# Dumbest thing a supposedly clued-up horse person has told you?



## Shadowdancing (22 April 2016)

I know non horsey people come out with some corkers, but these people who have been around horses for years and years don't half come out with some useless tosh.

My example- livery yard owner. Had horses for years. Turned around to me and said...

"Really you shouldn't have a horse of your own if you work. They're a full time job in themselves."

Ummmm. Ok. so you ride and muck him/her out and put her in the field. Then what? Sit and watch them graze in case they injure themselves?
Apart from that- how do us normal, everyday people pay for this privilege- indeed pay you to keep the horse in the first place?
Insane. 

Your corkers please?


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## Damnation (22 April 2016)

There was an instance where a girl I knew had her first pony. She was a teenage and had been riding most of her life.

He was getting fat, I told her several times over the winter, he is a Welsh Cob he will get Laminitus if you don't get his weight down. Feeding him wheelbarrows full of hayledge and buckets of competition mix will make him ill!

Didn't listen. Horse got Laminitus 3 weeks after my last warning.

Her dad fully believed that a grazing mussle would "cure" him and he would be as right as rain...

I was so angry that the pony was now suffering and I may have torn an educational strip off him... I believe his weight has been closely monitored since.


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## Merlod (22 April 2016)

"You can tell he's [4y/o horse] going to grow big because he's got a lot of loose skin." um, so foals must be born like those wrinkly dogs then?


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## Regandal (22 April 2016)

That horses grey out due to exposure to sunlight. If you keep them rugged,  they won't grey.


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## kamili (22 April 2016)

You need to put that horse to sleep, he has fractured something in his hind leg, for no reason.
Vet standing beside both horse and I and pips in, if that horse has a fractured leg then I don't have a veterinary qualification.


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## HeresHoping (22 April 2016)

Am sitting on my fingers because someone piped up on FB this morning, 'Have you checked for ulcers? Because my horse often has a sore back when his ulcers are playing up.'


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## Damnation (22 April 2016)

Where I used to work the YO had been riding and had owned horses for all of her life. (She was in her 60's.) A very knowledgable lady and a fantastic rider.

We had a livery who weaved very badly and had been with us a year. After about a year, YO suddenly pipes up that we should put weave bars up incase it taught anything else to weave.

Horse had been in that stable for a year, on a yard of about 7 horses that had also been there that whole time. Not one had learned to weave


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## Pippity (22 April 2016)

For a horse that evaded the bit by curling her head into her chest:

"Stick a martingale on her. That'll fix it."


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## Stockers (22 April 2016)

Old bonkers YO - had horses for years, used to cluck disapprovingly at us.  'I feel sorry for your horses having to go out in the rain'.


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## huskydamage (22 April 2016)

'Not riding my horse  and leaving her shut in stable with loads of food would make her live longer.'
Fastest way to kill her off with dust allergy, arthritus and the fact that she would be bored shitless lol Can't believe the amount of experienced horse people that still think an animal that is designed to be roaming outside is better shut in a dusty box doing nothing.


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## hairycob (22 April 2016)

I had someone  tell me me my cob (living out 24/7 on good grass) losing his coat because he was underfed and I should give him hard feed twice a day. It was April! Guess how fat hers were & whether they kept getting laminitis.


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## Damnation (22 April 2016)

hairycob said:



			I had someone  tell me me my cob (living out 24/7 on good grass) losing his coat because he was underfed and I should give him hard feed twice a day. It was April! Guess how fat hers were & whether they kept getting laminitis.
		
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This is what upsets me, when people have false information and can't bare for their little cherubs to be without food when its infact killing them! Hence my tearing "Educated Strips" off my friends father 

Neglect through either stupidity or ignorance. (Neither of which is acceptable). Some stupid things people say can be really damaging to a horse and their health.


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## Auslander (22 April 2016)

"If you hold the neckstrap - you wont fall off" (WFP's mother - watching me ride a very naughty baby racehorse)
I did hold the neckstrap - the whole time the horse was bucking it's brains out. And as I flew through the air, and straight out through the fence of the indoor school. I still had it in my hand as I peeled myself off the floor and clambered back through the fence...


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## Deltaflyer (22 April 2016)

Person who'd ridden for year and had their own horse. regarding chestnuts on front legs

'They stop horses who are narrow in front brushing their forelegs together so they mustn't be trimmed'

RS owner - if a horse has a blue eye it's blind in that eye.


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## Makemineacob (22 April 2016)

It never cease to amaze me what some people come out with. 

Someone recently told me her horse was coughing due to dust in his hay, he's on really nice haylage (and it wasn't anything to do with him stuffing down sliced apples she was feeding him!) &#55357;&#56876; she then proceeded to tell me she once had to perform the heimlick maneuver on him.  Was walking past YO once and heard a livery telling the YO that her horse was too fat (on full livery and owner had been away for few days), was stood with YO the following day when the same livery approached and thanked YO profusely as her horse was looking much thinner (in one day???) &#55357;&#56834;


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## JillA (22 April 2016)

PMSL @ the Heimlich manoeuvre on a horse


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## Shadowdancing (22 April 2016)

Auslander said:



			"If you hold the neckstrap - you wont fall off" (WFP's mother - watching me ride a very naughty baby racehorse)
I did hold the neckstrap - the whole time the horse was bucking it's brains out. And as I flew through the air, and straight out through the fence of the indoor school. I still had it in my hand as I peeled myself off the floor and clambered back through the fence...
		
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This killed me...  Hope you weren't too sore!


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## Makemineacob (22 April 2016)

It would have to be seen to be believed!!! I resisted the urge to ask her to show me "just in case I ever needed to do it" ha ha ha


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## _GG_ (22 April 2016)

JillA said:



			PMSL @ the Heimlich manoeuvre on a horse
		
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Me too! 

Auslander, that's hilarious!

My favourite from this week..."I chopped his ergots off, they were so big they were rubbing together". I said that I hoped she meant chestnuts and that you don't have to chop them off, they will peel off quite easily if you keep on top of them. 

A few weeks ago, same girl..."the faster you trot on the road, the less concussion as the less time their hooves are on the floor".


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## Sleipnir (22 April 2016)

Got told by a lifetime horse breeder and trainer that I should never spend more than 3 hours a day with my young horse, or else he'll become "herdbound" and "wild", and won't be able to socialize with other horses anymore.


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## pennyturner (22 April 2016)

"I always feed him polo mints because otherwise he nips."

"We ride the same route every time because he doesn't like going anywhere different"

"Of course this saddle fits... it was really expensive"


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## Fidgety (22 April 2016)

Fellow livery to my daughter (in the knowledge that I'd instructed YM to cut down on pone's hard feed and up her hay) - 'It's no wonder your horse is so wappy now you're just feeding her mostly hay'


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## fatpiggy (22 April 2016)

It isn't just horsey people though.  I had a person contact me because her pony was having epileptic seizures  and she knew that my mare was being successfully controlled with drugs.  I told her what I was using and she spoke to her vet who told her that the pony would be dead in 6 months from liver failure.  Hmmm, my horse was on them for 15 years and just before she was finally PTS at rising 30, she was routinely tested for liver function - her results showed her liver was not only perfectly healthy, it was healthier than would normally be seen in elderly equines.


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## Wagtail (22 April 2016)

You shouldn't feed a horse before exercise (even hay). I had a livery arrive here from a large equestrian centre. She would turn up to ride and then just leave shortly afterwards without riding. When this had happened several times I asked her why and she said, 'Oh I saw that he was eating.' 'But it's just hay,' said I. 'Yes but I don't have time to wait an hour before riding him,' she replied. Turned out the equestrian centre manager told her that he didn't have hay because she knew she was coming to ride and that horses must not have feed or forage for an hour before they were ridden. Livery refused to believe me that it was not the case for quite a while. Although in the end I think she must have done her own research and realised I was telling the truth, because suddenly one day I saw her tacking up whilst hhe was munching a hay net.


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## Bernster (22 April 2016)

_GG_ said:



			Me too! 

Auslander, that's hilarious!

My favourite from this week..."I chopped his ergots off, they were so big they were rubbing together". I said that I hoped she meant chestnuts and that you don't have to chop them off, they will peel off quite easily if you keep on top of them. 

A few weeks ago, same girl..."the faster you trot on the road, the less concussion as the less time their hooves are on the floor".
		
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That last one !!


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## Landcruiser (22 April 2016)

There are so many...
Horse dealer/breeder - You can't keep horses barefoot around here, it's cruel. 7 rock crunching years later we are still managing just fine, thanks.
Livery owner - horses don't mind standing in (damp cold dark) stables (for days and days and weeks on end) when the fields are wet, if you let them out they just stand around in the field anyway.
Batty livery owner - No rugs to be hung to dry anywhere but inside (damp dark stable with closed door). Too untidy otherwise.
Gah!


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## Beausmate (22 April 2016)

Horses don't carry fat on their ribs.  Sooo, what is all the squishy stuff covering podgy pony's ribs?  Stuffing?


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## Elbie (22 April 2016)

Auslander said:



			"If you hold the neckstrap - you wont fall off" (WFP's mother - watching me ride a very naughty baby racehorse)
I did hold the neckstrap - the whole time the horse was bucking it's brains out. And as I flew through the air, and straight out through the fence of the indoor school. I still had it in my hand as I peeled myself off the floor and clambered back through the fence...
		
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Sorry Auslander, I know it's not funny you fell off but am chuckling to myself here. You told the story so well I have this mental image of the whole thing!


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## laura_nash (22 April 2016)

"Ragwort isn't poisonous to horses"  This seems to be fairly common around here!

I've also been told off for riding straight after feeding (a handful of fast fibre).  Apparently you can ride after they have eaten grass but nothing else (even hay).

A previous YO was convinced horses should be warm to the touch all over, otherwise on went the rugs.  I tried in vain to explain about thick winter coats but never made any impression.

Another one from that YO which had me practically in stitches, when advising another livery who was looking to get someone in to help with her mad TB, "Kelly Marks is okay with cobs that won't load but knows nothing about TB's" - er, yes, I'm sure the daughter of a racehorse trainer and former jockey knows nothing at all about TB's!!


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## planete (22 April 2016)

My OH has never let me forget the day I asked him to hold up the front leg of my unbroken three year old while I was trying to wash his tail and the horse proceeded to hop all over the place in spite of me saying it would stop him moving!    (I know better now!)


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## Crosshill Pacers (22 April 2016)

Some folk on here may agree (I now understand it is a topic of scientific research...) but following Cheltenham Festival, a guy I know from the racing (who owns a racehorse and repeatedly tells me how his grandfather taught him all there was to know about horses) posted on Facebook that it was awful to see the jockeys smacking the horses when they won races as it makes them think they've done something wrong.  He likened it to horse cruelty.

A few people commented on it asking if he was mad, although I suspect he was full of the drink myself, and I made representations against his statement.  This led to him bombarding me online with articles suggesting that he was correct, plus he pulled the 'I learnt from my grandfather' (read:  I've been around longer than you, kid) card on me again.  In the end I told him we'd need to agree to disagree, as we do on many other topics.

I've clearly been giving my genuine, 100%-trying-every-time, would-run-through-a-brick-wall, horses mixed messages all these years.


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## Crosshill Pacers (22 April 2016)

And another one that I remembered when I read the 'horses grey out in the sun'...someone was looking for a grey stallion to serve his mare, and one of the responses was to look for a bay son of a prominent grey stallion to use on the bay mare as this would throw the grey.

Having tried to explain basic colour genetics to those who seek to breed for certain (un)desirable colourings, I was tearing my hair out at that one.  OH found it hilarious and still says we could expect a grey foal out of our bay mare seeing as she's by a grey stallion herself...STOP IT.


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## ester (22 April 2016)

HeresHoping said:



			Am sitting on my fingers because someone piped up on FB this morning, 'Have you checked for ulcers? Because my horse often has a sore back when his ulcers are playing up.'
		
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That's not completely ridiculous really, ulcers often go hand in hand with back issues because a horse in discomfort with ulcers spends a lot of time tense/not working correctly and then does other damage.



_GG_ said:



			Me too! 

Auslander, that's hilarious!

My favourite from this week..."I chopped his ergots off, they were so big they were rubbing together". I said that I hoped she meant chestnuts and that you don't have to chop them off, they will peel off quite easily if you keep on top of them.
		
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keeping on top of Frank's still seem to make no difference, and removal always makes him uncomfortable so I usually attack them with the hoof nippers these days :eek3: does that make me bad?


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## freckles22uk (22 April 2016)

My horses would die if I took them to Spain with me, and I would be better off selling them and buying a new horse out here..... 13 years later the horses are still ticking 

''I cant canter my horse until March''  .. no idea why this person came out with this one every year 

You will have to keep him stabled if you don't geld him ... said stallion is now 9 years old and never been stabled and lives in the paddock next to his mum and my other mare with no problems


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## Slightlyconfused (22 April 2016)

On a old yard when I told a livery her horse ran out of hay by 6:30 after her leaving him at 5pm..... "well he should learn not to eat so fast then" 
He was a 16:2 tbx with previous ulcer issues and even the vet said he needs ad-lib hay. 


Oh and apparently draw reins stop rearing......


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## Serianas (22 April 2016)

'Whats a poultice?'  I give up...


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## ester (22 April 2016)

Slightlyconfused said:



			On a old yard when I told a livery her horse ran out of hay by 6:30 after her leaving him at 5pm..... "well he should learn not to eat so fast then" 
He was a 16:2 tbx with previous ulcer issues and even the vet said he needs ad-lib hay. 


Oh and apparently draw reins stop rearing......
		
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they often do - if a horse can't get it's head up


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## ester (22 April 2016)

freckles22uk said:



			My horses would die if I took them to Spain with me, and I would be better off selling them and buying a new horse out here..... 13 years later the horses are still ticking 

''I cant canter my horse until March''  .. no idea why this person came out with this one every year
		
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Did the horse have a winter holiday or just an aversion to mud?


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## JillA (22 April 2016)

Crosshill Pacers said:



			And another one that I remembered when I read the 'horses grey out in the sun'...someone was looking for a grey stallion to serve his mare, and one of the responses was to look for a bay son of a prominent grey stallion to use on the bay mare as this would throw the grey.

Having tried to explain basic colour genetics to those who seek to breed for certain (un)desirable colourings, I was tearing my hair out at that one.  OH found it hilarious and still says we could expect a grey foal out of our bay mare seeing as she's by a grey stallion herself...STOP IT.
		
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Actually colours can skip a generation. Not to be relied on though


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## ester (22 April 2016)

erry grey can't!


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## Nicnac (22 April 2016)

Auslander said:



			"If you hold the neckstrap - you wont fall off" (WFP's mother - watching me ride a very naughty baby racehorse)
I did hold the neckstrap - the whole time the horse was bucking it's brains out. And as I flew through the air, and straight out through the fence of the indoor school. I still had it in my hand as I peeled myself off the floor and clambered back through the fence...
		
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Sorry made me laugh. Bet she made you get back on too! 

Scary woman - she judges the dressage at Chilham BE and it's binos on the judges cars to see if she's the judge in your arena as she is harsh (but fair).  Doesn't mince her words in the comments.


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## Ceriann (22 April 2016)

I'm fairly sure people could quote me but recently I was told that the noseband on my horses bridle should be tighter so as to encourage her to keep her mouth closed.


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## Po Knee (22 April 2016)

That because soaking hay removes the sugar, you should add a mug of sugar to the water.

Honestly. I despair at times.


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## applecart14 (22 April 2016)

That a previous horse of mine had cracked her horses ribs by mounting it and squeezing it with his hooves either side of its ribs.  Amazing confirmation!


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## JillA (22 April 2016)

This thread needs a "ha-ha" button


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## MDB (22 April 2016)

Friend of mine with many, many decades of experience in horses, told me (in my learning phase when I was genuinely asking, with no agenda, his reasons for shoeing)
 'no hoof, no horse', In addition to needing protection from wearing down the hoof wall, it is very important that the frog does not contact the ground, and this is why they need shoes, to elevate the frog off the ground.


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## wench (22 April 2016)

It's worth noting that some of the things on here people are saying is rubbish, is in fact not rubbish!


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## Flame_ (22 April 2016)

That if I carried on doing lots of ground work and repeated the getting on and off my weird, bolting mare, in about 10 days to a couple of weeks she'd be safe to get on in an outdoor school un-held. Thankfully I didn't trust him, carried on only getting on her with a large, strong bloke at her head as on about week 3 she did her gasp, plunge and go to set off manoeuvre. She was never safe to get on without a big wall in front of her, and not entirely safe even then!

ETA Paid £400 for that potential dice with death too!


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## Wagtail (22 April 2016)

wench said:



			It's worth noting that some of the things on here people are saying is rubbish, is in fact not rubbish!
		
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Agree, such as the ulcer one. Horses with back backs such as caused by kissing spine, almost always have ulcers.


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## dibbin (22 April 2016)

JillA said:



			Actually colours can skip a generation. Not to be relied on though
		
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I believe grey's a dominant gene so can't "skip". If it's present, it will be expressed.


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## Biglets Mummy (22 April 2016)

The fellow livery that we all love to hate - knows everything,been everywhere.... lecturing me on how cruel I was keeping my mini in for 12 hours a day ( in a large very comfy yard I might add) as surely I knew that Laminitis was airborne and nothing to do with grass...Sigh Silly me.....


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## xgemmax (22 April 2016)

There were many things that my old yard owner said

School was deep and boggy and i came out after 2 mins of walking because it was awful "oh that would be because he hasn't got shoes on he finds it difficult to grip!" Ok then!!! 

We had the "ragwort isn't poisonous to horses" too!


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## Annagain (22 April 2016)

One girl at my yard still insists (despite me sending her about a dozen articles on the subject) that sweet itch is a creature that lives in her horse's coat, causing him to scratch. Apparently, they lay their eggs (bot eggs) the previous autumn, hatch in the spring and then live in the coat. She can't understand how he keeps getting it, considering she hogs and clips him all year round so he shouldn't really have a coat for them to live in. 

Love the neck strap Auslander - I ended up with an entire bridle in my hand once. The devil pony (so called as he'd buck me off as soon as look at me) cantered round the field for about 10 minutes before we could grab him.


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## asterope (22 April 2016)

Biglets Mummy said:



			The fellow livery that we all love to hate - knows everything,been everywhere.... lecturing me on how cruel I was keeping my mini in for 12 hours a day ( in a large very comfy yard I might add) as surely I knew that Laminitis was airborne and nothing to do with grass...Sigh Silly me.....
		
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Blimey, that's one I've never heard before!


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## EQUIDAE (22 April 2016)

annagain said:



			One girl at my yard still insists (despite me sending her about a dozen articles on the subject) that sweet itch is a creature that lives in her horse's coat, causing him to scratch. Apparently, they lay their eggs (bot eggs) the previous autumn, hatch in the spring and then live in the coat. She can't understand how he keeps getting it, considering she hogs and clips him all year round so he shouldn't really have a coat for them to live in. 

Love the neck strap Auslander - I ended up with an entire bridle in my hand once. The devil pony (so called as he'd buck me off as soon as look at me) cantered round the field for about 10 minutes before we could grab him.
		
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Quite often sweet itch is caused by lice


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## Neddies (22 April 2016)

Here are some of my favourites: Talking about a young expensive dressage stallion 'well at least being a stallion if he ends up being no good at dressage they can always use him for breeding' 

'I'll have to put him in a starvation paddock as his mum had laminitis' 

'She's ridden in a 3 ring as it works on the pommel' 

'He's not so good on the left rein as I'm right handed'.


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## Annagain (22 April 2016)

EQUIDAE said:



			Quite often sweet itch is caused by lice
		
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She thinks there is a creature called a sweet-itch. She knows about lice but they are something completely different apparently.


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## Micropony (22 April 2016)

Someone I know, who has forgotten more about horses than I will ever learn, is emphatic that it's high levels of protein in feed that makes horses fizzy, rather than sugar or starch. Is that a thing?


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## Shadowdancing (22 April 2016)

I'm wishing we had a 'like' button on here, some of these are just brilliant.


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## sarahann1 (22 April 2016)

You only have to worm horses once a year, this was years ago before any worm counts etc were on the go.

It's normal for horses to colic every few months (see above advice).

Your horse won't ever put weight on, it's just his type (said horse is now as fat as a barrel despite having no front teeth to speak of!).


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## c2b (22 April 2016)

Horse owner for 30+yrs. Vet told her that her cob was morbidly obese. Her response to me, "of course these vets are so used to seeing thoroughbreds they don't know cobs are supposed to look like this".


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## kellyledmonds (22 April 2016)

How much bran shall I feed, I don't think it will last long, can't feed much or will cost me a fortune........produces a cereal box of kellogs all bran!


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## Hepsibah (22 April 2016)

"My horse only gets a small net at 4pm til I give him his morning net at 7am because he needs to rest his stomach. It's bad for them to be eating all the time."


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## PonyIAmNotFood (22 April 2016)

Someone who's horse had bad colic once... 'I feed him mint so he burps reguarly and doesn't colic again'. She also fed tiny hay nets and left him stood with nothing for 12+ hours because otherwise he would colic...

Eta. The first bit was said to a friend who also couldn't believe her ears!


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## Sandstone1 (22 April 2016)

Was told that you shouldn't ride straight after farrier has been.
Don't know how that works as I used to ride to the forge!


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## MochaDun (22 April 2016)

That they had to leave the light on in the stable overnight so the horse could see to eat its food. Also friend of said person had screaming fit on yard when grooming her share horse's back legs and fetlocks and came cross his ergots for the first time


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## Count Oggy (22 April 2016)

kellyledmonds said:



			How much bran shall I feed, I don't think it will last long, can't feed much or will cost me a fortune........produces a cereal box of kellogs all bran!
		
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&#128514; almost too stupid to believe &#128514;


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## Lintel (22 April 2016)

Constantly being told "He needs more weight on" from people who of known much better than I do of course 

- He being a Highland pony prone to laminitis, I openly admit I like him lean, rather that than vets bills and a sick pony!


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## DirectorFury (22 April 2016)

c2b said:



			Horse owner for 30+yrs. Vet told her that her cob was morbidly obese. Her response to me, "of course these vets are so used to seeing thoroughbreds they don't know cobs are supposed to look like this".
		
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The next time someone says this to me I'm going to roll my eyes so hard they'll fall out of my head! Funnily enough it's only those without experience of laminitis that think obese animals are acceptable...wonder why...


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## chaps89 (22 April 2016)

Got to the yard one day to find fellow experienced livery virtually hopping from one foot to another telling her horse they only had to wait 3 more minutes. I overheard and asked 3 minutes until what. To ride apparently. She'd fed him 57 minutes before but needed to wait the full 60 minutes before she could ride


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## SarahWeston (22 April 2016)

College lecturer to student, "You can't teach a horse to long rein unless they have learned how to lunge first." Student, "well my horse long reins and she has never been lunged." Lecturer, "She must have been before you bought her". Student: "But she came to me as a semi-feral foal!".

Horses don't eat in the dark.

Standing up in the stirrups takes the weight off your horse's back - only if you float!!!


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## zaminda (22 April 2016)

Rugs cause laminitis. (From an equine lecturer!!) Now if she had said it was wise for fat ponies to shiver the weight off over the winter then I get it, but it was just rugs apparently.


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## Leo Walker (22 April 2016)

EQUIDAE said:



			Quite often sweet itch is caused by lice
		
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Umm, is it?! I've never known sweetitch to be cured by delousing :/



c2b said:



			Horse owner for 30+yrs. Vet told her that her cob was morbidly obese. Her response to me, "of course these vets are so used to seeing thoroughbreds they don't know cobs are supposed to look like this".
		
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I despair how many people think my fat cob is "perfect" Hes not, hes fat  My YO wont accept that hes fat. Hes gained 50kgs in the last 6 weeks, but shes adamant hes lost weight?! Lots of people think very fat cobs are fine and I just dont get it!


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## Cinnamontoast (22 April 2016)

FrankieCob said:



			I despair how many people think my fat cob is "perfect" Hes not, hes fat  My YO wont accept that hes fat. Hes gained 50kgs in the last 6 weeks, but shes adamant hes lost weight?! Lots of people think very fat cobs are fine and I just dont get it!
		
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Whenever my YM sees me weigh taping mine, she says he looks fine, cobs are meant to look like this. I tell her he's fat and needs to lose a lot of weight.


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## Leo Walker (22 April 2016)

cinnamontoast said:



			Whenever my YM sees me weigh taping mine, she says he looks fine, cobs are meant to look like this. I tell her he's fat and needs to lose a lot of weight.
		
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Mine told me off a couple of weeks ago as apparently I wouldn't like people measuring me all the time?! I'd blumming love it! I might lose more weight if I thought someone was chasing me down with a tape once a week :lol: But all joking aside, she genuinely doesnt see it, and to be fair he looks amazing, just fat  I think pretty much everyone doesnt recognise a fat cob!


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## EventingMum (22 April 2016)

Someone who had a lifetime of experience came onto the yard when one of their horses was clearly colicking and proceeded to feed a bag of carrots then put it on the lunge for a good canter round.


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## EQUIDAE (22 April 2016)

FrankieCob said:



			Umm, is it?! I've never known sweetitch to be cured by delousing :/
		
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The prescription only sweet itch remedies are the same active ingredient as the louse treatments - draw what you will from that

ETA - clever marketing as no one likes to think their horse has lice.

ETA 2 - clipped out my friends sweet itchy horse and sure enough little biddies...


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## StarcatcherWilliam (22 April 2016)

My horsey friend (who owns two natives herself) saw my Sec A companion pony wearing a grazing muzzle in the height of summer and asked, "why's he wearing that - does he bite?" 

Speechless haha!!!


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## stencilface (22 April 2016)

Pmsl auslander, that's great. I did tell a starter once on the XC to get the ambulance ready as I was bound to fall off (my sisters nuts pony, who would either go at 100mph or spin amd plunge and refuse to do anything) sure enough I flew off at the 3rd finde, although did carry on.

Since going bf, the amount of stuff people say about shoes, supporting tendons and all other kinds of rubbish is mind boggling. I can't convince them otherwise, and don't bother, just nod and walk away.


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## Slightlyconfused (22 April 2016)

ester said:



			they often do - if a horse can't get it's head up
		
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A friends.horse went up and over on her and cut her face open because she was told draw reins stop rearing. His horse had learnt to tuck her head in as.she went up, unbalanced her self and went over backwards because the draw reins went too tight as the rider didn't release. 

I hate them and they should.be.burned.


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## Celtic Fringe (22 April 2016)

'Horse must be stabled if you want to Event' - this from a well-respected local trainer. Horse is perfectly happy living out 24/7 with the herd and somehow still competed successfully to BE Intermediate/one-star for many years.

'How will he manage without shoes - there is gravel and tarmac at the yard!' - this from panic-stricken Pony Club instructor who thought horse would never cope at camp if he had to put his tootsies on anything but the softest turf without shoes on. How he managed at camp and still came away with trophies for dressage and jumping, and with all four feet intact, I will never know!

'He is old now - his feet are really worn down' - this from a horse owning friend (bless her!). In fact old cob just has legs that are hairier than mine and in winter his hair comes half way down his (beautiful barefoot) hooves.


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## Beausmate (22 April 2016)

EQUIDAE said:



			The prescription only sweet itch remedies are the same active ingredient as the louse treatments - draw what you will from that

ETA - clever marketing as no one likes to think their horse has lice.

ETA 2 - clipped out my friends sweet itchy horse and sure enough little biddies...
		
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Or 3 - the same active ingredient kills both lice and midges.


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## laura_nash (22 April 2016)

Micropony said:



			Someone I know, who has forgotten more about horses than I will ever learn, is emphatic that it's high levels of protein in feed that makes horses fizzy, rather than sugar or starch. Is that a thing?
		
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Someone explained this to me the other day.  Apparently when compound feeds (nuts and mixes) first came out they were differentiated by the protein levels.  So you could buy mix with x%, x% or x% protein.  The protein level was printed in big letters on the bag.  Of course the higher protein feeds were designed for harder working horses and were also much higher in starch and sugar, but this wasn't mentioned on the bag so of course everyone blamed the protein levels when horses went nuts.


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## ester (22 April 2016)

Beausmate said:



			Or 3 - the same active ingredient kills both lice and midges.
		
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and benzyl benzoate resolves itching regardless of it's cause.


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## ycbm (22 April 2016)

EventingMum said:



			Someone who had a lifetime of experience came onto the yard when one of their horses was clearly colicking and proceeded to feed a bag of carrots then put it on the lunge for a good canter round.
		
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This is a well known traveller cure for colic and it often works. Another variant is to put them in a lorry and drive as fast as you can on bendy roads. I am NOT joking, both these things can work, and were very useful in the days before drugs. A proportion of horse sent to hospital to be treated for colic arrive and recover spontaneously, suggesting that the journey helped.


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## ycbm (22 April 2016)

Isn't sweet itch specifically a allergy to midge saliva?

So a lousy horse can be itchy, but only a horse allergic to midge saliva can have sweet itch?


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## ester (22 April 2016)

ycbm said:



			Isn't sweet itch specifically a allergy to midge saliva?

So a lousy horse can be itchy, but only a horse allergic to midge saliva can have sweet itch?
		
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As far as I understand it 

I also know plenty that lunge in the early stages of colic, no added carrots though


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## Wagtail (22 April 2016)

Slightlyconfused said:



			A friends.horse went up and over on her and cut her face open because she was told draw reins stop rearing. His horse had learnt to tuck her head in as.she went up, unbalanced her self and went over backwards because the draw reins went too tight as the rider didn't release. 

I hate them and they should.be.burned.
		
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Totally agree. Never use draw reins on a rearer. They learn to go up with them and then cannot rebalance themselves as they are unable to stretch their necks forward to save themselves falling over backwards. On a rearer, draw reins can be lethal.


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## Micropony (22 April 2016)

laura_nash said:



			Someone explained this to me the other day.  Apparently when compound feeds (nuts and mixes) first came out they were differentiated by the protein levels.  So you could buy mix with x%, x% or x% protein.  The protein level was printed in big letters on the bag.  Of course the higher protein feeds were designed for harder working horses and were also much higher in starch and sugar, but this wasn't mentioned on the bag so of course everyone blamed the protein levels when horses went nuts.
		
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Ah, I see!  Thanks Laura.


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## Sugar_and_Spice (22 April 2016)

PonyIAmNotFood said:



			Someone who's horse had bad colic once... 'I feed him mint so he burps reguarly and doesn't colic again'. She also fed tiny hay nets and left him stood with nothing for 12+ hours because otherwise he would colic...

Eta. The first bit was said to a friend who also couldn't believe her ears!
		
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Mint is good for the digestion, nothing to do with burping but something that improves digestion could help a horse who colics.  

If the bad colic was recent, the feeding almost nothing could also be necessary.  I saw a horse repeatedly colic (3 bad colics in less than 3mths, getting closer and closer together) and on vet advice was virtually starved to prevent it happening again.  It started with 2 slices of small bale hay in 24hrs, by the end of the week it could graze half hour wearing a muzzle and eat a feed balancer in a handful of chaff.  The amount of food was gradually built up from there over many weeks.  At it's worse it looked like an emaciated charity case, but the regime was necessary and the horse made a full recovery, returning to a normal diet and weight.

ETA: my "dumbest thing" was the YO who insisted acorns aren't poisonous to horses because pigs like to eat acorns.  The yard had no pigs, so it wasn't a case of the pigs getting there first.  More that she considered horses and pigs to be similar.


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## ester (22 April 2016)

Wagtail said:



			Totally agree. Never use draw reins on a rearer. They learn to go up with them and then cannot rebalance themselves as they are unable to stretch their necks forward to save themselves falling over backwards. On a rearer, draw reins can be lethal.
		
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I did say sometimes, obviously not for those well practiced


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## applecart14 (22 April 2016)

Some horses struggle bring ridden the day of shoeing but i was told its normally those with tendon injury because the angle of the foot has altered although that would be for the better i would have thought. its not the mormal rule of thumb lol


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## EventingMum (22 April 2016)

Oh and another one - A family were buying a small horse for their teenage daughters without any experienced advice. They arrived at the yard with the new horse which immediately started windsucking like mad - even if allowing for it being stressed in a new place this was horrendous. 

When I voiced my concern they told me she was just burping and that she did that after eating. I said this vice should have been declared and they said the vet had put on the vetting certificate has been noted to burp after eating :eek3: When I said it could cause problems and might make her hard to sell once the girls out grew her they didn't believe me and called our vet out for his opinion - at 9pm on a Saturday night! He reiterated what I had said so they called the vendor who said they could have their money back if they returned her the next day. The parents decided they didn't want to upset their daughters so kept her. 

I lost count of how many bouts of colic we had to deal with whilst they owned her, when you changed her rugs she would press her chin on you and windsuck, she struggled to keep condition on, even in the field in summer she would windsuck more than she would graze but despite the vets bills incurred they still said she just burped. They supposedly sold her a couple of years later for a profit - proving my lack of knowledge! ETA - just in case anyone thinks we were negligent she always had adlib forage and any suggestions of ulcers or other pain were dismissed as nonsense.


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## Auslander (22 April 2016)

Nicnac said:



			Sorry made me laugh. Bet she made you get back on too! 

Scary woman - she judges the dressage at Chilham BE and it's binos on the judges cars to see if she's the judge in your arena as she is harsh (but fair).  Doesn't mince her words in the comments.
		
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I was a bit of a loon back in those days - was sraight back on it, without any encouragement!

She is one of the most straight talking people I have ever met.  I learned a lot from her. Except how to hold the neck strap and NOT fall off


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## Cobbytype (23 April 2016)

Many years ago I had my yearling on a livery yard which was close to an equestrian college. A lot of the liveries were students at the college. I arrived at the yard one day to an 'emergency' with my yearling, who was apparently just about to die from choke. His stable was full of students frantically rubbing his throat to get rid of the large lumpy obstruction. 

I didn't have the heart to tell them he was ewe necked.


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## orionstar (23 April 2016)

Equidae Sweet Itch is an allergic reaction to midge bites, no amount of delousing powder or decomax injections or anything else that kill lice are going to have any effect on a horse that has sweet itch. Louse infestations are louse infestations and will generally have the same itchy affect on a horse if not treated correctly, the two are completely separate.


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## _HP_ (23 April 2016)

EQUIDAE said:



			Quite often sweet itch is caused by lice
		
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This is wrong....sweet Itch is a midge allergy.
Lice is just ....well, lice


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## _HP_ (23 April 2016)

EQUIDAE said:



			The prescription only sweet itch remedies are the same active ingredient as the louse treatments - draw what you will from that

ETA - clever marketing as no one likes to think their horse has lice.

ETA 2 - clipped out my friends sweet itchy horse and sure enough little biddies...
		
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If you found lice then it was lice not sweet itch.


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## JillA (23 April 2016)

_HP_ said:



			This is wrong....sweet Itch is a midge allergy.
Lice is just ....well, lice
		
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But a lot of summer itching is labelled as sweet itch, it seems to have become a generic term rather than just allergy to the saliva of the culicoides midge. I always refer to mine as an itcher, to differentiate


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## FFAQ (23 April 2016)

One of my clients was told years ago by a very well-known barefoot 'specialist' that horses need to go through a period of footiness on the road to rock-crunching-ness, and therefore no pain no gain - keep working them through it.  It has taken me 18 months to finally convince her that this is a cruel rule to follow and that her horse with very thin soles must have hoof boots.

Several people have informed me that neat bleach is the best remedy for thrush!


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## poiuytrewq (23 April 2016)

Sarcoids are basically big zits if you squeeze them hard enough they just pop out and the horse will be really grateful because you've relieved the pressure....... 
Worms are caught from dirty water troughs (after being questioned by a vet as to when a horse was last wormed and lying about it in front of me) He keeps the trough clean so there is no need to worm....
Youngsters must be goaded into rearing on the long reins as part of breaking. They can then be pulled over to teach them not to rear, even if said horse is showing no tenancy or desire to rear


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## ycbm (23 April 2016)

FFAQ, ref your earlier post, thin bleach is a very good cheap remedy for thrush. I was told to use it by a very experienced horse vet. Tesco thin bleach is perfect.


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## j1ffy (23 April 2016)

"I can't get my horse scoped or bone scanned as I don't have loss of use on my insurance." Defies all logic, the poor horse.

"Oats!!! Oats won't help condition or energy. You should feed barley or show mix." Advice from a former YO for my barefoot horse.

Me: "Where's your new horse from?" Former YM: "Holland. Or The Netherlands. Actually I think it's The Netherlands."

Ok the last one is more geographical numptiness than horse numptiness. It was day one on a new yard for me so I was desperately trying to keep a straight face!


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## ycbm (23 April 2016)

'Horses can't be 'happy athletes', they don't have emotions'. From a long term horse owner and breeder.

DSLD doesn't exist in this country, by a horse vet warned in advance that we wanted to discuss it as a possible diagnosis  So why is the biopsy for it done at Leahurst then ?

Putting clay on legs will help cool tendons. Still widely believed and products sold to apply it. 

Don't hose a sweating horse all over, you'll give it colic!


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## Woolly Hat n Wellies (23 April 2016)

A student instructor who got on a horse which was known to rear and bog off, rode it into the corner of the indoor school, and attempted to ride it up the wall, booting it in the ribs, before handing it over to me for the lesson with the words, "there, he'll appreciate you now" ... he didn't.

Me: "I don't think this saddle fits very well any more [on loan/share horse]."
Owners: "No it definitely fits, he's just grumpy because he's lazy and knows it means work."
Me: "Ok, but I'd really like to get it checked. I'm happy to pay for it."
Very experienced member of owners' family: "No, it's good enough for _him_"
When I bought him it turned out the saddle didn't fit at all, it was sitting on two points on his back, and had made him so sore he had to have three months on groundwork only to let it rest ad reteach him not to hollow away from the pain. But I suppose here I'm the numpty for a) not insisting, and b) falling in love and buying him anyway! 
(family member IS very experienced, she knows far more than I do, and I wouldn't claim otherwise, but for some reason she seems to really hate my horse. Whether it's just him or cobs in general I don't know, but she says he's thick, and it never seemed to matter if something was painful or uncomfortable for him.)

Not to me, but the woman who told the previous owners of my horse that:
You shouldn't clean your girth because then your saddle will slide off.
You should train your skinny TB to eat faster by feeding her and the greedy food-bolting fatty next door at the same time, and taking away both buckets when fatty finishes.
Your aforementioned skinny TB is fine turned out unrugged in winter, it's not cold if it's belly isn't tucked up.
The cure for headshaking is to get a crank noseband and tighten it as far as you can. This makes it headshake more? Oh no, it's just being rude, beat it with your stick.
and the classic:
"I'm such a good rider I don't need to have lessons any more"


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## sarahann1 (23 April 2016)

ester said:



			and benzyl benzoate resolves itching regardless of it's cause.
		
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Unless your horse is allergic to it, which one of mine is.


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## Mike007 (23 April 2016)

Micropony said:



			Someone I know, who has forgotten more about horses than I will ever learn, is emphatic that it's high levels of protein in feed that makes horses fizzy, rather than sugar or starch. Is that a thing?
		
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He is right.


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## _HP_ (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			But a lot of summer itching is labelled as sweet itch, it seems to have become a generic term rather than just allergy to the saliva of the culicoides midge.
		
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I agree...

To say that having lice is sweet Itch is just plain wrong (and silly)
Sweet Itch Itch management is very different to getting rid of lice....ifI clipped my sweet Itch cob he would be even more exposed and vulnerable to midges


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## autumn7 (23 April 2016)

micropony is correct - protein content has no bearing on horses behaviour. Sugar and starch content is responsible for fizziness.

"Protein is needed by the horse for growth and repair of new cells and tissues, the production of muscle tissue and for growing youngsters. Quality of protein is just as important as quantity of protein and all Allen & Page feeds contain high quality protein, that is they contain good levels of amino acids (the building blocks of proteins). Various old wives tales surround protein, however it is not responsible for laminitis, tying up or fizzy behaviour." (Allen and Page website)


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## Sukistokes2 (23 April 2016)

I had one YO,on a livery I was visiting, advise me to shoot my traditional gypsy cob because there was something wrong with him if he had blue eyes. 

I also had a horsey woman approach me at a show, when I was riding my Shire X , to tell me off for him being fat, because of his big belly. This was the day after the vet complimented me for his prefect condition. I tried to explain he just had a big barrel but she wasn't having it. Some people really can't tell weight when it comes to cobs.


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## JillA (23 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			He is right.
		
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No he isn't - protein for building soft tissue and immune system, carbs for energy


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## Apercrumbie (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			No he isn't - protein for building soft tissue and immune system, carbs for energy
		
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This is indeed the theory (and certainly holds up well for humans) but I do wonder......where in a horse's normal diet would they get protein from?  And if they can't get it from a normal, non man made source, then surely it would be unwise to supplement it in this manner?  As far as I'm aware, horses are not designed for a high-protein diet.  Could someone enlighten me?


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## Sugar_and_Spice (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			But a lot of summer itching is labelled as sweet itch, it seems to have become a generic term rather than just allergy to the saliva of the culicoides midge. I always refer to mine as an itcher, to differentiate
		
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That doesn't mean people are right though.  So many say they're depressed because they feel a bit sad that week, doesn't make them genuinely ill does it, people misuse terms all the time.  Sweet itch is a proper condition, people claiming their horses have it when they don't doesn't change that.  

EQUIDAE sweet itch isn't caused by lice.  

On the subject of lice...on one yard there was a 30yr old emaciated pony who'd recently dropped the weight off almost overnight, living out on sparse grazing in winter and wearing a no-fill turnout rug instead of the usual heavyweight one.  When I asked the owner why, with a view to lending her a warmer rug if hers was broken or something, she said the YO told her to do it "because the cold will kill the lice".


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## ycbm (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			No he isn't - protein for building soft tissue and immune system, carbs for energy
		
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I've done some research on this today. Apparently, excess protein in the gut causes calcium uptake to be blocked. There is at least one calcium based calmer sold for fizzy horses due to lack of calcium.

Also I agree with apercrumbie, a high protein diet is very unnatural. And it's my belief that a lot of fizzy horses which are not simply being fed too much for their work are like it because of a disturbed hind gut. Perhaps there is also some of that behind this belief that too much protein makes a horse fizzy.


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## JillA (23 April 2016)

Protein is in grass - and cereals which are a form of grass. I just had my hay and haylage tested and the protein levels are around 10% which is actually quite low. As trickle feeders they get lots and lots of low level protein in their food, I think a lot of it is in the seeds, which is why June cut hay is sought after because the seeds haven't dropped out. You can supplement it - there are various forms of amino acids which make up proteins, lysine is the one they are most likely to be short of, methionine is the one for feet and skin. Look on the Forageplus website, there is plenty of information on there.


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## Evie91 (23 April 2016)

Interesting thread. Seems a lot of people quick to label other folks advice as 'dumb' are none too clever themselves!!! 
Reminds me of the old adage 'people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones'!!


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## Apercrumbie (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			Protein is in grass - and cereals which are a form of grass. I just had my hay and haylage tested and the protein levels are around 10% which is actually quite low. As trickle feeders they get lots and lots of low level protein in their food, I think a lot of it is in the seeds, which is why June cut hay is sought after because the seeds haven't dropped out. You can supplement it - there are various forms of amino acids which make up proteins, lysine is the one they are most likely to be short of, methionine is the one for feet and skin. Look on the Forageplus website, there is plenty of information on there.
		
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Thank you for this - it is interesting to know about the protein levels in grass.  I think I will have to do some research though, because as many people who are clued up on nutrition know, there is protein and protein.  Grass will have a fairly limited range of the different proteins in existence.  I would be wary of any feed claiming to have several of amino acids/proteins when a horse probably wouldn't normally have access to them.  As I said, I definitely need to do my research.


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## Meowy Catkin (23 April 2016)

The one that springs to mind is when I was told that 'horses shouldn't be turned out together because they _encourage_ each other.' 

There was no explanation as to what exactly it was that they encouraged each other to do. This meant that every time (for the next few days) that I looked at my horses chilling out together, I wondered what they were plotting or encouraging each other to get up to? Raiding the feed room perhaps? Train robbery? Jackass style challenges?


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## StephBiscuit (23 April 2016)

You don't need to bother learning a dressage test if you have a reader!


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## rowan666 (23 April 2016)

Loaners vet told her the old fella's mallenders was mites!!!!


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## ester (23 April 2016)

It often is mites...


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## Clannad48 (23 April 2016)

Being told by experienced YO that our horse did not need turnout as it was a dressage bred DWB.


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## superpony (23 April 2016)

When we were talking about someones horse who was prone to tying up, a fellow livery (who knew absolutely everything about horses of course) oh my horse ties up perfectly you can leave him there for hours....


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## Nessa4 (23 April 2016)

I've just been informed that I should only groom my piebald mud magnet once a week during the spring moult - because doing it more often  "only makes them itchy and makes them roll more"!!!  WTF!


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## hairycob (23 April 2016)

I was told I should hog my 4 yo piebald cob as that would instantly make him more valuable.  If that were true I doubt that many young cobs would be sold with manes.


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## Iwantakitten (23 April 2016)

Faracat said:



			Jackass style challenges?
		
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Actually lolling at this, imaging horses discussing the next challenge while turned out. "Who can eat the most unsoaked sugar beet without dying"
"Who can jump the 5ft electric fence without getting a shock"


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## Meredith (23 April 2016)

Star_pants said:



			Actually lolling at this, imaging horses discussing the next challenge while turned out. "Who can eat the most unsoaked sugar beet without dying"
"Who can jump the 5ft electric fence without getting a shock"
		
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Bet I can.............. Bet you can't............


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## w1bbler (23 April 2016)

Ex yard owner, whilst trying to change the woefully inadequate worming policy " worms don't kill horses you know"


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## skint1 (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			This thread needs a "ha-ha" button
		
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  it totally does!  i cant think of anything right now (of course!) but am having fun reading


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## Illusion100 (23 April 2016)

w1bbler said:



			Ex yard owner, whilst trying to change the woefully inadequate worming policy " worms don't kill horses you know"
		
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Pah! On a couple of occasions Vet informed by Owner that horse has seemingly died 'for no reason', once the abdomen was opened up in the PM, I've seen intestines that look like they are still moving due to the severity of the worm burden! Seriously, it was like looking at a writhing snake pit, put me right off my sausage and egg McMuffin once......


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## Mike007 (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			No he isn't - protein for building soft tissue and immune system, carbs for energy
		
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And what exactly do you think the liver does with excess protein? It is de aminated and simple sugars produced which goes straight into the bloodstream. Sugars that are ingested in the feed are mostly converted to carboxylic acids before the horse can absorb them . 
    There is also the "feel good "factor that horses on higher protein diets tend to have a bit more fizz.


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## KittenInTheTree (23 April 2016)

The visiting saddler (there for another livery) who waxed lyrical about how my mare was a lovely example of the Arab breed; such a refined look to her head, what a beautiful face to see over the stable door, etc. They insisted on leaving me their contact details as they had a saddle that would suit her perfectly. Apparently they knew at a glance what size she needed: Arabs were their favourite breed.

The horse in question was neither a mare nor an Arab, and hadn't yet turned three...


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## Micropony (23 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			And what exactly do you think the liver does with excess protein? It is de aminated and simple sugars produced which goes straight into the bloodstream. Sugars that are ingested in the feed are mostly converted to carboxylic acids before the horse can absorb them . 
    There is also the "feel good "factor that horses on higher protein diets tend to have a bit more fizz.
		
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I feel slightly less stupid now for raising the question, there clearly is more than one view!


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## Wagtail (23 April 2016)

Kaimar said:



			The visiting saddler (there for another livery) who waxed lyrical about how my mare was a lovely example of the Arab breed; such a refined look to her head, what a beautiful face to see over the stable door, etc. They insisted on leaving me their contact details as they had a saddle that would suit her perfectly. Apparently they knew at a glance what size she needed: Arabs were their favourite breed.

The horse in question was neither a mare nor an Arab, and hadn't yet turned three...
		
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Blimey! What an idiot.

Talking of saddlers; I had a livery horse here with very severe muscle wastage due to a too narrow saddle that had been fitted to him by a qualified saddler. He was a big strapping 19 year old gelding that I could tell was at least a medium wide had it not been for the saddle shaped wasting. New saddler walks in his stable and declares 'Oh a narrow horse!'. I despaired. I explained to him that the horse was actually quite a wide horse but that a narrow saddle had caused wasting. The saddler did take notice and fitted him with a wide treed saddle and then flocked it out. He then removed some of the flocking every few weeks. With correct work over his back and long and low, the horse measured an extra two inches on each side when his before and after templates were compared after 6 months and the wide saddle fitted him well without extra flocking.


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## JillA (23 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			And what exactly do you think the liver does with excess protein? It is de aminated and simple sugars produced which goes straight into the bloodstream. Sugars that are ingested in the feed are mostly converted to carboxylic acids before the horse can absorb them . 
    There is also the "feel good "factor that horses on higher protein diets tend to have a bit more fizz.
		
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What is your source for that statement? I can't find anything which suggests that to be the case - yes, excess protein can result in acidic environment in the system, hence tying up etc, but to convert amino acids into sugars is a bit of a stretch. Not saying it isn't the case but I'd need to be convinced, so what is the evidence? Is this worth a new thread?  http://www.vetpro.co.nz/Articles/Protein-+What-+Why-+How.html


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## Frenchmade (23 April 2016)

Discussion with French riding school owners - bloopers too numerous to list them all!  Here's a couple:
- The width of the gullet/width of the saddle isn't important, it's what it's made of that matters.  :0 (Here they believe that a rider has his/her own saddle and puts it on every horse he/she rides. Fitting the saddle to the horse is completely unheard of.)
- Thoroughbred horses need worming more than other types. 

In a discussion with several owners about giving ad lib hay, they said they'd been told by several vets that it was bad for horses to eat all the time. 

-If you move the things such as the manger, or water, in a horses paddock around, he'll run into the in the night because he won't realise they've been moved. Said by riding school/livery yard owner. 

- you can't put hay in his field shelter you have to put it just outside.  You don't eat in your bed, do you?

It's depressing... it just goes on and on.


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## Dave's Mam (23 April 2016)

Alfa Beet doesn't contain Alfalfa.  It's Alfa, because it's the best..........  *cries*


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## Gloi (23 April 2016)

You should never canter a Fell Pony. If you canter him it will ruin his trot.


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## Sleipnir (23 April 2016)

During winter, you don't have to put hay out in the winter paddocks. The horses can eat hay at night, but during day they should act as "horses in the wild" do and dig for roots. - as stated by a YO with more than 30 years of experience.


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## dollyanna (23 April 2016)

You should never feed tall horses from the ground as they will strain their back reaching for it. Only feed them from a hayrack above their head. (I was somewhat flabbergasted at this and the novice who had been told it by someone who didn't know a lot but really should know better than this thankfully listened to my point about them being grazing animals and stopped using the rack that the poor horse had to reach over the top of to pull her hay down to ground level.)


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## Mike007 (23 April 2016)

JillA said:



			What is your source for that statement? I can't find anything which suggests that to be the case - yes, excess protein can result in acidic environment in the system, hence tying up etc, but to convert amino acids into sugars is a bit of a stretch. Not saying it isn't the case but I'd need to be convinced, so what is the evidence? Is this worth a new thread?  http://www.vetpro.co.nz/Articles/Protein-+What-+Why-+How.html

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I hope this link will help. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK22475/


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## TGM (23 April 2016)

Camilla's Aunty Em said:



			Alfa Beet doesn't contain Alfalfa.  It's Alfa, because it's the best..........  *cries*
		
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Oh dear, oh dear ...


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## my bfg (23 April 2016)

RI at a riding school I DIY liveried at, "I've noticed your horse puts it's head down before it bucks, if you bothered to use a martingale it would stop it doing that", me ermmmm what??!!
Same RI when faced with a "lazy fat cob" (turned out to be 9 months pregnant!) who wasn't keen on whips, "best thing to do is to ride her in a school full of whips to get her used to them", I advised against this but she apparently knew better, she then toddled off to scatter different whips around the school, thought I best stick around as this was going to end badly, she mounted, rode into the school in trot, horse stood on a schooling whip which flicked up at her, horse bronced, RI came off and got kicked in the head, I grabbed the horse and calmed her down whilst the RI sat there sobbing and complaining I was looking after the horse rather than her, told her if she can shout she's fine but the horse needed my help, I did ring 999 though, after I had untacked


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## Holly Hocks (23 April 2016)

Heard recently. "My horse has had to have back shoes put on because he is carrying his weight properly behind now".   (well Lucinda McAlpine must have it all wrong then!)


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## EQUIDAE (23 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			I hope this link will help. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK22475/

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You can't compare human metabolism to horse metabolism - for one horses can metabolise formic acid which is toxic to humans.


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## Elf On A Shelf (23 April 2016)

Horses dont go lame with ligament damage ...

Uh huh!


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## Meredith (23 April 2016)

You've failed as a rider if you have used any other bit than a snaffle.


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## JillA (23 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			I hope this link will help. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK22475/

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Ha ha


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## Mike007 (23 April 2016)

EQUIDAE said:



			You can't compare human metabolism to horse metabolism - .
		
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I didnt.


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## PonyIAmNotFood (23 April 2016)

She's convinced it helps because it makes him burp though. Not for digestion lol. He gets very little hay regardless of colicky or not so she's not doing it for recovery purposes  to be fair he looks well enough so maybe it's working!

Eta...that was supposed to quote whoever quoted me before! Hey ho.


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## Feival (23 April 2016)

People who use flash straps and martingales can't ride, said by an instructor who's own horse was as stiff as a board, bored senseless, napped constantly and who she was scared to hack out as he pulled like a train.


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## cremedemonthe (23 April 2016)

Whilst saddle fitting and flocking on site at a yard and being quizzed accusingly by a riding school owner in I.O.W. if I had scratched her saddle in my clams when I flocked the saddle!
For those in the know will wet themselves laughing at the thought of this for those who don't know, wooden clams are used to hold  various saddlery together whilst it's being hand stitched together such as bridlework.
Why she thought I needed to try to put a saddle in my clams to flock it was anyone's guess and would have been a task in itself to do. What made it worse was  her Daughter had been on a saddle making course and had made a saddle (she didn't hold it in clams to flock though I hope!) 
On examination of said saddle, the scratch was easily identified as a rider leaning forward to dismount and the zip on their coat had scratched the saddle, never got an apology of course.
Same stables I found horses tied up and left for a few hours with no one checking them at all. Came across a Shetland tangled up in his headcollar and rope with front foot stuck up in the air and was slowly choking himself in the rope, managed to man handle him to freedom.
I was never asked back!


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## Mike007 (23 April 2016)

Me; "Did you know that the front brakes arnt working on your horsebox?"
Her: "Oh yes .it gives them a smoother ride!"


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## Araboo27 (23 April 2016)

I know a woman who, upon bringing the horse in from the field, won't ride until her horse has had a poo!


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## Araboo27 (23 April 2016)

Kaimar said:



			The visiting saddler (there for another livery) who waxed lyrical about how my mare was a lovely example of the Arab breed; such a refined look to her head, what a beautiful face to see over the stable door, etc. They insisted on leaving me their contact details as they had a saddle that would suit her perfectly. Apparently they knew at a glance what size she needed: Arabs were their favourite breed.

The horse in question was neither a mare nor an Arab, and hadn't yet turned three...
		
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I'm intrigued - what breed was it?!


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## KittenInTheTree (24 April 2016)

Araboo27 said:



			I'm intrigued - what breed was it?!
		
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Connemara.


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## Beausmate (24 April 2016)

It's not natural for horses not to have shoes.  Hokayyy....


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## hypopit (24 April 2016)

While on a yard years ago, a woman who used to change horses more often than she changed her knickers, and spent a fortune on some lovely animals, came back from Hunting and proceeded to whip her horse around the yard. She did this on a regular basis apparently. I only witnessed this the once, as I did not hang around that place for long!

I asked her why she was doing so, she said she had been thrown off a few times out on the hunt!  I asked, "Would the horse equate the beating now with what happened two hour earlier"!! she said "Of course"! I noticed the strong bit and the bleeding mouth on this poor mare.
I was told by the other liveries that she was always in the knitting crew on a hunt and the bleeding mouth was due to her hanging on by the reins. Before I left there I happened to have the miss fortune of having to retrieve something from her stable block, and I watched her putting boots on her horse, the horse nuzzled her head and she jumped up and started smacking the horse around the head. I was shocked, "What are you doing"???? "It tried to bite me" was the answer, "I do not put up with bad manners" she said.
What a numpty!!!!! but a nasty, cruel numpty...thats the pity, who thought throwing a load of money about to go show off hunting made her look great.


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## hairycob (24 April 2016)

I left a yard because the new owners hubby was like that. They had just got an OTTB to retrain. Just 4 , last raced the day before they picked it up. Next day he was leaning on the stable door, chatting to her while she did jobs. Horse nuzzled his shoulder. He grabbed hold of it's head and punched it's face hard half a dozen times. Then just carried on chatting.


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## hypopit (24 April 2016)

I know hairycob, I think a lot of people are violent to their horses through being really nervous around them. These people overreact to everything due to nerves, and think they are putting them in their place. It is shocking to see, but the world is full of brain dead people who should not be doing a lot of things, it's just a shame animals get caught up in the middle of it.


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## JillA (24 April 2016)

hairycob said:



			I left a yard because the new owners hubby was like that. They had just got an OTTB to retrain. Just 4 , last raced the day before they picked it up. Next day he was leaning on the stable door, chatting to her while she did jobs. Horse nuzzled his shoulder. He grabbed hold of it's head and punched it's face hard half a dozen times. Then just carried on chatting.
		
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You should ask people like that why they are so scared of horses, and if they say they aren't, laugh at them. It's the kind of thing you used to see old, stiff, less agile farriers doing, they were becoming scared around horses because they couldn't move fast enough if one over reacted.


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## atropa (24 April 2016)

hypopit said:



			While on a yard years ago, a woman who used to change horses more often than she changed her knickers, and spent a fortune on some lovely animals, came back from Hunting and proceeded to whip her horse around the yard. She did this on a regular basis apparently. I only witnessed this the once, as I did not hang around that place for long!

I asked her why she was doing so, she said she had been thrown off a few times out on the hunt!  I asked, "Would the horse equate the beating now with what happened two hour earlier"!! she said "Of course"! I noticed the strong bit and the bleeding mouth on this poor mare.
I was told by the other liveries that she was always in the knitting crew on a hunt and the bleeding mouth was due to her hanging on by the reins. Before I left there I happened to have the miss fortune of having to retrieve something from her stable block, and I watched her putting boots on her horse, the horse nuzzled her head and she jumped up and started smacking the horse around the head. I was shocked, "What are you doing"???? "It tried to bite me" was the answer, "I do not put up with bad manners" she said.
What a numpty!!!!! but a nasty, cruel numpty...thats the pity, who thought throwing a load of money about to go show off hunting made her look great.
		
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Wow! How terribly sad for the poor mare


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## hairycob (24 April 2016)

The guy who hit the TB wasn't scared of horses. He was an arrogant bully and it showed in other ways too. He told me the way to sort a bad loader was to hit it around the hicks until it was too scared not to go forward&#55357;&#56866; . I declined his offer of help and it took a whole 5 minutes to load.


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## honetpot (24 April 2016)

I think the saddest thing is the general lack of understanding of horse (and dog) behaviour and that play fighting is seen by many as aggression and its ok to leave them on their own for hours stuck in an enclosed space.
I used to be on a livery yard where my herd had their own field,  other liveries were surprised that they were allowed to charge about without me rushing out to bring them in.


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## asterope (24 April 2016)

hairycob said:



			The guy who hit the TB wasn't scared of horses. He was an arrogant bully and it showed in other ways too. He told me the way to sort a bad loader was to hit it around the hicks until it was too scared not to go forward&#65533;&#65533; . I declined his offer of help and it took a whole 5 minutes to load.
		
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That sounds like a recipe for getting double-barrelled... It also sounds like he'd be very deserving of it! What a vile man.


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## Moomin1 (24 April 2016)

my bfg said:



			RI at a riding school I DIY liveried at, "I've noticed your horse puts it's head down before it bucks, if you bothered to use a martingale it would stop it doing that", me ermmmm what??!!
Same RI when faced with a "lazy fat cob" (turned out to be 9 months pregnant!) who wasn't keen on whips, "best thing to do is to ride her in a school full of whips to get her used to them", I advised against this but she apparently knew better, she then toddled off to scatter different whips around the school, thought I best stick around as this was going to end badly, she mounted, rode into the school in trot, horse stood on a schooling whip which flicked up at her, horse bronced, RI came off and got kicked in the head, I grabbed the horse and calmed her down whilst the RI sat there sobbing and complaining I was looking after the horse rather than her, told her if she can shout she's fine but the horse needed my help, I did ring 999 though, after I had untacked
		
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Wow, how charitable of you. I certainly wouldn't want someone like you around if I had an accident.


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## Tiddlypom (24 April 2016)

Moomin1 said:



			Wow, how charitable of you. I certainly wouldn't want someone like you around if I had an accident.
		
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Seems ok to me? First thing in the event of an accident is to prevent further harm, so catching the loose horse and putting it away is ok seeing as the RI was conscious. An unsettled horse charging about the school would not be good.

Had the RI been knocked out then the first thing would have been to check if she was breathing, the horse would have to wait.


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## Moomin1 (24 April 2016)

Tiddlypom said:



			Seems ok to me? First thing in the event of an accident is to prevent further harm, so catching the loose horse and putting it away is ok seeing as the RI was conscious. An unsettled horse charging about the school would not be good.

Had the RI been knocked out then the first thing would have been to check if she was breathing, the horse would have to wait.
		
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Personally I don't think untacking the horse before dialling 999 is necessary...Hopefully there was no underlying serious head injury (and yes, people are able to talk/cry/walk about despite some life threatening head injuries.


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## Mince Pie (24 April 2016)

Auslander said:



			"If you hold the neckstrap - you wont fall off" (WFP's mother - watching me ride a very naughty baby racehorse)
I did hold the neckstrap - the whole time the horse was bucking it's brains out. And as I flew through the air, and straight out through the fence of the indoor school. I still had it in my hand as I peeled myself off the floor and clambered back through the fence...
		
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LMAO!!!


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## Luci07 (24 April 2016)

My mare came back off loan apparently with cushings and on a high dosage of Prascend. I struggled to get the vet notes so my vet started again with the blood testing as he said the dosage was approximately 3 X what a horse of my mares size should need.

Mare didn't have cushings. Spoke to the old loaner again. She has assumed cushings due to muscle loss and medicated accordingly.

Nothing to do with being sore around the pelvic area and having had her shoes taken off then.


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## MagicMelon (24 April 2016)

I only seem to remember one situation where at PC Camp many moons ago, a novicey mother was helping her young kid groom their pony in the next door stable. I was scrubbing a stain off my grey pony and she looked over and said I should be using "one of these" and she holds up a metal curry comb (the type for cleaning brushes...), poor pony must have had no skin left as she did the whole pony with it every day!


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## catroo (24 April 2016)

One 'experienced' owner thinks horses should either be out 24/7 or in 24/7. She regularly comments to others that the out in the day in for the night or vice versa is cruel as it confuses the horses.

Her two horses spend all summer out and then all winter in, maybe come out of the box for half an hour a day if they are lucky.

Same owner- I offered an old rubber mat I had to put in the front of the stable of her chronic weaver, partly to deaden the noise of shoes constantly scrapping.

Response was - you must be mistaken, he doesn't weave. He's just dancing along to the music! She left a radio playing when she took the other out and she was deadly serious


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## LittleRooketRider (24 April 2016)

JillA said:



			What is your source for that statement? I can't find anything which suggests that to be the case - yes, excess protein can result in acidic environment in the system, hence tying up etc, but to convert amino acids into sugars is a bit of a stretch. Not saying it isn't the case but I'd need to be convinced, so what is the evidence? Is this worth a new thread?  http://www.vetpro.co.nz/Articles/Protein-+What-+Why-+How.html

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Recalling my A- level biology from last year... ( something I branded on my brain to scrape through, but subsequently I've not refreshed)... Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins: there are some amino acids that can also form sugars. 

If I've misread/misunderstood what's been said I apologise due to being knackered.


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## Araboo27 (24 April 2016)

MagicMelon said:



			I only seem to remember one situation where at PC Camp many moons ago, a novicey mother was helping her young kid groom their pony in the next door stable. I was scrubbing a stain off my grey pony and she looked over and said I should be using "one of these" and she holds up a metal curry comb (the type for cleaning brushes...), poor pony must have had no skin left as she did the whole pony with it every day!
		
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Two young girls have taken my metal curry comb and used it on a pony!  Maybe I'm old school as I don't see anyone else using them nowadays


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## Mike007 (24 April 2016)

LittleRooketRider said:



			Recalling my A- level biology from last year... ( something I branded on my brain to scrape through, but subsequently I've not refreshed)... Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins: there are some amino acids that can also form sugars. 

If I've misread/misunderstood what's been said I apologise due to being knackered.
		
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Well done , the education wasnt wasted . mammals are able to not only de aminate amino acids but also use the remaining molecule as an energy source .Mammalian brains use glucose for energy and evolution has ensured that there are pathways to synthesis it


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## goldenchestnut (25 April 2016)

Evie91 said:



			Interesting thread. Seems a lot of people quick to label other folks advice as 'dumb' are none too clever themselves!!! 
Reminds me of the old adage 'people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones'!!
		
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Absolutely agree with this.


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## goldenchestnut (25 April 2016)

Read through all of this and can't believe how stuck up some people are about other peoples beliefs and ways of doing things.  Alot of the posts are about things novices say and do, so what . They are novices and get things wrong.  The  people  who have  been around horses  for many years have old school methods doesn't make them wrong or numptys.


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## Cragrat (25 April 2016)

Quite agree Evie.
For example, I use my metal curry combs daily- how else do you clean your brushes???
And I often use them to remove dried mud from hindquarters and necks- very quick and effective. My Tb's don't mind, and they still have all their skin. I don't use it on boney or sensitive bits though.


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## fatpiggy (25 April 2016)

Cragrat said:



			Quite agree Evie.
For example, I use my metal curry combs daily- how else do you clean your brushes???
And I often use them to remove dried mud from hindquarters and necks- very quick and effective. My Tb's don't mind, and they still have all their skin. I don't use it on boney or sensitive bits though.
		
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I regularly used one on the native pony I used to ride. He lived out 24/7 and specialised in rolling in cow poo so the metal curry comb (there weren't any plastic or rubber ones then) was pressed into service.


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## fatpiggy (25 April 2016)

ycbm said:



			This is a well known traveller cure for colic and it often works. Another variant is to put them in a lorry and drive as fast as you can on bendy roads. I am NOT joking, both these things can work, and were very useful in the days before drugs. A proportion of horse sent to hospital to be treated for colic arrive and recover spontaneously, suggesting that the journey helped.
		
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In America, it is far from unknown for them to drop or allow to drop, a colicky horse in a lorry then physical roll them down the ramp.  It can untwist the guts. A last resort maybe but if you have nothing less to try and the nearest vet hospital is a 3 hour drive away (this is quite common) then I suppose you may as well give it a go.


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## Elf On A Shelf (25 April 2016)

fatpiggy said:



			In America, it is far from unknown for them to drop or allow to drop, a colicky horse in a lorry then physical roll them down the ramp.  It can untwist the guts. A last resort maybe but if you have nothing less to try and the nearest vet hospital is a 3 hour drive away (this is quite common) then I suppose you may as well give it a go.
		
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We had one that was walked, lunged and travelled to no avail. At the vets he was knocked out and hand rolled, again didn't work so ended up getting surgery. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't.


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## baran (25 April 2016)

Neddies said:



			'He's not so good on the left rein as I'm right handed'.
		
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The dominant hand of the rider can have a major effect on the way the horse goes. Many riders struggle to supply even contact on both reins.


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## baran (25 April 2016)

ester said:



			and benzyl benzoate resolves itching regardless of it's cause.
		
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Only wish that was true


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## Shadowdancing (25 April 2016)

Really interesting stuff on here now! And some definite head-desk moments- the All-bran?!!!


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## Annagain (25 April 2016)

fatpiggy said:



			In America, it is far from unknown for them to drop or allow to drop, a colicky horse in a lorry then physical roll them down the ramp.  It can untwist the guts. A last resort maybe but if you have nothing less to try and the nearest vet hospital is a 3 hour drive away (this is quite common) then I suppose you may as well give it a go.
		
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How do they know which way to roll them?


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## lar (25 April 2016)

j1ffy said:



			Me: "Where's your new horse from?" Former YM: "Holland. Or The Netherlands. Actually I think it's The Netherlands."

Ok the last one is more geographical numptiness than horse numptiness. It was day one on a new yard for me so I was desperately trying to keep a straight face!
		
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Actually she is right.  Holland is PART of the Netherlands.  You can actually upset some Dutch people by saying they come from Holland.


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## Zoe67 (25 April 2016)

Celtic Fringe said:



			'Horse must be stabled if you want to Event' - this from a well-respected local trainer. Horse is perfectly happy living out 24/7 with the herd and somehow still competed successfully to BE Intermediate/one-star for many years.
		
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I've heard this one! I used to work for somebody who rode badminton in her heyday, and she was adamant that you couldn't event a horse off grass!


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## ester (25 April 2016)

annagain said:



			How do they know which way to roll them?
		
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well one way, then the other, hedge your bets in that situation surely?


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## cowgirl16 (25 April 2016)

This was a comment to one of the liveries on the yard, who expressed her concern about the shocking state of the yard's straw from the foul-mouthed husband of the yard's resident know-it-all. Livery "this straw is terrible - it's wet!". Foul - mouth "so what? it's going to get p****d on isn't it?"


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## Elf On A Shelf (25 April 2016)

cowgirl16 said:



			This was a comment to one of the liveries on the yard, who expressed her concern about the shocking state of the yard's straw from the foul-mouthed husband of the yard's resident know-it-all. Livery "this straw is terrible - it's wet!". Foul - mouth "so what? it's going to get p****d on isn't it?"
		
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He has a point...


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## fatpiggy (26 April 2016)

baran said:



			The dominant hand of the rider can have a major effect on the way the horse goes. Many riders struggle to supply even contact on both reins.
		
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This is absolutely true.  I'm right handed and my mare wasn't so good on the left rein although, curiously, given free choice she preferred to canter with left leg leading.


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## fatpiggy (26 April 2016)

annagain said:



			How do they know which way to roll them?
		
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Well if you can roll a horse up-hill then...


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## Zoe67 (26 April 2016)

not something I was told, but on my first livery yard I was on assisted DIY which included morning feed and turnouts, I got to the yard one winter day to find my horse had been turned out in her stable rugs...they were sopping wet and covered in mud and the poor horse was freezing


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## Zoe67 (26 April 2016)

fatpiggy said:



			This is absolutely true.  I'm right handed and my mare wasn't so good on the left rein although, curiously, given free choice she preferred to canter with left leg leading.
		
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yep agree with this, I'm left handed and every horse I've loaned or owned has been worse on the right rein


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## Mike007 (26 April 2016)

ycbm said:



			Putting clay on legs will help cool tendons. Still widely believed and products sold to apply it.
		
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Used correctly it does,but cover it over and it doesnt work.


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## ycbm (26 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			Used correctly it does,but cover it over and it doesnt work.
		
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No, it doesn't, sorry . It cools the skin until the clay reaches skin temperature and dries  a bit and that doesn't take long. It does diddly squat to cool the tendon fibres but it makes the owner feel like they are doing something. If you want to cool below skin level, you need to ice, or cold hose for a long time.  I find frozen cabbage best for icing


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## Damnation (26 April 2016)

When I was 15, my first horse was a 3year old TB on loan due to owners pregnancy. In reality she just wanted someone to foot her winter bill.

I got him in at the beginning of winter, and he was rather lean probably having just had a growth spurt and she only had him in a thin rug as she was obsessed with him "turning soft" instead of guaging what the horse actually needed. 

I put the rugs on he needed to feel warm, upped his feed slightly and worked him gently maybe twice a week if that. I was under the supervision of the YO who was friends with the Owner and the Owner's mother and an incredibly experienced horsewoman.

Come February a Dentist was due, I asked if the horse needed a dentist and owner said no he had just been done before I got him. Grand.

March comes, horse is a TB and still not a great weight but better then when I got him. We were on a hill and it was cold even though it was sunny. I was informed I had to remove his rugs during the day or she would remove him from me. I told her it was actually quite cold on the hill and he'd drop weight if rug removed. She held fast saying she didn't want him to be "soft" so I removed the rug during the day and upped his food in the hopes of keeping some weight on him.

He dropped all his weight and looked horriffic. She removed him them blamed me AND posted it on Facebook... a grown "experienced" 30 year old woman and accused me of not having a "rotten front tooth" seen to.. The YO actually stepped in and told Owners mother that her daughter was unreasonible, the horse had the best care, I did everything right by him and she had undone all of my work. Owners mother agreed.

ETA: The pics are still on FB. But this was 10 years ago before camera phones were a big thing so I didn't have pictures of before the rug removal to refute what she had said. Horrible woman.


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## Mike007 (26 April 2016)

ycbm said:



			No, it doesn't, sorry . It cools the skin until the clay reaches skin temperature and dries  a bit and that doesn't take long. It does diddly squat to cool the tendon fibres but it makes the owner feel like they are doing something. If you want to cool below skin level, you need to ice, or cold hose for a long time.  I find frozen cabbage best for icing 

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Clay can hold a large amount of water. the continued evaporation of the water creates a cooling effect which will continue for some hours .There are quicker methods  and more effective methods ,but remember,it dates back to a time when many yards did not even have mains water let alone frozen cabbage. This does not mean that it doesnt work though.


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## lindsay1993 (26 April 2016)

Discussing my latest riding lesson (I had been learning square turns)  and my co-worker piped up with 'Oh my wife rides & she doesn't need lessons anymore, I don't understand why you even have a horse if you can't even get it to turn? She just pulls on the reins and it goes the way she wants. Sometimes if it doesn't go the right way she just pulls that metal thing through it's mouth so it has to move.'


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## StarlightMagic (26 April 2016)

cremedemonthe said:



			Whilst saddle fitting and flocking on site at a yard and being quizzed accusingly by a riding school owner in I.O.W. if I had scratched her saddle in my clams when I flocked the saddle!
For those in the know will wet themselves laughing at the thought of this for those who don't know, wooden clams are used to hold  various saddlery together whilst it's being hand stitched together such as bridlework.
Why she thought I needed to try to put a saddle in my clams to flock it was anyone's guess and would have been a task in itself to do. What made it worse was  her Daughter had been on a saddle making course and had made a saddle (she didn't hold it in clams to flock though I hope!) 
On examination of said saddle, the scratch was easily identified as a rider leaning forward to dismount and the zip on their coat had scratched the saddle, never got an apology of course.
Same stables I found horses tied up and left for a few hours with no one checking them at all. Came across a Shetland tangled up in his headcollar and rope with front foot stuck up in the air and was slowly choking himself in the rope, managed to man handle him to freedom.
I was never asked back!
		
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We arent all idiots down here I promise! I've got a good idea which riding school it was though!


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## Shadowdancing (26 April 2016)

lindsay1993 said:



			Discussing my latest riding lesson (I had been learning square turns)  and my co-worker piped up with 'Oh my wife rides & she doesn't need lessons anymore, I don't understand why you even have a horse if you can't even get it to turn? She just pulls on the reins and it goes the way she wants. Sometimes if it doesn't go the right way she just pulls that metal thing through it's mouth so it has to move.'
		
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*shudders*


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## ycbm (26 April 2016)

http://www.trm-ireland.com/study-comparative-efficiency-topical-cooling-agents-equine-limb/




Mike007 said:



			Clay can hold a large amount of water. the continued evaporation of the water creates a cooling effect which will continue for some hours .There are quicker methods  and more effective methods ,but remember,it dates back to a time when many yards did not even have mains water let alone frozen cabbage. This does not mean that it doesnt work though.
		
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See the research above Mike. It doesn't work.


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## Elf On A Shelf (26 April 2016)

ycbm said:



http://www.trm-ireland.com/study-comparative-efficiency-topical-cooling-agents-equine-limb/




See the research above Mike. It doesn't work.
		
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I also don't hold much store in ice tight and cold hosing...  Ice cubes and a bandage all the way!


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## ycbm (26 April 2016)

EKW said:



			I also don't hold much store in ice tight and cold hosing...  Ice cubes and a bandage all the way!
		
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I find cabbage easier to handle and if push came to shove you could still eat it


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## DragonSlayer (26 April 2016)

~Overheard conversation on someone asking for advice on what to feed laminitic hugely fat horse on it's last legs~

'I'd give it sugar beet, there's not much in that....'....


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## sydney02 (26 April 2016)

DragonSlayer said:



			~Overheard conversation on someone asking for advice on what to feed laminitic hugely fat horse on it's last legs~

'I'd give it sugar beet, there's not much in that....'....
		
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Isn't sugar beet low sugar because its just the pulp left after the sugar is extracted?


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## Regandal (26 April 2016)

sydney02 said:



			Isn't sugar beet low sugar because its just the pulp left after the sugar is extracted?
		
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No.  Ordinary sugar beet contains a fair amount of sugar.  Speedi beet has had most of the sugar removed, but still contains a little.


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## Mike007 (26 April 2016)

ycbm said:



http://www.trm-ireland.com/study-comparative-efficiency-topical-cooling-agents-equine-limb/




See the research above Mike. It doesn't work.
		
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You did read it ? Let me quote the last line"The clays have the best long term cooling effect i.e. they maintain the drop in temperature for the hour after their removal"


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## Mike007 (26 April 2016)

sydney02 said:



			Isn't sugar beet low sugar because its just the pulp left after the sugar is extracted?
		
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The British sugar corporation are not in the business of leaving any sugar in sugar beet pulp,What it does contain is readily digestible non water soluble carbohydrate. Molasses is added in very small quantities to the pellets as a binding agent ,but not to shredded beet pulp. Speady beet is merely shredded beet pulp which has been processed so that it absorbs water quickly.Here is a good link that explains all you need to know http://equusmagazine.com/article/4-didnt-beet-pulp-26851


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## TGM (26 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			The British sugar corporation are not in the business of leaving any sugar in sugar beet pulp,What it does contain is readily digestible non water soluble carbohydrate. Molasses is added in very small quantities to the pellets as a binding agent ,but not to shredded beet pulp. Speady beet is merely shredded beet pulp which has been processed so that it absorbs water quickly.
		
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Molassed sugar beet brands such as Supabeet have a sugar content of approx 20% whilst Speedibeet is unmolassed and is only 5% sugar, so there is a fairly significant difference in sugar levels between the two, indicating that perhaps the amount of molasses added is not that small!


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## ihatework (26 April 2016)

Mike007 said:



			You did read it ? Let me quote the last line"The clays have the best long term cooling effect i.e. they maintain the drop in temperature for the hour after their removal"
		
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You do know she'll argue black is white if she's in the mood?!

Clay will cool leg through heat transfer/evaporation 

However it's not the best way, and if left on can then insulate the leg which is not what you want.

Ice packs and cold hosing is usually the most cost effective way in that majority of situations


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## Mike007 (26 April 2016)

TGM said:



			Molassed sugar beet brands such as Supabeet have a sugar content of approx 20% whilst Speedibeet is unmolassed and is only 5% sugar, so there is a fairly significant difference in sugar levels between the two, indicating that perhaps the amount of molasses added is not that small!
		
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You are right ,but Supabeet is really a cattle feed.They load the molasses into it to get rid of the damn stuff(molasses ) . If you look at Tridents Equibeet ,it is only 6% sugar. and that is the molasses added to make the cubes.


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## ycbm (26 April 2016)

ihatework said:



			You do know she'll argue black is white if she's in the mood?!
		
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Well I don't need to do I since you've done it for me  ???




			Clay will cool leg through heat transfer/evaporation 

However it's not the best way, and if left on can then insulate the leg which is not what you want.

Ice packs and cold hosing is usually the most cost effective way in that majority of situations
		
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This ^^^^^,   thanks IHW , saved me some typing there


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## Mike007 (26 April 2016)

ihatework said:



			You do know she'll argue black is white if she's in the mood?!
Point 1,agreed.

Clay will cool leg through heat transfer/evaporation 
Point 2 agreed

However it's not the best way, and if left on can then insulate the leg which is not what you want.
 Point 3   Here I question what it is that you think it is the best way to do. If the horse needs cold packs and hosing then you are already deep in a world of trouble. If however the horse has merely had a race on going a bit too hard , then hosing is of limited value and a cold pack ,too much and of limited duration. But slapping handfulls of gllopy gooey Kaolin on at evening stables will keep the leg cool all night and help with any minor inflamation.  

Ice packs and cold hosing is usually the most cost effective way in that majority of situations
 point 4   I wish it wernt true .Sadly most people dont notice the early warning signs and it is only when the tendons or ligaments go that they notice.Then its hoses and icepacks and mostly too late.
		
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## spacefaer (26 April 2016)

Micropony said:



			Someone I know, who has forgotten more about horses than I will ever learn, is emphatic that it's high levels of protein in feed that makes horses fizzy, rather than sugar or starch. Is that a thing?
		
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Yes - high levels of protein can make horses nuts too


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## ester (27 April 2016)

OMG so much wrong on this thread anyway!


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