Anxiety After Injury

Lyndsey Wanits had ridden since childhood. At 19, she sustained an injury due to misguidance from a trainer and took five years off from riding. While she missed it, she was not 100 percent sure she wanted to get back in the saddle. She knew that if she mounted up again, she would need help.

“I eventually wanted to join a show team and also show in the alumni division of a college circuit,” she says. “I posted in a Facebook group asking for a professional experienced in working with riders with anxiety and timid tendencies. The coach I found got me up to speed and in those doors with the greatest support and mentorship.”

Wanits also found an equestrian fitness coach who was instrumental in helping her regain strength and confidence. At the end of the 2022 show season, she finished fourth in the region in the western alumni division and was named Champion Jr. Horse and Reserve Walk Trot Jog Champion in her local show circuit.

A Long Hiatus

Tammy Thomas rode as a child without formal lessons, but had to put her passion for riding on hold for 40 years. In retirement, she bought her first horse and knew she needed a riding coach to help her chase her dreams.

“Because I started when I was older, I knew I didn’t have as much time left in the saddle, so I needed someone who could teach me to ride my horse while working toward my goals,” says Thomas. “We spend a lot of time setting goals, and she tells me what might not be realistic at this point, or where she wants me to step up.”

With her coach’s guidance, she finished her first-ever show season as the Green Novice Rider Reserve Champion of her show circuit. Her next show season, she won the Intermediate Reserve Champion, and by her third show season, she was winning the Limited Non Pro Championship title.

Trainer vs. Coach

It’s important to tease out the differences between a coach and a trainer. A trainer is a skilled horse person who teaches technical skills and maneuverers to you and/or your horse. A coach may also be a trainer, but goes beyond the technical aspects and focuses on your goals and mental skills to achieve your desired outcomes.

“The coach’s job is to blend everything together and to help riders understand what they want to accomplish and why,” says Shannon Pigott. She is a western performance horse trainer and an executive coach based in Fredericksburg, Texas, who formerly worked in corporate America. “My No. 1 goal is to help clients understand what they want to accomplish and why, not just the ‘how to do it.’”

Leslie Holleman rode hunter/jumpers through young adulthood. After a 25-year break, she jumped back into riding in a new discipline—American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA) ranch riding and ranch trail. But ranch versatility caught her eye. She knew she needed lessons to learn how to perform the maneuvers properly. But she also wanted more: a coach who focused as much on the mental skills as the technical skills.

“A coach may also be a skilled rider and trainer, but they are highly skilled at helping you communicate your goals, translating that into a forward trajectory to level up, and working on the mental management of stress and confidence that comes with showing,” says Holleman.

Finding a Coach

Every coach brings a unique perspective and approach to their program. That diversity in skillsets means there is a person perfectly suited to your goals, values, and learning styles, and these three tips can help you find the right coach for your needs.

1. Focus on fit: The instant Holleman read her coach’s bio on the Downunder Horsemanship brand ambassador forum, she knew she had found the right person.

“Her bio said, ‘I’m a people coach, and I focus on novice riders and versatility ranch horse,’” says Holleman. “I was like that’s great—that’s me!”

Working with a riding coach is a commitment, with many coaches requiring a minimum of six months to a year in their program. So, knowing a bit about the individual before making the investment is critical.

“Choose someone whose values align with yours and who will allow you to explore what is important to you and help you develop a plan to achieve your goals,” Pigott said. “I recommend interviewing people and taking a few lessons with different people until you find the right fit.”

2. Know your learning style: People learn and feel motivation differently. Thomas, a retired educator, knew her coach frequently uses a classroom style setting, and she appreciates that approach.

“If you learn best by having someone show you what to do and then having you go out and do it, you need a coach who teaches that way,” she says. “If you’re an auditory and lecture-type learner, choose that type of coach.”

The Wrong Fit

Working with a riding coach is a lot like being in a relationship, and not all work out as hoped. It’s important to recognize when it’s time to break up.

“If you find yourself in a spot where the activities aren’t fun anymore, riding is a chore, you aren’t achieving the results you are looking for, or you feel like you have no support, start looking for someone different,” says Wanits. “Everyone deserves to have fun. Don’t lose your spark because you and your coach don’t jive.”

This article about hiring a riding coach appeared in the June 2023 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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Whether you’re waiting for your broodmare to deliver or you’ve purchased a young horse, nutrition plays a vital role in the early years. Growing horses have significantly different nutritional needs than mature horses. Here, we’ll break down the young horse’s needs into a timeline from zero to 2 years old, highlighting what to feed and when.

Nutrition During the Mare’s Third Trimester

Providing foals and young horses good nutrition begins before they’re born. Some of the most critical nutrients are needed during the mare’s third trimester of pregnancy, according to Rhonda Hoffman, Ph.D., professor and director of horse science at Middle Tennessee State University.

“The foal fetus grows to only 20 percent of its birth weight during the first 7 ½ to 8 months of pregnancy, and 80 percent in the last trimester,” says Hoffman. “Those last three months are critical for the foal’s bone development and its storage of trace minerals, which are not supplied in milk.”

Trace minerals include copper, zinc, iron, selenium, iodine, and others. Hoffman points to a 1998 New Zealand study that proved pregnant mares deficient in trace minerals during late pregnancy had foals more likely to develop osteochondrosis dissecans (OCD) joint lesions. The study also showed that foals deprived of nutrients in utero could not “catch up” to foals whose dams were fed a balanced diet during late pregnancy, regardless of what they were fed after birth.

Hoffman recommends feeding a “mare and foal” or “growth” feed in the eighth through the final month of pregnancy. Following feed tag instructions for how much to feed is essential; these formulations are guaranteed by law to meet the needs of broodmares and foals.

“In addition to the feed, mares and foals should be allowed to graze pasture, if available, and/or fed a high-quality hay,” she adds.

Nutrition from Foaling to 3 Months

The mare’s milk is the foal’s first food supply. Her colostrum (first milk) is nutrient-dense and shares her antibodies to support the foal’s immunity.

“Look for feeds labeled as ‘mare and foal’ or ‘growth’; they should be highly palatable and range from 16 to 18 percent crude protein,” says Jessica Leatherwood, Ph.D., associate professor and equine nutritionist in the Department of Animal Science at Texas A&M.

A dam’s milk production peaks about two months post-foaling. By the time her foal is 3 months old, a mare’s milk supply steadily declines. So-called “creep feeding” the foal is recommended to compensate, according to Leatherwood.

Creep feeding provides foals with access to an appropriately formulated feed while restricting the mare’s access to the ration. Feeder height can keep foals from helping themselves to mom’s ration, while feeders with small openings can keep the mare out of her foal’s grain meal.

“Feeding the mare and foal separately through the use of a creep feeder ensures the grain is formulated to meet the foal’s requirement and gives us an idea of the foals daily intake of grain,” Leatherwood explains.

Continuously monitor your foal’s body weight and body condition to ensure a consistent plane of growth. Fat first fills in over the loin, withers and tailhead.

“It’s common and OK to see the slight outline of ribs on the foal at this time,” Hoffman says. “Foals alternate between growth spurts and adding body fat. The ribs are one area where they are slow to accumulate fat.”

If you’re concerned that the foal looks too ribby or is growing too slowly, Hoffman recommends talking with your veterinarian.

Nutrition from Three to 6 Months

Texas A&M University raises about 15 foals per year. At this stage, foals receive a mare and foal or growth feed twice a day, according to Leatherwood. Appropriately formulated grain provides both the calories and nutrients required during mom’s declining milk supply and prepares the young horse for the upcoming weaning process.

“Foals may have unlimited access to a creep feed until they consume 4 to 5 pounds daily,” she says. “At this stage, their hind gut and large intestine are not developed enough to extract nutrients from forage, and therefore their diet consists primarily of grain with little forage.”

The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) recommends starting “by feeding 1 percent if a foal’s body weight per day. For example, 1 pound of feed for each 100 pounds of body weight, or 1 pound of feed per month’s age.”

Nutrition from Six to 12 Months

Foals undergo a signification transition period halfway to their first birthday. Most foals are weaned at or by 6 months old. A balanced formulated feed is essential for supporting foals during this stressful transition. The weaning process activates cortisol, a stress hormone that can compromise a foal’s immune response.

By now, all the foal’s nutrition must come from a source other than mom. Most light breed foals are eating 4 to 6 pounds of concentrate feed along with hay and grass. However, Hoffman cautions that weanlings are not reliable in their hay consumption. If you compare pounds of concentrate eaten to the pounds of hay eaten, weanlings might voluntarily eat a dietary proportion of 60 to 70 percent concentrate and 30 to 40 percent forage, she says.

“Most owners rely a lot on forage, but that can be deficient in this age group,” says Leatherwood. “Giving a concentrate that provides enough minerals and other nutrients at their appropriate ratios is critical to support skeletal development.”

Access to fresh pasture may increase a foal’s forage intake, but because most grass is typically dwindling by the fall when most horses are weaned, higher quality hay is necessary. Hoffman recommends a grass-alfalfa mix or high-quality grass hay. Alfalfa is high in calcium, so if fed, the concentrate chosen should be labeled as balanced to accompany alfalfa hay.

“There’s an old horsemen’s practice of feeding oats and alfalfa to growing horses, with the idea that the oats’ high phosphorus balances out the alfalfa’s high calcium,” Hoffman says. “It generally does, but it’s not recommended because this diet lacks the essential amino acid lysine, which is critical for optimal growth, and it’s marginal or deficient in other amino acids, vitamins and minerals.”

Nutrition from Yearling to 2-Year-Old

Yearlings continue to grow, but not as rapidly as during their first year of life. Research suggests that light-horse yearlings are about 64 percent of their mature height at 12 months of age and grow to 86 percent of their mature height by 24 months, according to Hoffman.

“Many yearlings come out of a growth slump [over the] winter and have a compensatory growth spurt when spring pasture appears,” she says. “Keep a keen eye on their joints at this time. Look for epiphysitis—ridges at the top and bottom of knees and fetlocks—that indicate an inflammation of the growth plate. Also watch for extra fluid or swelling in the joints, especially knees, fetlocks and stifles; lameness; or crooked leg conformation from uneven growth.”

To a mild degree, all of the above are normal and temporary in every growing horse, but if the issue seems extreme or persists, talk to your veterinarian. Overfeeding or feeding an unbalanced diet, along with genetics, can increase a growing horse’s chances of developing joint issues, so it is critical for a young horse’s nutrition to feed appropriate rations.

“It may be hard to believe, but the total calorie requirement of a 12-month-old and a 24-month-old horse is quite similar, even considering that the 24-month-old is physically larger,” says Hoffman.

Nutritional needs will change, however, whenever that young horse begins his training. When that happens, an older yearling or 2-year-old needs to meet the demands of exercising and growing.

Adding exercise and learning stress can increase caloric needs by 20 to 30 percent above growth alone, and protein needs by 10 to 15 percent. Horses started in training at 18 to 24 months of age should be transitioned to a performance-based concentrate.

“Twelve to 24-month-old horses are becoming more reliant on forage, but forage alone still does not provide enough to meet their nutritional needs,” Hoffman continues. “Plan on dietary proportions of 50 percent grain concentrate and 50 percent forage.”

This article about young horse nutrition appeared in the January/February 2023 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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Inside Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park, the rush of the city falls away into the peaceful tranquility of wooded trails and open space. Tucked away on a dead-end road, Chamounix Equestrian Center has made its home inside the 2,000-acre municipal park. The stable is widely known for its sold-out summer camps, popular year-round lesson program and boarding opportunities, as well as a unique equestrian scholarship program called Work to Ride.

Work to Ride’s Beginning

In 1994, Lezlie Hiner was at a crossroads. She wanted to carve out a niche in the horse industry that blended her equestrian background with a degree in psychology and women’s studies. Launching the Work to Ride (WTR) program was the perfect intersection of those passions. The 501(c)(3) non-profit is a community-based prevention program that provides disadvantaged urban youth constructive activities centered on horsemanship, equine sports and education.

“We are serving low-income youth in the city by providing an opportunity to ride while also focusing on academic achievement,” Hiner says. “We tie academic activities to being on the polo team. If they want to be a part of the team, they have to keep up their grades.”

When designing WTR, Hiner looked closely at nationwide data regarding the after-school hours between 4 and 7 p.m. Research has shown that this is the prime time for kids to find opportunities to get into trouble or skip out on schoolwork. Participants enrolled in WTR are at the barn during those hours, which reduces the temptation to engage in less productive activities that can become appealing to unsupervised youth.

“All of the kids in Work to Ride are funded through scholarships,” Hiner says. “We also have academic scholarships for those who want to go to college and need help. They can apply to us and when we have funding, we help them with college tuition. One girl graduated from Cornell and is in nursing school now, and we’re covering her tuition.”

A Place for Everyone

Riders are not dismissed from the program if they are struggling in school. Instead, they receive extra tutoring and academic support to bring their grades up. However, they are not allowed to travel to competitions until their schoolwork is satisfactory. Participants get paid to maintain the horse stables and receive after-school tutoring to help maintain grades and assist with college enrollment.

“We are a little bit different in that we have a lot of boys in our program, which is fairly uncommon in a lot of other equestrian sports,” Hiner says. “Other [riding] disciplines have a hard time keeping boys after age 12, but polo is a sport that fills all the needs of teenage boys.”

The Park is connected to two of the city’s poorest communities: West and North Philadelphia. That makes it a convenient walkable distance for the nearly 60 kids who may not be able to afford transportation. Hiner estimates that Work to Ride has served hundreds of young riders since the program opened its doors 27 years ago.

From Wrong Turn to Ivy League

Shariah Harris became part of the program when she was about 8 years old. Her mom was driving in Fairmount Park and took a wrong turn onto the dead-end street and discovered the stable.

“We saw other Black children riding, and my mom wanted to figure out a way to get us involved in riding,” Harris says. “We went inside and met Lezlie, and she gave us an application. A few months later, both my brother and I were accepted into the program. My older sister soon followed our path and joined the program, too.”

Polo is the main focus of the WTR program, though some riders want to focus on jumping. Those who work hard, keep up their grades, and meet the program requirements travel across the country and around the world to play as part of the team. Harris quickly became a rising star in the sport.

As a high school senior, she was named the U.S. Polo Association’s National Interscholastic Player of the Year. Her skills earned her a spot playing high-goal polo for Postage Stamp Farm at the 2017 Silver Cup tournament. She became the first Black woman to play in high-goal polo, the top tier of polo in the United States.

In just a decade, Harris has collected a lifetime of memories. She says one of her favorites was her first trip to Nigeria to play in the Unicef Cup tournament. Her sister went too, and it was the first time they had left the United States.

“It was amazing to experience the culture in Nigeria and meet the different people,” she says. “I remember the excitement that I had to be able to go, because it was an annual trip that all of us in the program were anxious for a chance to experience.”

The team won the tournament, which made it even more special for Harris. WTR influenced Harris’s decision to attend Cornell University, where she played for the women’s varsity team.

“WTR helped me build confidence in myself that took me a bit longer to discover. It taught me to believe in myself even when I was nervous or afraid,” she says. “It also gave me an outlet and something to devote my complete attention to, which took my mind away from challenges in my life throughout the years.”

Harris credits Work to Ride with preparing her for Cornell University on a social level as much as an academic one. Training and traveling across the country and around the world taught her skills for adjusting to new or even uncomfortable situations.

“During my time in the program, we were always playing teams, and as I got older, I was the only girl playing on an all-male team, so I learned from an early stage how to adjust to these situations,” she says. “When I went to Cornell, a PWI [predominantly white institution] and being the only Black person on my team, I was already prepared in a sense for what that might entail for me. Work to Ride taught me how to adapt and how to make myself comfortable in situations where I was ‘the only one.’”

The Horses

Hiner has 33 horses in her string. Just under half of the herd are polo ponies, while the others play a key role in the barn’s lesson program. Given the locale, the horses eat a lot of hay—20 to 30 tons each month, since turnout is limited.

“We have a lot of off-track Thoroughbreds that the kids help train,” she says. “We’re very much into supporting the Thoroughbred industry and finding different uses for them. We also get polo pony donations from owners who have an older horse.”

Harris fondly remembers many of the horses who taught her to ride at WTR. However, Jordan was the one who captured her heart. He was Hiner’s personal horse, a Quarter Horse she purchased as a youngster and used in the program.

“I was drawn to his gentleness and tolerance for almost anything I did around him,” Harris says. “He was so bombproof that I always felt completely safe in his presence and riding him, even when he would misbehave. It gave me confidence to try new things.”

Philadelphia may be most well-known for the Liberty Bell, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the iconic statue of fictional boxer Rocky Balboa. But it’s programs like Work to Ride that are making the most change in the residents’ lives. The program gives children an outlet and safe haven from challenges that they might be dealing with at home, but it also exposes children to a world that they might never have known exists.

“Work to Ride has altered so many lives, and I’m glad that I stumbled upon it, because it’s changed my life in ways I never would have imagined,” Harris says.

Crossing the Line Kareem Rosser, an alumnus of the Work to Ride (WTR) program, recently released a book detailing the life-changing experience it provided for him and his siblings. In Crossing the Line: A Fearless Team of Brothers and the Sport That Changed Their Lives Forever, Rosser describes what it’s like to be born and raised in West Philadelphia. He worried he and his siblings would be stuck for life in “The Bottom,” a community surrounded by crime and poverty. Riding bicycles through Fairmount Park, his brothers found Chamounix Equestrian Center. Lezlie Hiner offered them an escape, and sometimes a place to stay. By working at the stable, they could earn riding lessons. That fueled a passion for polo, with the brothers committing to the sport with unmatched determination and discipline. WTR helped Rosser earn a polo scholarship to attend Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, Pa. After one year at a community college, he transferred to Colorado State University, where he was named the U.S. Polo Association’s Intercollegiate Player of the Year in 2015. He also became part of the first all-Black national interscholastic polo championship team. After college, Rosser moved back to Philadelphia for a career at a bank. Ironically, his boss was also a polo player. Today, he serves as the executive director of the fundraising arm, Friends of Work to Ride, where he uses his finance background to fundraise for the organization.

This article about Work to Ride’s equestrian scholarship program originally appeared in the September 2021 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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While we may be familiar with high-level racing or show horses hopping on airplanes as a means of transport, when we think of working service animals flying, most people only picture canines. In 2019, however, the United States Department of Transportation allowed Miniature Horses that were certified equine service animals to travel by air with their companions.

Abrea Hensley was one of the first travelers to bring her American Miniature Horse on board an airplane in the passenger area. LA Blues A Little Flirtatious, aka “Flirty,” is 27″ tall and weighs 136 pounds. The pair flew from Omaha, Neb., to Chicago, Ill., which is about an hour-and-a-half flight. They went to visit some family that Hensley had been unable to see in several years.

“Taking her to the airport and on a plane was quite an experience,” says Hensley. “Everyone at the airport was very interested in the fact that a tiny horse was walking around. We got a lot of questions from other travelers.”

Why Equine Service Animals?

Hensley chose a Miniature Horse as an equine service animal because she is allergic to dogs. She takes Flirty everywhere she goes. The mare is trained to provide mobility assistance, medical alerts and responses.

“Before Flirty, I couldn’t accomplish simple tasks, like grocery shopping, because of my disabilities,” she says. “Now, with Flirty’s help, I can live an independent and fulfilled life. I can go grocery shopping, or to the movies, or see my friends.”

Hensley and other equine service Miniature Horse owners who travel with their horses created a media buzz, and along with it, some negative comments. Jessica Wellman, an equine service Miniature Horse handler and service animal trainer from Florida, was invited to appear on The Dr. Oz Show. She and her horse, Honey, flew to New York to address the criticisms. Wellman suffers from a degenerative autoimmune disease and needs Honey’s support when she walks.

“They are so unusual that people aren’t ready, and people aren’t educated unless they need a service animal,” Wellman said on the show. “People often get service animals confused with emotional support animals.”

Equine service animals, like their canine counterparts, must meet strict training and certification requirements. Flirty, Honey and their peers are potty trained, taught to retrieve dropped items, and more. Wellman trains both species for service work and says horses have advantages over dogs.

“It takes a few years to fully train a service animal,” she says. “Since dogs have shorter lifespans, they can’t work as long as horses. Dogs also have a more flexible spine, whereas horses are built to better support someone leaning on them for mobility. If I’m in a wheelchair, she can pull me up ramps that are too steep.”

Preparing an Equine Service Animal for Takeoff

Some travelers dread the takeoff and landing. Others who suffer from motion sickness medicate with Dramamine. Flirty took the ride in stride. Being on the plane was fairly easy, according to Hensley. She traveled with a reporter, and they were seated in the bulkhead row of the airplane, where Flirty filled the foot space. The area was about the size of the trailer Flirty travels in, so she was comfortable.

“I fed her treats during takeoff and landing to help with any pressure in her ears,” says Hensley. “Once we reached cruising altitude, she spent most of the flight napping.”

Like any horse that travels, equine service Miniature Horses require an official health certificate. During that visit, Hensley also discussed what she could do to minimize any colic risks. They decided to feed Flirty hay up until the time that they left for the airport. Then she would also receive treats during their time at the airport and the flight itself to keep food in her stomach and minimize any digestive risks.

“We also did specialized training to prepare her for the flight; we rode a city bus to simulate turbulence,” says Hensley. “We spent time driving—she rides in my car—with quick acceleration and deceleration to simulate takeoff and landing.”

Working Gear for an Equine Service Animal

Equine service animals must follow the same American with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines as service dogs. That means they must always be under their handler’s control, harnessed or leashed. The equine service animals are outfitted in harnesses, much like a dog harness, and wear the vest that distinguishes all service animals.

Wellman follows a specific hoof trimming protocol that gives minis better barefoot traction on indoor surfaces, but equine service animals are often seen wearing hoof boots. A sheet or fitted bodysuit can be used to keep any loose hairs or allergens from bothering other passengers.

It’s easy to imagine how gear can be easily modified to accommodate Minis. And equestrians know how smart horses are. With patience and proper training, they can be taught nearly anything—even potty training. Yes, horses can be taught to pee or poop on command and ask to go out.

“Flirty is potty trained,” says Hensley. “The ADA requires that all equine service animals be potty trained. I had her go before we left home, then we also made a stop at the service animal relief station at the airport, just to be sure. She only had about an hour and 45 minutes where she couldn’t go to the bathroom while we were on the plane, which is well within her abilities.”

Wellman explains that it is actually fairly easy to housebreak a miniature horse. The bigger challenge is teaching them not to relieve themselves in the car.

“That’s a little harder, because what’s the first thing they do when they get in the trailer? Go to the bathroom!”

Equine Service Animals Grounded From Flying

After several handlers made the news for traveling with their equine service animal, they learned the Department of Transportation issued a new ruling. This time they more narrowly define a service animal as a “dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability.” Ultimately, it allows airlines to ban any non-dog service animal.

American Airlines announced that beginning Feb. 1, 2021, “animals that previously traveled as emotional support animals (ESAs) and no longer qualify as service animals may travel as carry-on pets or as cargo pets, as long as they meet the requirements.”

In part, some of the changes have been fueled by the blurred line between service animals and ESAs. Some travelers have pushed the limits calling rabbits, parrots, lizards, hedgehogs, and other animals ESAs by using forged documents. That has made it more difficult for handlers who follow the rules.

Follow the service minis profiled here on their Facebook pages for more information:

• Service Horse Honey
• Flirty the Mini Service Horse

This article about equine service animals appeared in the June 2021 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

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Success in the arena with your horseback riding starts with the right mindset. Riders can learn from athletes how to prepare for competition.

Professional boxer Muhammad Ali was once quoted as saying, “In the big leagues everyone has the ability. It always comes down to mind games. Whoever is more mentally strong—wins.”

Olympian Michael Phelps followed a strict pre-race routine, which helped him win 28 medals in swimming. He followed the same well-worn stretching routine and wore his headphones poolside listening to music to fuel the moment to get his head in the game.

Sports coaches often say that mental preparation is 90% of the game. Developing an ability to cope with the psychological stress that comes along with elite competition—and competition in general—is crucial in the show pen.

“Mentally is how you beat most competitors,” says Carla Wennberg, the St. Andrews University equestrian coach and instructor. Wennberg coaches the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) Team for the Laurinburg, North Carolina school. In IHSA competitions, riders randomly draw a mount a few hours before the competition. There is no time for warm-up or getting to know the horse.

“For us in catch riding, it is a must to control what you can control, so when you are riding you can focus on performing correctly.”

Wennberg has taken a unique approach to recruit members to her team.

Each fall, she asks team members to scout out a classmate who might want to learn to ride to fill out the team’s “beginner” roster. Athletes from other sports have become some of her top recruits. Two lacrosse players became IHSA national champions, and two soccer players earned top finishes at the year-end finals.

“Each of these riders was talented, but they were also willing to work hard,” says Wennberg.

Horseback riding success in the show pen is a strategic blend of physical and mindset conditioning. These four tips can help you get in the “right frame of mind” and stand out in the ring.

1. Improve your fitness level.

Athletes know they can’t excel without staying in shape. Riders spend endless hours developing fitness routines for their horses, but often skip athletic conditioning for themselves.

“Both players had great upper-body strength and just needed to learn how to stretch in the lower leg and heels,” says Wennberg. “We change up our athletic training. Some nights it’s stretching, others swimming, and other times lifting weights or playing basketball.”

Strength and core training exercises can be done in just a few minutes every day. The benefits include improved confidence and performance through an improved seat and effectiveness of leg cues.

2. Practice the fundamentals.

Soccer players and football players run drills before ever stepping into formation. Wennberg takes that same approach by requiring team members to complete patterns on foot. That includes talking through each transition and maneuver and changing their stride to show a walk, jog, lope (on the correct lead!). It shows me as a coach their mental processing.

“We do this in practices and at shows,” she says. “It gives them the confidence to perform the pattern work on a horse they really don’t know.”

3. Build Your Confidence

Events like western riding and over fences classes demand a high level of focus and the ability to let a mistake go. When a focused rider feels the horse moving too quickly in a pivot, rather than getting nervous, the exhibitor can react and cue the horse to slow the rotation before over spinning.

“The maneuvers in western riding come very quickly,” explains Wennberg. “If you dwell on a bad stride or bad lead change that already happened, you won’t be paying attention to the next maneuver at all. I have a routine for students to memorize and understand the pattern. Learning to use your eyes and a focus point will give the horse more confidence and a clearer message.”

Positivity plays a key role in building confidence and having it (or not) can make or break an athlete’s success. There is always room for improvement and constructive feedback so long as it is not negative.

“No one can speak negative comments, especially on a day of showing. If they do, they have to give me a dollar. It can add up,” she says. “We work hard on positive energy. Not only horseback, but as a team and in life.”

4. Review the day.

Football coaches spend hours analyzing tapes. Then they talk with their team about the flow of what was observed. This may be Wennberg’s favorite tip for helping riders build upon their successes and failures.

“At a horse show, there was a gathering at the end of the day, and everyone had to participate,” she shares. “We sat together discussing the day. I always do this with my riders. Each one has to tell me, in a group session, the best part of the day and the worst part of the day. It is great therapy for all of us to lift each other up and give positive feedback.”

If you’ve ever had a change in mindset that improved your horseback riding, please share in the comments below.

The post Change Your Mindset, Improve Your Horseback Riding Skills appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Gotta Be Him, aka “Jaxson,” needed three bottles of Zyrtec allergy medication to survive summer. Bug bites caused welts, some golf-ball sized. The swelling lasted three days or more, and the sorrel gelding developed soreness in his front feet from excessive stomping. Supplements and fly sheets didn’t work. Owner Deborah Klotzbach was skeptical of zebra-striped fly sheets and hesitant to spend money on another failed solution, but she decided to give it a try after her daughter tried one on another horse.

“The first day Jaxson wore it was a happy day for both of us,” she says. “Observing him in the pasture, I saw he wasn’t swatting or stomping at flies nearly as much. When he came to the gate, he had one fly around his head.”

The real test was when she removed the sheet: there were no bug bites. It was a relief. Flies had been able to get under other sheets and bite him, but not the zebra-striped sheet.

Animal print patterns on support boots, saddle pads and blankets are trendy. However, research has shown that zebra stripes, at least on fly sheets, are more than fashionable—they’re functional, too.

The Science of Zebra Stripes

As early as the 1940s, scientists theorized a zebra’s striped coat pattern has advantages over solid-colored coats to help the animals survive. Three studies published in the 1980s confirmed that zebras are less afflicted by flies than horses. Although scientists knew flies were less likely to land on zebras than horses, the degree to which this occurred was unknown.

“It seemed like an obvious choice to explore the extent to which the zebra’s stripes thwart flies,” says Tim Caro, Ph.D., a professor of biology at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom. He studies the evolution of coloration in mammals and once worked at Katavi National Park in Tanzania, a national park with 35,000 zebras.

In 2016, he was working on a horse farm in the United Kingdom that also owned three zebras, the ideal setting to determine how effective zebra stripes are at warding off flies.

Caro and a team of researchers observed and recorded flies landing on the backs of both horses and zebras at the UK farm. They used solid black, all-white and striped blankets on both groups of animals to measure the rate at which flies were attracted to each.

Watching videos allowed them to quantify the frequency at which flies landed on the different coat colorings.

“The flies were just as attracted to the zebras as horses from a distance, but when they got up close, the flies kind of got confused, bumping off the zebras or zebra-covered horses, looking for areas without stripes,” says Caro. “Flies landed on horses’ naked heads, and the flies were attracted to horses regardless of what they were wearing, but avoided striped surfaces and switched to the horse’s head.”

Why It Works

Insects have poor eyesight, and the stripes are like a shock to their vision, Caro explains. Flies can’t see the coloration until they are a little more than a foot away, at which point the stripes disorient the bugs.

“This causes them to fly away or bump into the coat and not land properly,” he says.

During the study, Caro also observed that horses and zebras react differently to flies. Horses periodically twitch or swish their tail to remove flies, but often continue grazing, tolerating the annoyance. Zebras, on the other hand, swish their tails all day. When bothered by bugs, they stop eating and run from persistent pests, dislodging the pests more than horses.

Because flies have a harder time landing on stripes than solid coats, the coloration is a natural defense. In Africa, horseflies carry diseases that are deadly to equids and zebras, a fact confirmed by scientists, according to Caro.

In 2019, a spotted zebra foal named Tira was born in Kenya with a sooty coat flecked with white spots, rather than the usual stripes, due to a mutation known as a pseudomelanism. Only time will tell if the otherwise healthy foal will be pestered by flies and more susceptible to disease than his striped herd mates.

“This is just a mutation that happens from time to time,” says Caro. “Because the majority of zebras are striped, there is a strong natural selection for being striped because of the diseases carried by biting flies.”

Next up on Caro’s to-do list is designing additional zebra-striped sheet patterns that more closely mimic a zebra’s coloration for enhanced defense against flies.

“We think we will be able to devise a very good coat for keeping horseflies off horses at the end of this coming summer, because we are altering the pattern of stripes on coats systematically,” he says.

This article about zebra stripes effects on flies appeared in the July 2020 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post Zebra Stripes: Are They a Natural Fly Repellent? appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Horses’ teeth can give owners an idea of how old their animal is, but it is not an exact science. During the 18th century, horse trainer Sydney Galvayne developed “Galvayne’s Groove,” a system for telling a horse’s age by the wear patterns on a tooth’s surface. Horsemen and veterinarians long considered this an accurate predictor, but research in the 1990s proved the tool isn’t foolproof, according to Kentucky veterinarian Jack Easley, DVM, MS, ABVP, AVDC (Eq).

“Dental aging by visualization of anatomical changes on the chewing (occlusal) surfaces of incisor teeth can only provide a rough estimate of age and becomes less accurate as the horse ages,” says Easley, who specializes in equine dentistry.

While teeth can’t be used to determine a specific age, Easley says changes to the horse’s teeth can be used to group horses into four age categories: birth to age 4, 5 to 10, 10 to 15 and over 15 years of age. Assessing an older horse’s age is based on tooth wear, whereas gauging a young horse’s age is based on the teeth present, those being shed and new ones erupting through the gum line. Easley describes the tooth characteristics he looks for when approximating a horse’s age.

Baby Teeth

Shortly after birth, baby (deciduous) teeth emerge on a fairly regular schedule that includes eruption, shedding and the appearance of permanent teeth. The cycle continues slowly through age five. The first teeth to emerge are the central incisors. Between six and nine months of age, three sets of premolars have also grown in.

“They erupt their incisor teeth in the front first,” he says. “The premolars in the back of their mouth come next, and then at a year of age, they start erupting permanent teeth.”

The process of gaining, losing and replacing baby teeth follows a general timeline, but can vary based on the individual horse. Easley compares the teething process in horses to that of children to illustrate how varied the cycle can be.

“If you look at a classroom of first graders, some of them are missing teeth, others already have permanent teeth, and others all baby teeth,” says Easley. “The erupting and shedding of teeth happens on a bell curve that gives an average age over six to nine months.”

Adult Horse Teeth

By age five, most horses have all 36 total permanent teeth. That includes 12 incisors and 24 cheek teeth. Not all horses have wolf or canine teeth, but in horses that have them, they emerge around age 4. Between ages 5 and 10, a horse’s teeth has cups or indentations on the surface. The cup area is surrounded by enamel and tends to be darker. Over time, the cups fade, providing clues to the horse’s age.

By the time a horse reaches 10, Easley says those cups have disappeared and is replaced by a mark on the tooth called a dental star. At the same time, the chewing edge of the tooth begins to become more rounded than oval-shaped. Hooks begin to develop on the upper-corner incisors around this time, but eventually wear off by the horse’s teenage years.

“Once the horse is over 15, then they start to lose the dental star and the tooth is a shaped a little differently,” he says. “From 5-10 years, the occlusal surface of the teeth change shape from an oval, side-to-side direction to a trapezoid shape. Around the age of 15 up until 20, they are more in a triangular shape. As a senior horse, the teeth become more round and then oval in a front-to-back direction.”

Additionally, as horses age, their incisors slant forward and form a point at the spot where the central upper and lower teeth come in contact. The gums are also an indicator of age. On young horses, the gum line runs nearly straight along the tooth, but sags in older horses.

Outside Influences

Tooth wear isn’t a foolproof tool for telling a horse’s age because changes in the horse’s teeth can be influenced by genetics, nutrition, the environment and management practices. For example, permanent teeth in Standardbreds, draft and Miniature Horses tend to appear later than in stock breeds. What the horse is eating can also influence how old their teeth look.

“Horses that eat mainly grass are wearing down their teeth at a much faster rate, because grasses on sandy soils contain high levels of pumice materials known as biological silicate,” explains Easley. “The horse may only be eight, but his teeth may look like a 10- or 12-year-old.”

Mouth injuries caused by a kick to the face or a bit can change the way a horse’s teeth looks or discourage teeth from emerging at all. That too can complicate the process for determining age by the teeth alone.

The bottom line is that it isn’t an exact science, but there are several clues your veterinarian can use to help determine a horse’s age, if it is unknown. So ask away on your horse’s next dental exam.

Further Reading

• Talking Teeth for National Equine Dental Health Month
• What to Expect During Equine Dental Exams
• Recognizing the Connection Between Dental Pain and Horse Behavior Problems

The post How to Tell a Horse’s Age by His Teeth appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.