Controlling Insects in Spring

Spring brings warm weather, making riding conditions better for equestrians. With the warm weather, however, comes various types of insects, including mosquitos, flies, and ticks. Often these insects are just annoying, but some can carry contagious diseases. Among these are West Nile Virus and Equine encephalitis. By reducing or even eliminating these insects, you can make your horse more comfortable and possible prevent illnesses caused by insects.

 The first thing you can do to reduce the number of insects is to clean up around the barn. Manure attracts flies like a magnets, so mucking your horse's stall or paddock daily is a huge step in reducing barn flies. Another step is keeping the area dry, particularly in the evening. Don't keep water away from your horse, but empty buckets of dirty, stagnant water, and try to keep his living space as dry as possible. This can help prevent mosquitos. Mowing the grass can also prevent insects, mainly ticks, which hide in tall grass and can cause Lyme disease. 

 When getting rid of insects, it is also important to consider doing things that directly involve your horse. For example, a fly sheet and mask can go a long way to stopping flies and other insects from biting your horse or irritating their eyes. Fly spray can also be helpful, but remember that it usually wears off after a little while. Feed-through fly repellant is also becoming popular. Some feeds contain apple cider vinegar or garlic to prevent flies from swarming around your horse.

 I make my own using essential oils, but regular fly sprays from your tack/feed store work as well. In the blend I use, I mix several insect-repelling oils with distilled water in a spritz bottle. Among these oils is a blend of citronella, well known for its insect repelling abilities as it is found in multiple bug sprays, lemongrass, rosemary, melaleuca, and myrtle. Other insect repelling oils include geranium, eucalyptus, cedarwood, and thyme. You do not need to use all of these oils in your spray; just a few drops each of an oil of your choice will do.

 Insects can be annoying to have around, so making efforts to reduce them can be helpful. Even small things such as fly sheets can make your horse happier with all the bugs around.

Spring Riding Goals

 Winter is almost over and spring is almost here, so I decided to evaluate the three goals I set back in November and create several new ones.

Goal 1: Get better at posting.

 This one is definitely a success. When I started riding back in November, my posting was terrible and unrythmnical, and I was really bouncing around in the saddle. Now, I'm more in rythmn with the gait and I am now longer slammed down into the saddle when I sit. 

Goal 2: Develop riding muscles.
 After several months of riding almost weekly, my legs are getting stronger, a reason why my posting is much better.

Goal 3: Canter by spring

 Success! Over the past few lessons I have done a bit of canter work on the lungeline, and most recently, on a serpentine and during my dressage test. 

Now that those goals are completed, I'm going to list some more goals, this time for spring. I hope to make small, attainable goals that I will be able to complete over the next few months.

Goal 1: Improve at Intro Test C
 During my last lesson, I learned my first dressage test, Intro Test C, and went through it twice. Now that I know how it's done and have watched several other people do it on YouTube, I can begin to improve at it through lots of practice and study. By summer, I hope to be much better at it.

Goal 2: Improve my equitation at the trot
 My EQ it much better than it was starting out, and even a bit better than it was last month. However, sometimes at the trot my shoulders go forwards, I glance down, or I lean a bit forward. I hope to get better at not doing this.

 A storm has been hitting the area where I live. This past week, it has been cold(down to 48F) and pouring down rain with almost gale force winds reaching up to 10mph(at least that what I read). It's supposed to be a 100% chance(seriously?) of raining tomorrow. Even without the rain, riding weather isn't ideal. My lesson might be cancelled again because we don't have an indoor or covereded arena to use in inclement weather. It sure doesn't feel like spring the way the weather is now. 

Preparing for Spring

 With March just a few days away, spring is just around the corner. This means warm weather, more riding, and a quickly approaching show season. However, with the all those good things come things horse owners need to look out for, such as flies and other insects, green grass that can be dangerous if consumed too quickly, and other things. It is important to be prepared and ready for the coming spring.

 One way to get ready for spring is by preparing your grooming and first aid kit. Replace old flysprays, shampoo, wound ointment, and tack soap, which may have been ruined if the weather was too cold. You will need all that stuff when spring comes in full swing, and you don't want to rush to get anything when flies are already bothering your horse or when he gets a wound. While you're at it, repair, clean, pack away your horse's blankets for next winter.

 Vaccinations should also be done soon, as well wellness exams. It is important for you to get those done, especially since some diseases are spread by the various types of insects that come out in the spring. Your vet may also set your horse on a deworming schedule to eliminate parasites that come when the weather is warm.

This green pasture may look nice, but you have to watch out for the hazards that can come with it.
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 The coming spring also brings pastures of verdant grass. Though it may tempting to let your horse graze on the lush green grass, it is important to monitor his eating. Overeating spring grass, which is usually high in sugar, can cause problems such as laminitis, also known as grass founder. A horse with laminitis will often appear fat with cracked hooves. Preventing it is as simple as accustoming your horse to eating fresh grass, starting with a short peroid of about 15 minutes and gradually increasing it. (see Laminitis 1, 2 for more information)

 The warm weather may make you want to begin riding again as soon as possible, but before continuing work in full swing, you should condition your horse, particularly if you haven't ridden him much this winter. Start with light flatwork and hacking, especially if your horse hasn't been regularly exercised for over three weeks. As your horse regains fitness over weeks of training, slowly increase the difficulty of the workout, adding jumping and cantering when he is ready. The less time your horse had off, the faster you can return to the riding program you had before winter.

 Keep in mind the different ailments that occur in the spring, such as rain rot and other skin ailments, and learn how to prevent and treat them to keep your horse as healthy and safe as possible this season. Being prepared will help you make the most of spring.