5 tips for legging up your horses for the spring show/rodeo season

If you live in Wyoming like I do, you know that March is still the dead of Winter here. The weather is still freezing, and the ground is still frozen, but my clients are wisely beginning to leg up their horses for the Spring/Summer rodeo and show season.

Here are are few tips to start getting your horses back in fighting shape if they've had some time off:

1. As always, make sure your horse's feet are trimmed and in good shape. You will invite lameness and muscle soreness if you start riding/working a horse with overgrown hooves.

2. Start slow. If you take an out of shape horse and ask him to go straight into difficult work you will cause major soreness and set yourself back. We don't go to the gym after three months off and pick up the heaviest weights, and neither should we expect the equivalent from our horses. Begin with the basics of body conditioning, and focus on slow but "correct" work. Lots of steady state jogging, loping, and circles. Hills are your friend! Give your horse ample walk breaks and plan for (at the very least) a month of very consistent riding before competition.

3. This goes for all times of the year but especially now- don't neglect your warm-ups and cool-downs! Often I think riders just get bored with the warm-up times, but we owe it to our horses to give them a proper warm up and cool down and it truly does help prevent muscle soreness, injuries, and lameness issues down the road.

4. Vary your routines. For the benefit of your horse's mind and body, don't stick to the same routine or practices all the time. Trail rides, arena work, drills, lounging, ponying, group events, etc. Switch it up frequently and no matter what discipline you're doing you will have a more athletic and sound minded horse. Plus this will benefit you, and your bond with your horse as well.

5. Get your chiropractor out. You knew it was coming, and here it is. :) As every horse owner knows, horses are REALLY good at hurting themselves, whether they're being ridden or not. With all the snow and ice during our winters, I get quite a few horses who have had a slip in the pasture and are sore and misaligned. Even if your horse isn't showing obvious signs of pain, it's always a great idea to make sure they do not have subluxation that is going to hinder their proper muscular development and their ability to work well. Chiropractic adjustments benefit every aspect of your horse's health and should be a necessity in your healthcare program.

Thanks for reading, and happy riding!

Kellsi Daniels - TriCross Equine Chiropractic

307-630-4559