Spring Health Check Up For Our Horses, Spring Cleaning For The Farm!

After the cold and dark of winter, spring excites horse owners to get ready for competition and to hit the trails. It’s also an energizing time with the longer days, more sunshine and warmer evenings. So it’s a perfect time to clean and fix things! The brighter light shows up those parts of our barns, tack, and pastures that need attention. Here’s a rundown of things to check and repair. In addition, your horse will need some special attention to be ready and fully healthy for the outdoors.

For Our Horses:
Spring is the best time for semi-annual vaccinations. The best immunity derived from many vaccines is during the first 2-3 months after they are given. Mosquitoes transmit one of the more common vaccinated diseases, encephalitis, as well as the West Nile Virus, so you want the best protection during the worst of the mosquito season. Other diseases like rhino and flu are transmitted from horse to horse. During the good weather months, your horse is likely to encounter many other horses while you are out and about trail riding and showing. So get that immunity boost before heading out! More on vaccinations and other horse health follows:

• Vaccines: Consult your veterinarian for recommended vaccinations in your area and to see if you are up-to-date, including rabies and West Nile Virus. There are several West Nile vaccines available for horses and when used in combination with mosquito avoidance, you can nearly eliminate your horse’s risk of infection. These vaccinations are highly effective, relatively inexpensive and, contrary to anecdotal reports, are nearly free of adverse reaction. It is also a good time to make sure you are on a worming schedule. Your vet can advise you about what wormer and worming system is best to use in the spring and work with you to set up your equine vaccination schedule. Create a file to store records and keep track of your horse’s health.
  
  
• Pre-season Soundness Exam: As veterinarians who focus on prevention and performance, we recommend this evaluative exam on a periodic basis to help ensure a long, useful, and comfortable life from your horse. This evaluation will give you a baseline on your horse and help identify future health risk factors and the opportunities for early intervention.
  
  
• First Aid Kit: Review your supplies to make sure you are stocked up and nothing has expired. If you are missing items, you can purchase supplies through your vet. Some items need a prescription. Learn more about what should be in a First Aid Kit or purchase one through Evergreen Equine Veterinary Practice online.
  
  
• Supplements: Talk with your vet about which supplements your horse should be on and then see about purchasing these supplements either through your vet or local feed store. Ask one of the vets at Evergreen Equine Veterinary Practice about ordering Platinum Performance supplements through their office.
  
  
• Grooming Equipment: Be honest. When did you last clean your brushes? Disinfect all your supplies and oil your clippers. Empty your tack box, trunk and locker. Clean these, their contents and re-organize. Replenish your stock of shampoos, hoof care, fly spray, and other grooming needs for the season.
  
  
• Spring Turnout: Be cautious about turning your horse out onto lush green pasture without a plan. The sudden introduction of a grass-rich diet could lead to medical problems. A slow conversion after eating hay all winter will mitigate the chance of your horse colicing or foundering.
  
  
• Diseases: Watch your horse for signs of thrush or rain rot that can occur during the early wet part of spring. If you do find your horse has one of these fungi, consult your veterinarian for the best treatment for your horse.

The Barn:
No matter where you are in the Northwest, winter takes a toll on your barn. Now is the time to fix and deep clean the stalls, shavings bin, feed room, tack rooms, indoor arena walls, mirrors and letters, wash stall drains, and all the areas of your barn:

• Roofs: Replace loose shingles or tin. Broken roofs allow water, rodents, and birds access to your barn's interior, which can create messy problems.
  
  
• Gutters: Clean out barn gutters to deflect water away from your barn. Clogged gutters allow water to pool where disease-laden insects may breed or your horse could slip and injure himself.
  
  
• Eaves: Check your eaves and horse trailers for wasp and hornet nests. Use equine-safe perimeter spray to prevent these insects from returning and building new nests. Even the calmest horse can panic if stung.
  
  
• Rafters: Clean away all spider webs in the rafters and corners of the barn. These trap bugs and dust, and are a fire hazard.
  
  
• Stalls: Replace chewed wood and spray new wood with chew-deterrent. Check stall doors and mats to make sure they are all in good condition. Clean the floors with All-Surface wash to drain away any waste residual that might create an unhealthy living condition.

Tack:
Halters, leads, saddle pads, fly sheets, and other types of tack help keep your horse safe and comfortable. A thorough cleaning allows you to spot any defects in the tack you use daily. Replace heavily damaged tack. Prepare winter accessories for storage in a cool dry place. The cost of replacing tack is minimal when compared to the costs you might incur should your horse become injured because of damaged tack. Other items to check are:

• Blankets, pads, and boots: Look over your tack and repair, clean, and dry turnout blankets, saddle pads, leg wraps, and hoof boots. Clean and store winter blankets.
  
  
• Fly masks and sheets: Clean both fly masks and any turnout sheets you plan to use during fly and mosquito season. These often get dusty between use so should be cleaned frequently.
  
  
• Trailer, ties, hitch and hay bags: Inspect the ties and bags in the trailer to make sure they are in good condition and safe for hauling. It’s also a good idea to service your trailer and check your hitch at this time, too.
  
  
• Halters and lead ropes: Inspect, clean and condition all your halters and check for points of stress or damage. Replace any lead ropes that show signs of significant wear or fraying as these are unsafe to use.

Pastures:
Winter is harsh on pastures. If you use them for daily turnout throughout the winter you are well aware that pastures can to turn into a muddy mess. Unfortunately, most horse injuries occur while on pasture. Cordon off a section to limit galloping and to allow fields to regenerate. Also conduct these routine maintenance steps:

• Fences: Walk inside and outside along the fence line and make sure there are no broken pieces that could puncture your horse. Check for protruding nails or loose wires, and wiggle posts to test strength. Examine the hot-wire system and repair fraying wires or weak links.
  
  
• Debris: Remove fallen trees, limbs, stumps, wires, pipes, nails and other objects that could cut or puncture your horse during turn out. Collect and remove large or sharp stones that could bruise your horse’s feet.
  
  
• Grass: Fertilize your fields with equine-safe pasture fertilizer, till and over-seed using a good mix of pasture grass, such as perennial grasses and reseeding clovers. Pick grasses that are well suited for horses and your region of the country. If your horse has Equine Cushings Syndrome, Equine Metabolic Disorder or Insulin Resistance, consider reseeding your pasture with low-sugar grass seed. Talk to your vet about what is safe and the value of organic and other alternatives.

By following these spring tips you’ll be ready to get out there and enjoy the beautiful spring riding weather!

Spring Advice provided courtesy of Kim Rauch, LAMP, ESMT, and student at Purdue’s VTDLP. Kim, a client of EEVP, enjoys her five horses – Ammo, Cole, Jade, Joane Blue, and Redford – and is a western pleasure/trail rider.

Spring Advice from EEVP, April 2011