Complete Guide to Keeping Your Horse Happy and Healthy

Thinking of buying your first horse for sale? Or already have one and want to review their care? This comprehensive guide covers the essential requirements to keep your horse happy and healthy. You will learn about nutrition, environment, daily routine, companionship, and expert veterinary care to provide your horse with a fulfilled life.

Forage: Providing Proper Nutrition

Horses are designed to graze almost continually throughout the day, often eating for about 16 hours in a 24-hour period. Providing quality long fibre forage like hay or grass is crucial for their digestive health and dental maintenance. Their teeth continuously erupt and require constant grinding to prevent irregular wear. Without adequate fibre, horses risk colic, choke, and behavioural issues such as weaving, box walking, or cribbing, which may escalate to stress ulcers.

Access to Clean Water

Fresh, clean water should be available to your horse at all times. Stale or tainted water may discourage drinking and lead to dehydration. Regularly changing water in stables and thoroughly cleaning troughs or buckets in paddocks will prevent contamination from ammonia, debris, or dirt, promoting better intake and overall health.

Movement and Exercise

Movement is essential for a horse's gut motility and general wellbeing. Confinement to stables can increase the risk of colic and cause stiffness, particularly in older horses. Aim to provide turnout in pastures, ridden exercise, loose schooling, or use a horse walker if needed. Even retired or unbacked horses benefit from regular movement to maintain their health and happiness.

Companionship and Social Needs

Horses are herd animals requiring social interactions. Ideally, they should have other horses for sale nearby or within their pasture. Mutual grooming and group grazing reduce stress and promote natural behaviours. Manage pastures to allow space for disagreements, respecting pecking order, and ensure all horses have access to shelter and food without exclusion.

Shelter and Protection

Shelter is vital year-round. This can be a stable, a field shelter, or natural protection like hedges or trees. Horses need protection not only in winter but also in summer from sun overexposure and insect irritation, which can significantly affect their comfort and health.

Grooming for Health and Bonding

Daily grooming keeps your horse’s coat and skin healthy while removing dirt and checking for injuries or lumps. Grooming strengthens the bond between you and your horse and can improve behaviour during riding, handling, and travel situations.

Providing a Purpose and Routine

Many horses thrive when given a job, whether that is ridden work, driving, or groundwork. Routine gives them security and confidence, much like children. While some horses may be retired or temporarily out of work, engaging their minds and bodies appropriately ensures contentment and reduces stress.

Essential Veterinary and Professional Care

Good horse management includes regular health maintenance such as dental checks by a qualified equine dentist or vet, routine vaccinations against Equine Flu and Tetanus, and parasite control through worming or worm count regimes. Farriery attention every 4 to 8 weeks keeps hooves healthy and balanced, whether shod or not. Additionally, consider professional therapies like osteopathy, chiropractic care, or sports therapy to support mobility and comfort. Regular saddle fit checks prevent back issues and ensure the horse’s comfort under saddle.

Conclusion

By ensuring your horse has access to quality forage, fresh water, regular exercise, companionship, shelter, grooming, and consistent routine — alongside diligent expert care — you provide a solid foundation for their lifelong happiness and health. Each horse is unique, so observe and adapt your care to their individual needs, always prioritising welfare and well-being.