FASS Horse Species Committee

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Horse Training
LEVEL 1
Based on Guide for the
Care and Use of Agricultural Animals in
Agricultural Research and Teaching (First
Revised Edition, 1999)
Horse Training Module, Released 2004
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Outline

• Horse Terminology
• Facilities and Environment
• Feed and Water
• Social Environment
• Husbandry
• Standard Agricultural Practices
• Pain and Stress Recognition
• Restraint and Transportation
• Euthanasia

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Characteristics of Horses

• Social or herd animals
• Monogastric digestive system
• Herbivores
• Adaptable to many environments

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Characteristics of Horses

• Best managed with predictable daily routine
• Eyes and ears are sensitive
• Fight or flight response mechanisms

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Terminology

• Equus caballus
• Heavy or draft horse
• Light or riding horse
• Pony
• Equus asinus
• Ass, donkey, or burro
• Mule
• Cross of horse and ass

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Draft Horses

• Developed for heavy- carriage, hitch, draft, and
  farm work
• Weight1600 to 2200 lbs
• Stand17 hands
• 5 major breeds include Percheron, Belgian,
  Clydesdale, Shire, and Suffolk

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Light Horses

• Selected for riding, racing, and ranch work
• Weight900 to 1200 lbs
• Stand14.2 to 17 hands
• Breeds include Arabian, Morgan, Thoroughbred,
  Quarter Horse, and Standardbred

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Ponies

• Developed for riding or driving by children
• Weightless than 800 lbs
• Standless than 14 to 14.2 hands
• Common breeds include Shetland, Welsh, Connemara,
  and Hackney

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Terminology

• Stallion or Stud intact male
• Gelding castrated male
• Mare mature female
• Foal either gender, less than 6 mo of age
• Filly immature female, less than 3 yr of age
• Colt immature male, less than 3 yr of age

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Occupational Health

• Considerations when working with horses
• Immunization against
• tetanus
• Respiratory disorders
• Physical injuries
• Zoonotic diseases

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Safety During Handling

• Discuss procedures with co-workers prior to
  handling horses
• Know appropriate first aid procedures
• Work with horses in a quiet and safe environment

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Facilities

• Outdoor
• Pasture, paddock, and corrals
• Indoor
• Individual box or straight stalls
• Combination
• Rotate between stalls and outdoor enclosure

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Indoor Facilities

• Dimensions of the stall allow for normal posture,
  including lying down
• 12-ft 12-ft stall should accommodate any horse
• Safe doors
• Width3.5 to 4 ft
• Ceiling
• 8 to 10 ft common

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Floors and Bedding

• Select for sanitation, safety, and comfort
• Hard surface floors require deep bedding
• Common bedding materials include straw, wood
  shavings, and shredded paper
• Rubber mats may be used if protocol does not
  permit bedding or for health reasons

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Temperature, Ventilation, and Lighting

• Supplemental heat or ventilation may be necessary
  depending on climate, housing design, and
  stocking density
• Light should be sufficient to inspect horses
• 100-W light bulb per stall

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Waste Disposal

• Horses produce about 45 lbs of manure daily
• Stalls should be cleaned as needed, usually daily
• Stalls should be maintained to be dry and
  suitably free of odors, especially ammonia
• Manure and soiled bedding should be disposed of
  appropriately

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Environmental Enrichment

• Confined horses may become bored
• Stereotypies may develop
• Enrichment may include
• Companionship
• Exercise
• Interactive objects
• White noise or music
• Increased fiber (hay)
• in diet

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Outdoor Environments

• Availability of water is essential
• Provide shade, shelter, or wind breaks if climate
  warrants
• Appropriate (clean and dry) resting area
• May need to provide supplemental feed

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Outdoor Enclosures

• Fences
• Height4.5 to 6.0 ft
• Avoid barbed wire
• Gates
• Safe, well-designed gates to prevent injuries and
  entanglement of
  head or legs

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Feed and Water

• Confined horses should be fed and watered at
  least twice daily
• Horses on pasture may receive supplemental hay or
  grain
• Salt must be available on pasture

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Feed Containers

• Hay may be fed in mangers, bags, nets, or
  racks from the floor of clean stalls or at ground
  level in pastures

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Feeders

• Grain may be fed from troughs or buckets
• Remove wet or moldy feed from feeders daily

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Feed Practices

• Creep feeders are used for foals
• Group feeding should account for dominance
  hierarchies
• Feeding space between horses will vary

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Nutritional Management

• Feed horses to maintain normal body condition
• Cold climatic conditions may increase energy
  requirements
• Pasture stocking density varies from 1 to 10
  acres per horse depending on growth of forage

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Clean Water

• Clean water should be available continuously or
  at least twice daily
• Idle horses in thermoneutral environments need 4
  to 8 gallons of water daily
• Horses that are working
• and sweating or lactating
• may need up to 25 to 30
• gallons daily

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Water Containers

• Buckets and troughs are suitable water
• containers
• Automatic waterers are suitable once horses
• learn to operate the pressure plate
• Check waterers daily to
  
  
• remove any foreign debris
• Devices to prevent freezing
• may be necessary in cold
• climates

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Social Environment

• Horses are herd animals isolation is stressful
  and may be injurious to the horse or handlers
• Stallions are usually housed individually
• Mares and geldings may be housed together, if
  compatible
• Young horses are usually housed together
• Carefully introduce a new horse to an established
  herd, as the dominance order may be disrupted,
  causing aggressive behavior and injuries

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Observation of Horses

• All horses should be observed at least once
  daily, more often if necessary
• Observe general comfort and health
• Observe feed and water intake
• Recognize the need for emergency assistance
• Emergency contact information should be posted
  and a first aid kit readily available

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Routine Care Practices

• Weekly grooming of horses in tie or metabolism
  stalls
• Hooves cleaned weekly
• Hooves trimmed as necessary,
  6 to 8 wk
• Exercise allowance of confined horses

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Husbandry

• Anthelmintic treatment for parasite ova
• Protect from external parasites
• Vaccinate all horses for tetanus
• Vaccinate for diseases in local area
• Teeth examined annually floated if needed

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Standard Agricultural Practices

• Castration
• Surgical
• Anesthesia must be used
• Performed at any age

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Pain and Distress Recognition

• Lethargy
• Restlessness
• Lack of appetite
• Sweating
• Increased vocalizations
• Diarrhea
• Guarded posture
• Increased respiration rate
• Abnormal behavior, expression of stereotypies

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Painful Experiences

• Injury or trauma
• Lameness
• Infectious disease
• Rough handling
• Health procedures
• Research protocols

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Painful or Stressful Research Procedures

• Physical restraint
• Separation or isolation from herdmates
• Blood collection
• Fecal collection
• Other invasive procedures

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Restraint Methods

• Manual restraint
• Halter or bridle
• Lead shank chain over nose
• Holding up a leg
• Hobbling foreleg
• Twitch on upper lip
• Cross-tying
• Slip-knot lassos should not be used

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Restraint Methods

• Structural restraint
• Stocks
• Chutes
• Chemical restraint
• Qualified person

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Transportation

• Safety is the major consideration for handler and
  horse
• Double-deck trailers should not be used
• Size of horse determines trailer dimension
• Loading methods will depend on previous training
  and experience of the horse

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Transportation

• Flooring should not be slippery
• Adequate ventilation is crucial
• Exhaust fumes
• Thermal stress
• Lighting assists loading at night

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Transport Management

• Horses may be tied or loose
• Length of transit should not exceed 18 h
• Feeding and watering are recommended at least
  every 12 h more often in warm
• climates
• Leg and tail wraps or tranquilizers may be
  beneficial, but are not necessary

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Euthanasia

• Paralytic agents must never be used
• Planned euthanasia
• i.v. injection of sodium pentobarbital
• Emergency euthanasia
• Gunshot to brain
• 0.22-long rifle preferred
• Potential for ricochet

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FASS Horse Species Committee

• Robert Coleman, Ph.D.
• University of Kentucky
• Extension Specialist
• Anne Rodiek, Ph.D.
• California State University, Fresno
• Professor, Animal Science Dept.
• Carolyn Stull, Ph.D.
• University of California, Davis
• Extension Specialist