establish some | | | | You can also acquire a tremendous amount of |
| basic ground rules with your horse. If this is new | | | | knowledge on this subject by observing the horse |
| to you, then this is where you start! Learn what | | | | herd. Many books have been written on the |
| ground manners are and set some ground rules. | | | | subject and some professional trainers have |
| If this is not part of your previous training, please | | | | implemented the ideas in their training methods to |
| seek the advice of a professional horse handler or | | | | help people. |
| trainer with whom you respect. You may need to | | | | Skipping that hoof check can also result in a |
| correct something that you are doing that is | | | | preventable veterinary bill. While it is important to |
| creating a negative or dangerous response from | | | | always check with your veterinarian should you |
| your horse. | | | | have a concern, you can certainly take measures |
| 3. Is it comfortable? It is not uncommon, even | | | | to keep your visits to a minimum. It is wise to |
| among seasoned horse people, to pick up the | | | | schedule regular visits with a professional and |
| hoof in a way that is uncomfortable to the horse. | | | | reputable Farrier. They can also be a great |
| He will brace against your request and with his | | | | resource on how to pick up your horse's feet |
| body-language or in response to your request, try | | | | safety and what to check for. Rocks can get |
| to let you know that you are NOT doing it right! | | | | lodged in the crevices of the natural shape of the |
| With all horse activities, in order to become well | | | | hoof, a rusty nail can threaten a horse's life, and |
| respected by your horse counterpart, you must | | | | some surfaces will create health problems in the |
| learn about the horse. Be sure that you | | | | hoof. Your horse cannot remove the |
| understand the dynamics of the horse's shift of | | | | uncomfortable or hazardous foreign objects, but |
| balance and what that looks like. It's not to say, | | | | you can. A simple sweep along the natural curves |
| that when a person doesn't think of the horses | | | | under the hoof, on a daily basis, will clear out |
| comfort level that they are not a good | | | | most debris and help keep your horse's hooves in |
| horse-person, but many people do not think of | | | | better shape. There are also many great |
| what it might be like for the horse to stand on | | | | products on the market that you can treat your |
| three hooves at the very instant of your request. | | | | horse to. Your horse will be able to perform much |
| Give your horse time to shift the weight and | | | | better when their hooves are in great shape. |