Lost shoes are no laughing matter. They require time-off from the riding schedule and a call to the farrier. They can result in lameness and injury, not to mention the additional cost of re-shoeing. They can be caused by a number of situations, from running through a muddy ...read more
Fly sheets are for more than guarding against flies these days. Cashel’s line of Fly Sheets now offers UV protection. Not only can this help protect light-skinned horses from sunburn, it can prevent fading in the coats of dark-colored horses. Cashel’s Fly Sheets are made of ...read more
If you’re like me, you want your horse to have the best protection possible from those pesky flies. But you may be missing a spot: your horse’s neck. The Cashel Crusader Fly Sheet Neck Guard is here to fill the gap! The material is cool and breathable, and attaches easily to a ...read more
Cashel Fly Masks are made of soft coated nylon micro mesh that block 70% of damaging UV rays. No need to apply sun-block to your light-skinned horse on those sunny days! This micro mesh also helps protect the horse’s eyes from flying debris during trailering. In addition, ...read more
Adapted from an article by Fran Jurga in The Trail Rider To help your horse grow the healthiest possible hooves, start with his or her diet—right down to good-quality hay. Make sure your horse has no digestive issues, is getting plenty of water, and is wormed regularly. Then, if ...read more
Let's face it: Horses are dirty critters that love to roll in mud or manure —especially right before (or during) a big event. But for those of you hardy souls aspiring to keep your steeds sleek and clean for competition, below are some tried-and-true suggestions for your ...read more
When it comes to hoof dressing, things tend to get personal. Some horse folk are staunch believers in it, while others prefer to let their horses' hooves go au naturel. Among those who believe in it, there are many different reasons they use it. 1. DRESS FOR SUCCESS The best way ...read more
Many equine grain rations are designed to provide a specific level and balance of nutrition for an intended category such as growth, performance, stage of production, activity level, or age. Including additional feed ingredients such as oats and corn, or adding supplements such ...read more
It’s a buggy world out there, and your horse often pays the price. Now that warmer weather has finally arrived, many pests that were only memories during the winter are coming out in full force. Your horse’s comfort — not to mention his health — may face increased risk from a ...read more
Q: My mare is terrible about standing still for fly spray. She’s had this problem throughout the five years I’ve owned her. I used to have to stand about 20 feet away from her just to spray a rag to wipe her with. Now, I can stand 3 feet away, but she still won’t let me spray her ...read more
Horse owners love “barn smells.” Leather, shavings, liniment, hay, tack, that sweet horse smell … it is all part of barn life. Most people accept the smell of ammonia as just part of the deal. Eliminate that smell and you will come to appreciate all those “good” smells more and ...read more
It is important to put the right type of trap in the right location. This might be the biggest mistake retailers and misinformed customers make. It can be a whopper of a mistake too. Place the wrong trap in the wrong place and you’ll catch nothing or bring every fly in the area ...read more
If You Have To Spray, Do It Smart Sometimes you have no choice but to use spray to protect your animals and yourself from pesky and potentially harmful insects. These can include Mosquitoes, Gnats, Ticks, Wasps, Horse and Deer Flies, No-see-ums, Chiggers, Fleas, Culicoides and ...read more
Prevent Flies With Fly Predators Fly Predators break the fly’s life cycle. The hard working Fly Predator moms find and kill roughly 75 pest fly pupae before they hatch. Every female pest fly that doesn’t make it means potentially up to 900 fewer bothersome flies. They do the ...read more
Mosquitos are bad news! Not only are they irritating to you and your horse, they are also carriers of some deadly and dreaded diseases - West Nile Virus and Chikungunya have both been found in the USA and are potentially fatal for any horse. Malaria is a well-known ...read more
Deadly Fly Transmitted Diseases in Horses - The Nose to Nose Potentially Fatal Infection - Strangles Flies carry infection, it is a simple concept - they land on one horse, pick up infection and fly on to the next, landing on the unsuspecting horse transmitting the infection it ...read more
Colic Basics: How To React if Your Horse Shows Signs of Intestinal Distress. You're at the barn and you notice your horse seems to be acting strangely. He's pawing the ground, rolling, sweating and he doesn't seem to be interested in food. All your instincts point towards ...read more
If You Have To Spray, Do It Smart Sometimes you have no choice but to use spray to protect your animals and yourself from pesky and potentially harmful insects. These can include Mosquitoes, Gnats, Ticks, Wasps, Horse and Deer Flies, No-see-ums, Chiggers, Fleas, Culicoides and ...read more
If You Have To Spray, Do It Smart Sometimes you have no choice but to use spray to protect your animals and yourself from pesky and potentially harmful insects. These can include Mosquitoes, Gnats, Ticks, Wasps, Horse and Deer Flies, No-see-ums, Chiggers, Fleas, Culicoides and ...read more
Four Steps To Fly Free We recommend a simple four step plan that really fixes the problem, rather than just chase flies away temporarily. For most folks just adding Fly Predators® is all that’s needed but if you have flies coming from neighbors, adding traps and Bye Bye Odor® ...read more
The idea of a food fight takes on a whole new meaning when it comes to horses eating at a common feeder. Most skirmishes over position at the feed “trough” don’t result in injury, but there is always that potential. So, what can you do to minimize the risk of fighting over food ...read more
Overlooking subtle change is easier than it should be. When you care for your horse every day, you may not notice slight variations in his body condition. Then one morning it strikes you: Watching him turn toward you in the paddock, you can see a faint outline of every rib along ...read more
When making decisions about installing or replacing fencing, most people go about it backwards. They start by making a list of fence types available in their region, and then choose one, usually based on installation costs and aesthetics. These factors are important, but your ...read more
Through October 7, you can prove that "Horses Have the Loudest ROAR.” The EQUUS Foundation is one of Animal Planet’s eight charitable partners participating in the 2014 Animal Planet ROAR (Reach Out. Act. Respond) Matching Campaign—and the only HORSE charity involved. The funds ...read more
The last few weeks have been decent. I've rode like five different horses the last couple weeks, but I've been winning a bit on all of them. I didn't have any luck at Ellensburg but I won good at Plains and Dillon, Mont. I won a couple thousand out of those, then after that, I ...read more
I’m sitting in the Will Rogers Airport in OKC, getting ready to leave for Omak. I had a pretty good week last week. I ended up winning two rounds and placed in a round at the Spicer Gripp and finished third in the average, so I won a little over $11,000 there. When we got done ...read more
I had a couple unlucky deals over the Fourth of July–I missed in the short round of Reno to win a whole bunch, and I broke the barrier by about an inch at Ponoka to be 7.2 and win a lot. But I did place in a round at Ponoka, and I placed in the average at Prescott to win about ...read more
Need a nudge to keep battling bugs through the summer? Flies aren’t just bothersome to your horses and you. They can also cause sickness or injury. Here's how. Spreading disease. Flies transport the viruses and bacteria that lead to influenza, equine infectious anemia, pigeon ...read more
I'm sitting here at Santa Fe watching some bull dogging slack this morning. It feels good to be out on the road so we can really get things started on the summer run. I've been working hard in the practice pen, and I'm feeling ready. I'm always working on flanking. Most people ...read more
I'm back in Weatherford, Texas, getting to stay close to home for a few days before the summer run really kicks off. I've been working hard in the gym and riding my new horse, Bo Lightening, that I bought from Jackie Moore out of Missouri. He's only 6, and I like him already. ...read more
Horse camping adds a special dimension to your trail-riding experience. Contentment commingles pleasantly with fatigue as you and your equine companion settle into camp after a day of exploring the wilderness. Dusk ensues, stars twinkle, and that pleasant munching you hear just ...read more
Fence materials: Wood boards and rails, synthetic rails and certain types of woven wire are safest. High-tensile wire, monofilament and rubber-strip fencing can entangle your foal. Height: Use your mare’s eye level as a guideline. If she’s 15 hands high, your fencing should be ...read more
Taking care of your horse as he ages means making management changes that reflect his current needs. So when is it time to switch to a senior feed? That depends on many factors. As a general rule, senior feeds usually become appropriate for horses when they reach the age of 15. ...read more
The 6 weeks of the biggest events of the Winter season are now behind us. I didn't do any good at the George Strait Team Roping Classic or Rodeo Houston. I am however, not disappointed with my winter. I won more at the jackpots than I ever have. Second to only last year at the ...read more
The majority of the “Big” events I have been writing about are now behind us for another year. The past week we took a no time in Glenrose, Tx. Thursday night. Friday morning we where up in Austin, Tx. We drove straight from Glenrose and got a good night sleep in Austin. I fed my ...read more
I made it! The top 50 teams (10 from each of 5 qualifying ropings) competed at The American Semi-Finals in Mesquite, Tx. last Friday. Everybody ran 2 steers, and the top 20 teams on 2 steers advanced to the performances. The fastest 5 times on one steer out of those 20 teams ...read more
We are nearing the half way point of the 6 week period I have been writing about. We went to the USTRC in Bryan, Tx. last Friday. It was the last chance I had to get a 2nd partner into The American Semi-Finals in Mesquite. I did not get qualified with either of my partners so I ...read more
Last week I wrote about how important the next 6 weeks would be. With 1 down and 5 to go it has a been good and we are trying to RopeBetter every day. Our 5.3 and 5.2 held on to place in both rounds at Ft. Worth and we came back high callback. I sent Daisy to Rapid City, Sd. on ...read more
While the run of rodeos during the 4th of July is often referred to as "Cowboy Christmas", the next 6 weeks are for sure the biggest of the year for Team Ropers. We have 4 annual team ropings we consider "Majors". Here's a list: Wildfire Open to the World ( Salado, Tx. each ...read more
The #RoadtoNFR14 is well underway now. Each season officially starts in October and ends in September, but Odessa really feels like the beginning. The fall rodeos are scattered across the country and most of them are 1 go round and don’t add much money, but most everybody enters ...read more
It's the big things that make big differences. I haven't wrote about position until now because I feel that on the ground we all ride well. Afoot we walk straight to our spot and rope. Horseback we often do not. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. ...read more
Headers and Heelers alike struggle with swing speed. Often when thinking of the fundamentals of roping, we think along the lines of position, swing, delivery, and slack. We often overlook the speed of our swing. Particularly the speed directly before our delivery. In order to ...read more
10/1/13 9/25 Kansas City, Mo; 1st go? 4.8, placed 2nd 9/26 Omaha, Ne; Top 12 in each event. Everybody gets 2 steers. The top 8 in the average advance to a Semi-finals where the field is narrowed to only 4 for the finals. 1st go?4.7, placed 3rd 9/27 Omaha, Ne; 2nd go?5.3, placed ...read more
Everything I do to change or improve my roping starts on the ground. Once I have confidence on the ground I progress to the roping machine. After the machine, I move to a slow controlled practice. If I feel everything is progressing smoothly I transition to "full-contact" ...read more
?9/10 Pendleton, Or. (2 full and a short on grass. This is definitely one of the best rodeos of the fall. 100+ teams show up to run downhill across the dirt track, thru a barrier, into the grass infield as fast and hard as they can go. It's not uncommon to see people have ...read more
As most seasons come to a close in the fall there are finals for almost every association. The PRCA, NFR, USTRC, and WSTR Finals?to be specific, are opportunities to win big. I am often asked, "How do you prepare for year-end events?" My answer is, "Much like I prepare for events ...read more
At 26 years old, I don't claim to have a handle on everything life throws at you. I do, however, absolutely and whole-heartedly believe that "You reap what you sow." I started roping in the fall of 2000. I am, and always will be, an "All-In" type of person. I read every article ...read more
