Petfinder.com forums :: View topic - Horse Adoption & Care Sept 19th- 25!! [ ]

Join us the week of September 19th - 25th when we will be joined by Susankelly Thompson founder of Mylestone Equine Rescue!

Mylestone Equine Rescue is NJ oldest all- breed rescue, founded in 1994 by Susankelly Thompson. Mylestone provides sanctuary for abused, neglected and unwanted horses. Our primary mission is to rehabilitate and place the horses into qualified homes. Those not adopted, live out their lives on the farm. Mylestone provides top veterinary, farrier and dental care in addition to all the daily care. Mylestone promotes education through our website, newsletters, volunteering, events and tours. Although many of the Mylestone horses are no longer ridable, they give back to the community through Mylestone’s special needs programs with local schools. Mylestone, creating a future for horses in need.
You can join them for their Annual Open House Sunday October 9 from 12-4pm, rain date October 16th 12-4pm.

Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2011 9:35 am Post subject:

Hello. We will be moving to a new farm and will have room for several horses. I know it's better if horses have a companion, but we can only afford to adopt one horse at this time. We'd like our horse to have a buddy, do you have any suggestions?

Susankelly's Answer:

Most horse rescue groups won’t adopt a horse into a home where there is not another horse or pony due to the fact they are herd animals. I would suggest getting a pony or a miniature horse as a companion. Perhaps the rescue you adopt from would be willing to work out a foster situation and place a companion horse with you. The rescue would pay for medical care and you could receive a tax write off on supplies donated to take care of the horse. What about seeing if you could find a boarder at your farm? This way your horse would have a companion and you could generate some income. While there are some horses that could live alone it would be best to have a companion. I hope these suggestions help. Good luck.

Posted: Wed Sep 21, 2011 7:35 pm Post subject:

How do you know if a horse needs shoes? I ride my horse mainly on trails with good footing and he doesn’t seem to show any signs of discomfort, but was wondering if I should watch for any signs in particular?

Susankelly's Answer:

Hi Marie,

Whether or not your horse needs shoes really depends on the horse. If your horse is going well with no lameness issues while trail riding and your farrier feels your horse’s hooves are in good shape then I would think you should be fine with out shoes. If your horse tended to get stone bruises, abscesses, a lot of chipping along with lameness, I would be concerned. Regular trimming from the farrier will determine if there are issues or changes. When riding if you notice your horse takes a lot of uneven steps or seems “ouchy” then shoes may be needed. This is definitely something to keep an eye on. If you notice changes while riding don’t wait until the next farrier/vet visit call and let them know your concerns. It is really important to be proactive with your horse care. Take care,

Susankelly Thompson
Mylestone Equine Rescue
www.mylestone.org

Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 4:49 pm Post subject:

Since the cool weather is starting, does blanketing prevent a thick coat growth? Do you recommend a blanket type? Should it be a stable or a turn out blanket?

Susankelly's Answer:

Hi,

The amount of coat growth is acutally determine by the amount of sunlight your horse is exposed to. As we enter fall in NJ the horses are shedding their summer coats and their winter coats are coming in because there are less hours of sunlight. I will give you an idea of what we do for blanketing with the rescue horses. Many of our horses are not ridable so if they can live out without needing blankets that is ideal for them. The majority of our horses kept in stalls have blankets and rainsheets. If you were to body clip your horse so they didn’t get as sweaty while being ridden, then they must have blankets to keep warm. All our live out horses have access to sheds. Some of them don’t wear blankets and some of the horses do, it depends on the horse. For the horses that do wear blankets we have both waterproof rain sheets and waterproof winter blankets for each horse. We don’t use stable blankets because they aren’t waterproof and when you are moving 35+ horses a day you need to make it easy as possible. One of the main reason I don’t like stable blankets is because if your horse is turned out and gets wet, they stay wet and cold until someone brings them in. At least with the water proof blankets or sheets they stay dry overall. It is important to keep checking your blankets because after a couple of years they are not waterproof as they were. We buy the rain sheets that have mesh underneath which wicks the mositure away to keep them drier. You also don’t want to leave the winter blankets on when it gets much warmer during the day, the horses can sweat and then be cold at night. If your horse is hard to keep weight on then keeping them warm in the winter months is essential. We have already started to blanket our latest starvation case at night if it dips into the 40’-50’s. I hope I have answered your question. Take care,

Susankelly Thompson
Mylestone Equine Rescue
www.mylestone.org

Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 5:06 pm Post subject:

Do you have any grooming tips? Even using very light pressure, my horse bites and kicks when being brushed.

Susankelly's Answer:

Hi,

It honestly sounds like your horse may be painful if he or she is reacting in such an unhappy manner when being groomed. I would suggest speaking to your vet about this behavior. We have had a couple of the rescue horses come down with Lyme’s disease that have been painful to the touch. Was your horse abused in the past and could be anticipating pain? Has your horse always behaved this way? Does your horse bit and kick every where or just certain spots? In all the horses we have had over the years we have really only had one mare I can say hated to be brushed. She was friendly overall but did like to be brushed at all. Have you tried just using a towel or cloth to see what reaction you get instead of a brush? If you let your horse eat hay while you are grooming is the behavior better or worse? Does your horse exhibit his behavior when you tighten the girth? I wondered if the horse was anticipating the girth being tightened. If you can give provide me with some answers to the questions I asked about your horse I may be able to give you more suggestions. Thanks,

Susankelly Thompson
Mylestone Equine Rescue
www.mylestone.org

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