Well Spring is finally here, lighter evenings and less mud makes looking after our horses so much easier and more pleasant!
Some people are starting a fitness programme for their horses (and themselves) and planning what shows they want to compete in. Our National Show is on the weekend of the 9th/10th August and it is our Silver Anniversary special. We are pretty excited about it already. Lisa has compiled a list of affiliated shows that you can attend with beautiful rosettes for the highest placed member and double points towards your performance awards. If you are doing something with your Appy and you would like to share photos and write something for the E-news, we would be delighted. You can also post on our members FB page and WotsAppy WhatsApp group. Please ask to be added to either of these if you are not involved already.
Please check that your horse’s passports are up to date – in your name and that you are a current paid up member. (online form is on the website or contact Karen Bache (memberships@aphcuk.org) Your horse’s vaccinations need to be up to date to show. If the passport is tatty, you can upgrade it to a gold standard hybrid Equiventus passport. We just transfer all the vaccinations over adding new photos, USA registration certificate if applicable. We may need a new silhouette from the vet, it depends on how old the original is but I can always advise you. The cost is £30. (contact: 07827 858120 or registrations@aphcuk.org)
Knowledge Nugget #2
Spring is all about detoxification. Shaking off the Winter and getting everything moving again.
Your horses are probably shedding like crazy which makes them itchy, this puts a strain on the liver and kidneys as the natural spring detox cuts in. The best forage herbs to help are just popping up in the hedgerows now. Cleavers (Sticky Willy, Sticky Weed) Cow Parsley, Dandelion Leaves and Nettles. Go and find a few handfuls and offer them to your horse every day if possible. You will need to wilt the nettles before offering, or make a tea ( pour boiling water on the nettles, steep for 10 minutes, then allow to cool or add to a bucket of water) You can also offer Hawthorn sprigs, Gorse flowers and Bramble leaf buds. All of these herbs will boost sluggish lymph and circulation and support the kidneys and liver. (credit to Rachael Maxwell at animalbotanical.com)
Supporting the horses gut is very important as the spring grass comes in. Ad-lib hay and movement is the key. The reason that laminitis is such a risk now and is because the sugars in the grass are high in the new growth and the gut microbiome cannot adjust to the change quickly enough. For many years I have been using a fermented liquid in their feed. It is like kombucha for horses, fermented from water and herbs it contains billions of micro-organisms and is pre-biotic to help colonise the gut. I have found it invaluable to help with change in feed or forage. For more details go to www.plusbac.net and look up Plusbac Feed. The best way to buy it is in a 5L ‘winebox’. I give between 25-100 ml a day per horse. Enjoy!
