Many people are attracted to the beauty of horses and wouldn’t mind investing in getting one for their own interests and love of horses.
However, keeping a horse is not very easy and is a very expensive hobby. The cheapest part about horse ownership is purchasing the horse itself, as rest of the expenses pertaining to maintaining of the horse is far more expensive than we might have thought.
Before buying a horse, there are certain key aspects which need to be kept in mind before you go ahead and purchase the horse. There is a legal responsibility involved for all the people who are involved in caring for the horse which could be throughout the week or can be separated between various people as shift work.
Horses do require proper protection from wind and sun and have to be provided a properly shaded area for its stay. Also, owning a horse can be emotionally demanding. These animals can be easily injured as a result of which extra care has to be taken into consideration while handling them.
According to the Horse Welfare Legislation, there is a list of duties which every horse owner is bound to follow which are:
- Appropriate horse feed and enough potable water for the animal.
- Safe and secure accommodation
- Utmost care should be taken for grooming, hoof care and rugging as per the climatic conditions of the place of stay. Make sure that your horse is not indulged in overrugging in hot weather.
- The work load allotted to the horse should not cause any injury, stress or exhaustion to the animal.
- The driving and handling methods used to take care of the horse should not cause any pain or injury to the horse.
- Prevention to most of the horse diseases should be taken care of and there should be an immediate attention given to the horse’s ailments.
Special attention should be given to feed and water of the horse. Most of the non-property owners keep their horses in a paddock which is somebody else’s property and for this; the horse owner pays agistment fees for the same.
If the pasture becomes inadequate, then make sure that the horse has been handfed daily. High energy feeds such as concentrates should also be given to working horses which includes grains such as oats, corn, barley, rice and rice derivatives as well. Large amounts of water close to 20 to 50 litres per day should be offered to horses depending on their daily activities.
Despite all this, horse ownership can be an amazing experience for those prepared to offer the proper care and love these animals so deserve.
Valerie Garner - Hi, I'm Valerie a midlife lady who loves to learn new things, photography, reading, writing, and drinking coffee with friends. I've ...
