Nebraska Horse Council

Dress in layers: Dress yourself in layers that can be easily removed if you warm up.

Wear Safe Boots: You may want to wear warmer boots. Be sure they are not so bulky that they could get wedged in the stirrups. They should still slide out easily.

Warm the Bit: A frosty cold bit can be uncomfortable for your horse. Warm the bit with your hands or keep the bridles in the house, or in the truck until you reach your destination.

Avoid Hazards: Know what is under the snow, the snow may be covering ice. Avoid areas where you know there are holes, branches or other hazards covered by the snow.

Adjust the Workload: Working in snow is harder work for your horse, plan your ride accordingly.
Remember walking in hard or crust on the snow is hard for the horse to break through, change the lead horse a lot, so that each horse gets a break.

Ride with a loose rein: Allow the horse to use his neck and head to the best of his potential. Don’t interfere with his head.  Maintain a center of balance to help you horse walk through slippery areas.

Keep muscles warm: If your horse is use to being stabled, consider using a rump rug or quarter sheet to keep his muscles from getting chilled while riding.

A wet horse can get cold: Plan extra time to cool down.

Talk to you farrier: If you plan to ride and the ground is slippery, ask you farrier about shoes with pads or ice caulks.

Prevent Snowballs: If snowballs form in the hooves, give the bottom of the hooves a coating of petroleum jelly.

Bring extra water: Working in cold weather can be dehydrating, pack extra water for yourself.

Posted In Trails Committee News

This entry was posted on Monday, January 11th, 2010 at 1:57 am and is filed under Trails Committee News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.