The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread 11

[HairOfTheDog]

The FreeRepublic Saddle Club - (very out of date) Who's Who *pics*

This is a horse chat thread where we share ideas, ask for input from other horsemen, and talk about our riding and horse-keeping. We have a lot of different kinds of riders and horses, and a lot to share. In the previous threads we have had a great time talking through lessons, training, horse lamenesses, illnesses and pregnancies... and always sharing pictures and stories.

I always have a link to this thread on my profile page, so if you have something to say and can't find the thread in latest posts… look for it there and wake the thread up!

I also have a ping list for horse threads that are of interest, and MissTargets will now be pinging everyone most mornings. Let MissTargets and/or me know if you would like to be on the ping list. As FreeRepublic is a political site, our politics and other issues will probably blend in…. There are many issues for horsemen that touch politics… land use, animal rights/abuse cases that make the news…. Legislation that might affect horse owners.

So... like the previous threads, this is intended as fun place to come and share stories, pictures, questions and chit-chat, unguided and unmoderated and that we come together here as friends. There are lots of ways of doing things and we all have our quirks, tricks and specialties that are neat to learn about.

Previous threads:

The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - thread ONE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread TWO!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread THREE!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FOUR
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FIVE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SIX
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SEVEN
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread EIGHT
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread NINE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread TEN

New folk and occasional posters, jump right in and introduce yourselves, tell us about your horses, and post pictures if you've got them!

[FrogInABlender]

Yeah, it's pretty nasty looking stuff. I had to buy the kind without molasses too, which is really hard to find, because of Tennessee's IR problem, so he REALLY hated it. But it has the nutritional value of plain oats, with a LOT less carbs, so it's a pretty good feed for them. IF you can get them to eat it.

[tuffydoodle]

More. I can give them 2 full buckets of soaked beet pulp with no problems. If I fed them 2 full buckets of grain they'd all founder.

[tuffydoodle]

That's the trick, alot of them won't eat it. My donkey and mini's are used to it now and lap it up like there's no tomorrow. The goats like it too but they'll eat your shoes if you let them.

[FrogInABlender]

Here's the link I used to find a distributor in my area. Just click on your state...

http://www.triplecrownfeed.com/distributors.php

[FrogInABlender]

Seems like I remember from the Cushing's Group that you can substitute beet pulp for hay at a ratio of 1 lb of dry beet pulp for 1.5 lbs of hay. But after you soak it, it's gonna swell up and get heaver so it'll look like more and fill them up accordingly.

[tuffydoodle]

Thanks for the link, there are several feed stores in my area that carry it.

[tuffydoodle]

I tried to give George beet pulp, he won't touch the stuff. I give him an equine senior feed. He does ok as long as I keep him on his pergolide.

[proud_2_B_texasgal]

i just wish i had a horse to feed ....

[tuffydoodle]

Awwwwwww. We need to get you a horse.

[HairOfTheDog]

Well, good to know about the beet pulp... Hope I don't have to deal with it, it does sound like a hassle, and a lot of bags if you have to feed it like hay.

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

I've tried the beet pulp. Suppose to be good at keeping a horse hydrated. Puts lots of moisture in their system. But, I couldn't get any of my horses to eat it.

Becky

[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

Good morning. Freezing rain here this morning and suppose to be all weekend.

I had gotten hold of my farrier, and he was going to come today at 11 weather permitting. Looks like that's out.

Becky

[proud_2_B_texasgal]

I thought about you this morning .. was looking at the weather map .. OK was blueeeeeeeeeeeee

[HairOfTheDog]

Ick - I wondered about you with the reports of freezing rain. That's a pretty abrupt change for you, after all your nice weather.

[cjshapi]

Better Barbaro news today.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,243162,00.html

[FrogInABlender]

I'll bet he'll eat the Safe Starch. I feed Tennessee about 2 to 3 pounds of it twice a day with Farrier's Formula on top of it, along with some SOURCE, a little salt and some cinnamon and he eats it right up. It took him a while to get used to the cinnamon though. I had to start off with just a little bit and slowly increase it, but he's up to about 2 teaspoons twice a day. It's supposed to help keep his blood sugar regulated. He also gets about 15 lbs of hay, which is the recommended daily amount for a 1000# horse. That amounts to about 2 flakes, twice a day. All that together gives him a pretty balanced diet and he seems to be doing really well on it. Not that you really wanted to know all that, but once I got started I couldn't stop. ;o)

[HairOfTheDog]

That's good. The story earlier in the week had a lot of people saying he should be put down. I don't know the answer to that, but I know they didn't bring him this far in order to give up easily at any one setback.

[cjshapi]

He's definitly a fighter.

[proud_2_B_texasgal]

I think as long as he is eating and acting like he still wants to fight, they will continue. I know my heart sank and I thought "Is this the beginning of the end?" just like I did back in July ..

Only Barbaro knows how much he can take. I'm just a wee bit too attached, though *grin*

[Beaker]

Well I read your exchanges on the horse.com forum, and he sounds like an insuferrable, bombastic know-it-all jerk. I was thinking about what he was saying about riding his horse brideless, and he is correct about using your seat to control the horse, especially when changing gaits, but you also need the bridle to help balance the horse and guide him. But how he was using his seat when he was describing what he does is wrong.

Sit deep = stop
-No. Sit deep + lean back means slow down. Stiffen your back means stop. You stiffen yourself and it makes it uncomfortable for the horse to go forward, so he won't.

open shoulder right or left = turn
-mmm... possibly, simply because when you open your shoulder and bring it back, you're shifting your weight to that seat bone, which is why the horse will turn.

lean slightly foward = back up
- Just... no.

Slightly push hip right or left = side pass
-It's so much more than that. This guy is a dope on a rope. And I looked at his pictures that you posted, and he is SO unbalanced, and he's looking down all the time, which is unbalancing himself further, as well as the horse and the horse doesn't look happy to work with him at all. If he had any sense, he wouldn't post those pictures at all.