Trotting Down the Trail: A New Home for the Horses

In the outdoor arena

After 6 months at a big boarding stable only 10 minutes from the house, today Red and Rhio moved to a small private barn (4 horses total) about 20 minutes away. They were champs for loading, hauling, unloading, and settling in - but of course I didn't expect anything less!

Enjoying the yard grass

Sampling the hay in the outdoor feeder (and making a crazy face because of the mosquitoes!)

They will have stalls at night, and be out in the pasture during the day with hay. For the first few days, they will be in the outdoor arena to get to know the other two horses across the fence. I love that I will have the ability to change Red's feeding strategy as needed to account for his dental issues. That will be another post of its own, but this summer we confirmed that Red's all-important chewing teeth (the premolars and molars) are pretty much out of commission. While he's not technically missing any teeth, the majority of them are so loose that he can't really use them. The move to this barn will provide him with better quality hay, that he hopefully can successfully eat, as well as twice a day meals of senior feed and beet pulp mash.

It is sometimes (often) difficult to manage the varying issues that crop up in senior horses. Red has pretty significant arthritis in his front legs, from his 2015 left front injury and just normal wear and tear throughout life. Arthritis is best managed with full-time turnout, so that the joints stay mobile and lubricated as best they can. His dental disease, however, necessitates special feeding, which is easier accomplished with individual stalling. So, we will see how things balance out in the new barn and how the change of living circumstances affects both his mobility and his body condition (which is basically his ability to take in and utilize calories). I have no doubt that they will both be much better attended to in the small, private barn. But it will be mighty strange to A) not see them every day for feeding and B) not have an entire feed room of supplies, buckets, bins, tubs, etc in our garage anymore!