Horse health checks you can do yourself

There are several horse health checks you can do yourself and should do daily. The important thing is to get to know your horse. If you know what is typical for your horse, you will notice when things are different.By catching problems early, you can avoid more serious problems. It is important to assess your horse’s condition often.

Observe your horse daily or run through the checklist whenever something alerts you to a possible problem. Appetite Is your horse off his feed? Many horses (and people) lose their appetites when they’re not feeling well.

Behavior

Has the horse had a change in behavior? Baldy and Scarlett are good examples of noticing behavior.

• Baldy – I started to mount him bareback and received a big bite on my rump.

• Scarlett – I started to mount her bareback and she knocked her head on my shoulder while dancing away. Why did this happen? With Baldy, that was his typical behavior. If I didn’t watch him carefully, he would bite at every chance. With Scarlett, that was a change in behavior. She was a very gentle mare. I usually would catch her in the field and ride her bareback to the barn before grooming and saddling. Immediately, I started to check her over. She had a sore on her back from her owner putting on the saddle blanket and saddle wrong the previous day, riding her hard and then turning her out into the pasture without grooming her.

A normally curious horse who nickers when it sees you should be checked if it suddenly fails to respond to its normal stimulus. Standing in a hunched position with its head down could be a sign that the horse is not feeling well. It’s fine for a horse to roll to scratch its back on the ground, but if your horse is acting distressed or uncomfortable while rolling repeatedly, it could be a sign of colic.

Condition

The perfect time to assess the condition of your horse is during the daily grooming session. While grooming your horse, check the face. Are the eyes bright and clear? Is there any discharge from its nose or eyes. How is his coat? Run your hands up and down each leg checking for swelling, heat or sensitivity to touch. Horses can get hurt in their stall or pasture, you’ll need to check all over for any lacerations or other injuries.

Hooves

Before riding, you should check the hooves. Using a hoof pick, clean the hooves. Make sure there are no objects embedded in the hoof such as small rocks or clumps of mud. Is there a discharge or bad smell? Are there any cracks in the hooves? Are the shoes loose?

Manure

Check your horse’s manure. If the manure is too dry – your horse is not drinking enough. If it is runny – it could be stress or illness or simply too rich of a diet.