Questions and Answers

Here are some questions that individuals have asked about the horses in general.  I have attempted to answer the questions as honestly as I can.  If a question is not answered or an answer that does not quite satisfy you.  Please email the Ranch and it will be answered and added to this list. 

If it specifically applies to a horse we will answer that question as well or it may already be answered on that horses individual page.

10. Do they kick or bite?
11. How are horses at the Vet?
12. Do your horses lounge?
13. How are they vaccinated? Coggins?
14. How are they wormed & with what?
15. What kind of tack do you use & why?
16. Your Question Here

17. Temperment Scale and words of advice

1. How do horses act when getting shoes on? They are used to having their feet handled, however I never put shoes on my horses feet, they were born barefoot, ride and live barefoot and will die barefoot. So the answer is I do not know.   Now all that ride and some that do not will wear medicine boots or Easy boots on occasion.

2. How are they with the farrier? All my horses are good with the Farrier (namely me – I do not call myself a farrier as that is a full time occupation.  I barefoot trim my horses and a few others on occasion. If and a big if you can talk me into it.  I was certified with the AFA right after I got out of college and do have that experience.  Just could not see paying for something (dues) that I would never use.  I will not put up with any misbehaving, the horses do pick up and hold their own weight up.

3. Do they tie & lead? Yes, the horses are tied for general care, at the trailer for riding events, at the Veterinarian for whatever they are there for and for trimming, brushing etc., They are never left alone or unsupervised when tied….EVER. Nor are halters ever left on. The ones that are halter broke all lead. Some foals and yearlings may or may not be halter broke. I had a two yr old (12/2005) "Raider" that is not halter broke, yet stands while I trim his feet, he loads and stays in the trailer (for coggins, shots etc.,), he unloaded and loaded back without a halter to have his face sutured up at the veterinary clinic.  Witnesses were amazed as was the Vet, besides if we would have put a halter on him it would have ripped his sutures out.  Most all of my horses lead by jawline, easy to train.

4. Do they clip? I have no idea :)   Actually I never take away horses natural defenses. My horses are in the pasture; they are not blanketed or receive any fly treatment on a regular basis (generally just when riding as the flies annoy me more than the horses).   I do clip the bridal path and tidy up the mane (when they are jagged) and tails (to keep from dragging the ground).
----ear hair --- The hair in the ears is there for a reason as it keeps out dust, dirt, bugs, keeps the inner ear dry and the hair actually wicks moisture from the ear. The hair also serves as a filter, have you ever noticed a horse with his ears back (not pinned) and relaxed? He is dozing and like you and I, he is tuning out some background noise.   This also keeps out no-see-ums or midges.
----Muzzle hair --- The hairs on the muzzle serve a purpose also, those long stiff hairs are like feelers to let them know how close they are to an object as well as the texture of an object such as hard stem grass or soft grass, hay or feed location in a bin.  I have seen horses with broken teeth due to having their muzzle clipped.  Remember a horse cannot see what he is eating and depends on these hairs to protect his muzzle, nose and teeth.
----eye hair--- The stiff guard hairs around the eye serve as protection also (not the eyelashes- those serve another purpose), when something (bug, dirt, hay, branch) touches the hair the eye will blink closed and the horse will pull away; hopefully before injury occurs. Human eyes are set in (skull) and are offered some protection a horse’s eyes are extended out from the skull to see around the body. How would you feel if some of your evolved protection was taken away?

5. Do they bathe? They all swim and enjoy water. I have bathed a few not often, mostly just rinse them off with EQ solution (lovely stuff spray on and rinse off). If I show again I will probably bathe them although not as often as some people I know. They are going to roll in the dirt when I am done anyway.  The use of Elbow Grease is the best thing for a horse.  Good grooming brings out the natural oils resulting in a shiny coat.

6. Do you have any cribbers? No. I have been told that cribbing is a stall device (lack of adequate turnout) or lack of oral support (not enough hay) or traceable on genetic lines. Since my horses are out 24x7 with free choice hay and pasture, this has never come to my attention. None of the horses I haul have exhibited this device, nor do they have teeth alignment problems that indicate a cribber.

7. How do they load? If you open the trailer door in the pasture get out of the way as they will all try to get in at once. Individually they load well. I leave them loose in the trailer unless hauling 4 or mores horses then they are tied in shipping halters for easy breakaway. Never use a rope halter as it does not give, if the horse slips and falls he could break his neck (happened to a friends horse, I was there), depending on how short he is tied up.

8. Do they spook? Generally no, however a horse is a prey animal and we cannot change thousands of years of instinct with 30 days or several years training. Remember each horse is an individual and the rider on them also indicates how they are to react to situations. I have been riding my mustang for 15 years and she still jerks (in place, but she still does it). My horses are taught to stand and face whatever has bugged them. My mare even stood when she was hit by ground hornets, once I figured out the other horses were getting stung (their riders not so lucky) we got out in a hurry, she never bucked.

9. Do your horses buck? I will never say No as any horse can buck under the right conditions.  Now I have spinabifida with 2 plates and 8 screw instead of a lumbar. I also have 2 plates and 12 screws in my right arm and I cannot afford to come off a horse. Now once I have one going undersaddle I have yet to have one buck.  I am not saying one will not buck it has just never happened with me on him or other people who have ridden my horses with me. I did sell one that did not buck and then got him back (voluntary repossession) and he did buck. He was sent to a trainer who got him out of the habit and is now safe to ride. (I still get steamed over that and do not think the feelings will ever go away).  Most horses will buck with ill fitting equipment over bitted or incorrectly saddled - saddle that does not fit.

10. Do your horses kick or bite? First off All every horse on this planet has the ability to kick and bite and they have that canny ability to exhibit this at the most embarassing of times and generally when you least expect it:  showmanship, on the rail, entering a class, when the judge walks up to you etc.,  Such is the life of owning horses.  No, my horses do not have this predisposition, nor would I tolerate it as there are too many good horses out there to have one that would intentionally do you injury.

--- kick ---Now I have not been kicked by any of mine; so the answer is No, they will not go out of their way to land a kick on someone a person. You will not have your arm yanked off when picking up their feet or worry about your head coming off. Now in the pasture the horses kick, nip, play fight, rear up on each other and are generally horses. The weanlings are bit more vigorous in their play and land some pretty hard hits (sounds that way) on each other, does not seem to phase them though, they act as if it never happened.

--- bite --- No biters either, I do not have nor will I have a horse on my property that intentially goes out to hurt someone.  That is unacceptable.  Biting is usually taught to a horse and not by feeding treats, but by lack of respect on the horses part and an owner who does not know how to immediately correct the act and thinks it is cute and thus letting it turn into a dangerous habit.

“My philosophy… If it has teeth or a mouth – it can bite. If it has legs – it can kick. If it has claws – it can scratch or with falcons they break bones and sever tendons.” Treat every animal as if they do and you are less likely to be injured”. People are injured more often by their own horse and not someone else’s. We tend to keep our distance from the unknown and we to our own detriment tend to lose respect for what our horses can do, because they have never acted like or done that before, and we just do not understand why they did it and make excuses for it when something does happen. I have seen some really baffled people.

11. All the mares palpate  --are used to you and a Veterinarian behind them, are used to having all their personal parts handled, and used to you being around and handling their foals. Most of the geldings can be cleaned without the use of drugs, stallions and their parts are handled to assist in breeding, collection and desensitization. Coggins are pulled with minimal effort, vaccinations are given with the same ease.

12. Do your horses lounge? I do not per say lounge my horses, since they are not stalled they do not seem to have the pent up energy that a stalled horse does.  I do teach them ground manners and lounging is a part of that learning experience (ground work), it is not a part of their daily life.  I will put one in the round pen if I have not ridden it in awhile just to see how they act when saddled.

13. How are they vaccinated? Coggins? All the horses receive Eastern, Western, Venezuelan and West Nile Encephalomyelitis (sleeping sickness), Equine Influenza (KY 97, A1 & A2), Tetanus, Rhinopneumonitis (EHV-1 & EHV2) & Rabies. I do not do strangles or potomac, when these are made safer I will utilize them. I do annual vaccinations toward the end of February or the beginning of March for two reasons: 1. It will boost the mares antibodies so that she has a high concentration in her colostrum 2. It is just before the fly and wet season begins. Foals will receive three doses beginning around their eight month of age. When the mare is properly vaccinated the foal is living off her antibodies that is why a coggins in not really any good on a foal (under 8 months as you are testing his mom and not him). Giving vaccinations to early on a foal will actually compromise their immune response and decrease the overall effectivness. Texas A&M has several workshops for broodmare and performance horse owners. I recommend this short course to all horse owners, the first one is generally in February.  Coggins are pulled annually on most of the riding horses at the end of February and first week or two of March.

14. How often are the wormed and with what? I use fenbendazole, pyrantel pamoate and oxibendazole on the foals at 4, 8 and 12 weeks then they get a dose of an Ivermectin product. Mature horses are wormed every two -three months. I generally alternate between Ivermection product and other wormers to avoid resistance.

Annual wormings start after the first of frost.  Here is a typical worming schedule and it may vary some. 

1. double dose of safe guard/Panacure (fenbendazole) in Late Winter
Jan/Feb or the New Year
2. Spring Ivermectin Product March/April
3. Early Summer Moxidectin or a Pyrantel Pamoate product May/June
4. mid summer Ivermectin July/Aug
5. Fall use Safeguard or oxibendazole again Sept/Oct
6. Winter is clean out with Equimax/Ivermectin Gold or Quest Gel
Plus (prazinquantel) Nov/Dec.  Takes care of both Tapes and Bot fly larva


15. What kind of tack do you use and why? I ride in a Western synthetic flex saddle with a full quarter tree -most of my horses have withers and are wide.  Synthetic due to my back as it is easy to lift and very confortable to sit in. I train with a heavier saddle then go to a lighter one. I use both cinch's, breast collar and a snaffle bit usually with no curb chain. I just started using a throatlatch strap due to branches pulling the headstall off and the bits out of the mouths of the horses when trail riding in heavy brush. Generally I do not ride with a breast collar unless I have a saddle that slips or if I am in some real hill country, I never go beyond a snaffle as with proper training you do not need to. Never use tie downs (illegal equipment in SHOT) and it is dangerous. My bit is either a full cheek or  a D-ring copper snaffle or french link. Keep it simple, the horses mouth soft and responsive. I will pull you off my horse when riding if you keep your hand in his mouth and you can walk back to the trailer. They all ride with a loose and slack rein.

16.  ?