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Derbies are fun to watch, the excitement and energy in the racecourse add to the spirit. Even on television, watching the horses race for the number one position looks charming. What goes behind a horse winning a derby or race is paramount to understand if you have just got or are planning to get a racehorse.
There are ample of things that you need to take care of for your racehorse. Right from its diet to practice, to healthcare, there are more things that you have to do than you could imagine. While some are secondary, the others are crucial, and you must not avoid doing them.So, here is a list of necessary things that you need to care about in race horses.
A Balanced Diet:
For any animal to function aptly, there is an appropriate amount of food that they require. Moreover, you need to take care that the nutrition is proper for optimal functioning. Hay and cereal are the basic things that the horse eats. Consuming this gives the horse ample carbohydrates to perform well. The carbs keep the horse energized for extended intervals. While providing the horse hay, ensure that it is clean and free from dirt. Impure hay can lead to many diseases for the horse, it can cause respiratory issues, and its health might get affected. Apart from hay, horses are also fed with yellow-hulled oats, which are suitable for the horse’s health. You can add other grains like barley and corn in the horse’s diet in minute quantities.As far as the feeding schedule goes, you may feed your horse twice or thrice per day as per the requirement. Once early in the morning, once late in the morning, and once late in the afternoon. Although, the diet of a horse one day before the race is different than usual. It would be best if you fed the force maximum twice, and even in that, reduce the quantity by half. Plus, increase the amount of fiber in the diet. Lastly, ensure that there is clean drinking water in the barn where the horse resides.
Regular Health Check-up:
Healthcare becomes pivotal when it comes to racehorses. Since they undergo a lot more practice and exercise than usual, they might fall sick more often. So, you must maintain a healthcare routine of your horse to keep it free of any unwanted disease or condition. There are certain things that you must check daily. If you notice anything odd about your horse’s behavior or health, then without holding back, call the vet. Check the pulse of your horse daily. The average heart rate of a racehorse falls between 27 to 43 beats per minute. The beating may differ slightly based on the activity. You may use your fingers or a stethoscope to measure the heart rate.Measure your horse’s body temperature daily. The temperature of a healthy horse shall range between 98 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit.Count the number of times your horse breaths in a minute. If the count is between 8 to 16 breaths, then your horse is perfectly normal. If the count is above or below that repeatedly, then you must call a vet. Apart from these, you must ensure a regular check-up of the horse with a veterinarian. It will keep the horse free from diseases like Rabies, Strangles, or African Horse Disease. You must also ensure the proper dental care for a horse. Appropriate dental care makes the horse perform well and live longer.
Proper Grooming:
Grooming your horse correctly is much important than you can think and should be a vital part of your horse care routine. While grooming does not mean decorating your horse to make it look pretty. It means keeping the horse clean and free form any infections that might arise due to bad hygiene. Give your horse a quick bath once in a week with a sponge and soap. Clean its hair and tail with a cleaning agent for proper results. After cleaning, do make sure that you dry it properly. Then comb the hair to avoid any irritation for the horse and chop off the excessive bits. For everyday cleaning, check your horse’s hooves if you find something unusual, remove it and clean it.
Apt Training:
With proper nutrition and healthcare, training a racehorse for a tournament or derby is equally essential. Also, you have to be careful while training your horse and make the horse comfortable around you first. Horses are intelligent and bond well with their owners, provided that you behave around them in a friendly manner towards the start. To begin with, if you want to be a good horse trainer, stand in the presence of your horse and let it approach you once the horse feels comfortable to touch the horse gently around its neck and head to make it familiar without your touch and smell. To add to it, if you ride your horse initially, they do not prefer their neck being upright all the time. So, if it lowers its neck, then do not rigorously pull it up, else the horse may misbehave. Once the horse is familiar with you, the time for actual training begins. Be slow and patient towards the start while training the horse. A horse can interpret a command and follow very well; it only takes some time to get used to it. Now, saddle up the horse and start riding. You may have to repeat commands many times for it to understand them. Take laps while riding and follow them daily. Over time, the performance of the horse will improve with all other necessary care. A
Hospitable Environment:
The environment where the horse lives shall be hospitable else; all the other bits are in vain. You must ensure cleanliness at all times in the stable. If you cannot do so always, then appoint stable keepers who would do the job. If you do not keep the stable clean, it leads to many undesirable outcomes. Many bacteria can form in the soil, grass, and water in the stable. And most diseases that a horse catches are due to the bacteria and poor cleanliness in the barn. Some common diseases that spread due to bacteria are Strangles and Equine Anthrax. Moreover, keeping a stable, clean alone will not help. You will have to make the horse feel homely. Visit your horse in the stable at least twice in a day to enhance your bond with the horse.
In conclusion, these were some vital elements to take care of a racehorse. You must follow each one of them with proper attention to keep the horse healthy and improve its performance. Doing it daily is not the simplest thing, but when your horse wins tournaments and derbies, it is all worth it.
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