Photo by Jenni Autry.

A well-fitting saddle is essential to your horse’s health because a ill-fitted saddle could cause immediate and long term negative effects.

A saddle that pinches or is not properly flocked could cause discomfort during riding, and your horse may or may not let you know through misbehavior or difficult schooling sessions.

A saddle that slips or twists can affect the spine and muscle development. If left unattended, these problems can cause serious physical issues for your horse down the road.

In addition to your horse’s comfort, a poorly fitting or damaged saddle is a detriment to rider safety. Worn billets and defective stirrup bars could cause major equipment malfunctions at an inopportune time. Just think what could happen if your girth straps broke or the stirrup bar fell off while you were galloping across country?

Eventers are well aware of the importance of saddle fit and are fairly good about maintaining a relationship with a professional saddle fitter.

Saddles are a significant expense, however, and not everyone can afford custom gear; some horses and riders have to make do with a saddle that fits a little less well than a glove. However, there are certain saddle problems that must not be ignored. Read about seven common but unacceptable faults found in English saddles in this article from The Horse.

Buzz Off! The flies are out in full force and it’s difficult to stand in the barn aisle without noticing the incessant stomping. Every barn has its own methods for dealing with flies whether its fly traps/tape, fly predators, fly spray systems etc. Every owner also has “their” fly spray that they swear works better than the rest, plus some other interesting methods to repel the pests and sooth the itch. Horse and Hound rounded up 24 tips from its readers who shared some pretty creative ideas! [Horse and Hound]

An App for That: Equine Guelph Center at Canada’s University of Guelph recently launched a new app called the Horse Health Tracker that enables horse owners to track their horse’s health information. Assisi Animal Health recently reviewed the benefits of this app and suggested a number of other horse health-related applications for smartphones and tablets. [Yahoo]

Bossy’s Cookies: Bossy’s Cookies is a newborn foal who developed botulism, a potentially fatal illness caused by a toxin produced by bacteria. As neurological symptoms worsened and Bossy’s Cookies became weaker, her owners decided to drive her 400 miles to UC Davis for veterinary care. Within four weeks she was back to a bright and bouncy foal and expected to make a full recovery. Read her story and some important notes about botulism. [Jurga Report]

Temperature Tips: There are any number of reasons to take a horse’s temperature: unusual behavior, lack of appetite, inflammation, hives. You name it. A fever is a critical indicator of an animal’s health, so generally, if you are going to call the vet they are going to want to know if the horse has a temperature as they consider a possible diagnosis. Thankfully, taking a horse’s temperature is quick and easy. [Horse and Rider]

Upper Respiratory Disease: In fact, during the early stages of an upper respiratory tract infection, many horses’ only clinical sign is fever. Infectious upper respiratory disease is the equine equivalent of the common cold and it can quickly spread through the barn. Even though it’s summertime, go ahead and read more about the clinical signs, diagnostics, treatment and prevention of a horse “cold.” The information might come in handy one day! [The Horse]

Photo by Leslie Threlkeld

With the welcome sunshine of summer comes the inevitable hardening of the ground as moisture evaporates and dirt packs down. Firm ground is tricky business for events and eventers. Horse trials organizers spend countless dollars and hours to provide the best footing conditions with aerators, aggravators, irrigation systems (have you seen Chattahoochee Hills’ water cannon?) and wishes for rain.

Only so much can be done to improve dry ground, however, and sometimes competitors withdraw rather than run their horses on noticeably firm going. Hard ground can increase the amount of force on a horse’s joints and soft tissues, which can lead to pain and inflammation in the joints and tendons.

If your horse has run on hard ground, there are ways you can make him comfortable and help prevent problems from developing. Make sure he is properly shod (possibly with shock absorbing pads) and take great care after cross country to cool his joints and soothe his feet. Read more about how to manage horses on hard ground through prevention, identification and treatment.

Laminitis Knowledge: We know the tell-tale sign – a horse leaning back, trying take the weight off of its painful front feet. Laminitis is a complex and tricky disease with potentially debilitating or fatal affects, and every horse and pony is susceptible to it. Here are 10 things you need to know about laminitis.  [Horse and Country]

Dental Care: Think your horse has perfect teeth and doesn’t require a dentist? It’s unlikely. In a recent study, only 3% of horses were found to have no dental abnormalities. Over 50% of horses had sharp enamel points and more than 40% had hooks. While older horses are more prone to dental abnormalities, prevention with regular dental exams and records from a young age is advised. [Horsetalk]

Critically Ill Foals: Every breeder hopes for an uneventful birth and a healthy, thriving foal soon standing alongside its proud dam. Unfortunately 3 to 7% of foals have a significant health issue in the first month of life and need intensive care to recover. And there is so much that can go wrong. [The Horse]

Fiber for Hydration: Water is your horse’s most important nutrient. A British equine nutritionist suggests that a high-fiber diet may increase water-holding capacity and therefore help a horse maintain hydration for longer. [Horsetalk]

Photo by Shutter Fotos/Flickr/Creative Commons

The group dynamics of a herd of horses are interesting to observe. Personalities emerge and a hierarchy inevitably becomes apparent over time. As owners, however, we hope that our horses don’t get into too much trouble trying to climb the social ladder…and keep the bite marks to a minimum.

I’ve moved multiple times with Willow, an Appaloosa pony mare, and she’s integrated really well into new herds, with both mares and geldings. This is mainly because she doesn’t care where she’s placed in the pecking order. You can see it on her face when she’s turned out with new horses and they think about sizing her up: “Don’t bother.”

Fey, however, a 5-year-old chestnut mare, is an absolute sweetheart in the barn – eager for attention and constant snuggles. In the pasture, however, she’s a total bossy pants. She insists the younger horses eat their hay on the opposite side of the feeder, where she doesn’t have to look at them. Of course she’s tried to push Willow around, but the pony just moves away, unimpressed.

We associate stallions and dominate mares as being the leaders in herds of wild horses, and we see some semblance of that dynamic in domesticated equines. However, when it comes to decision-making, the responsibility is apparently shared among multiple members of the herd, according to a recent study.

Examining two groups of horses that lived without supplemental feeding or human intervention, French researchers studied the groups’ movements in an attempt to identify leaders. You can read about their findings summarized by Horsetalk at this link.

Feed Healthy Treats: Who doesn’t love giving their precious ponies a goody now and then? If your horse doesn’t get mouthy about it, treats are positive reinforcement for a job well done, and a nice occasional gesture from “mom” or “dad.” But are treats healthy for your horse? We know we shouldn’t eat a pint of ice cream every day, no matter how our day went at work, but how much is too much for your horses? Choosing the right treats and feeding them in moderation is the key. [Horse Canada]

Dams Shape Foals Relationship with Humans: Some breeders say that a foal is influenced 60% by its dam and 40% by its sire. Regardless of the physical qualities they receive from their parents, however, the nurturing mare will greatly influence the foal’s habits and social relationships. A recent study shows that when it comes to human interaction in particular, the dam’s attitude is especially important. [The Horse]

Why Horses Spook: All you want to do is have a nice quiet ride to relieve the stress of the day, but your horse can’t seem to keep his brain between his ears, as he jumps and jerks at pony-eating bushes, buckets and bugs. Lauren Bond, an equine behaviorist, did the math over on our sister site, Horse Nation, and explained that often a spooky horse is reacting to multiple stimulus instead one scary monster after another. [Horse Nation]

Adding Oil to Feed: Need to pack pounds on a hard keeper or a horse whose work load has recently increased? One cheap and easy way to add calories without adding sugar or starch to the diet is splashing a bit of oil in their feed. Depending on the type of oil you choose, your horse may also receive nutrient benefits that will improve their immune and inflammatory status. [Horse Canada]

Why Does a Horse Bite? There are many reasons why a horse may resort to biting – fear, pain and protection are just a few. Biting can become a very dangerous habit in the barn and is one of the hardest things to train out of a horse. Understanding why horses bite may help you stop the behavior. [The Horse]