About Horse Coat Maintenance
There are many ways of maintaining a healthy coat on a horse. Of course proper diet, exercise, shelter, and overall care play the major role and are essential to the good health of your horse. But aside from that, with the onset of new coat products, fly sprays as well as horse blankets and sheets, there are a surprising number of horses who are becoming sensitive enough to have adverse reactions.
Don’t over bathe your horse, once a month can be too much for some horses. It’s better and more natural just to use only water and hose down specific areas if necessary, but refrain from the constant use of soap, as even mild soap can be damaging over time.
Don’t leave sheets and blankets on for days on end, the skin needs to breathe too.
Don’t over spray your horse with commercial fly sprays and bug repellents, the majority of these products contain chemicals and if over used can cause skin irritations. If fly spray must be re-applied, wipe him down with a damp cloth first before re-applying, this will help prevent build up.
An excellent alternative fly and mosquito repellent for horses is an Avon product called “Skin-So-Soft”, this has been used by horsemen for many years and has proven to be very effective with added benefits such as being far cheaper than most commercial products, more natural with no harsh chemicals, a good conditioner for the skin and coat, in fact you may begin to notice a major difference in the sheen to your horse’s coat. Use the Avon “Skin-So-Soft” Original formula. There are several mixtures that can be used, you can of course use it straight out of the bottle or you can mix it half and half with water, many claim this is just as effective as using it straight out of the bottle and stretches the use of your Skin So Soft product. An alternative mixture some have used is 1 part White Vinegar, 1 part Avon Skin-So-Soft, 1 part Water, and optionally 1 Tablespoon of Eucalyptus Oil.
Many people use petroleum gels or baby oils to treat dry skin or dull coats, this is ok but don’t toss your horse out in the hot sun, this can potentially burn your horse’s skin. If you turn your horse out into a paddock or pasture, on hot days apply towards evening and give the oils a chance to absorb and get rubbed off a bit overnight.
Using Supplements to Improve the Coat
A lot of vets and horse professionals are often unable to agree whether using supplements specifically designed to improve a horse’s coat is a good idea, or is even very beneficial.
important for aiding in tissue growth, strong bones and hoof, healthy skin, hair, teeth and gums, and is also beneficial in building resistance to disease.
Vitamin A, vitamin E, and biotin are some of the major vitamins that are commonly deficient in the horse’s diet. Most vitamins and trace minerals are usually found to be sufficient in most green pasture grasses, they are often not available in adequate amounts in older or stored hay and feed. Some vitamins and essential oils can become lose much of their value through storage, heat, light, and processing. There is a good chance that certain trace minerals are deficient in alfalfa hay and oat grain. The issue of supplementing a healthy horse basically comes down to the quality feed and if it’s truly nutritionally complete and well-balanced, or whether storage and processing of feed deprives the horse of necessary amounts of vitamins, minerals, and fats.
If you want to supplement your horse for a dull coat, adding a little rice bran which adds fat to the diet can be excellent for improving the coat as well as a good general vitamin supplement.
Just remember there’s no substitute for feeding quality grass hay and grains. If good quality feed isn’t readily available try discussing what supplements you should use with a veterinary nutritionist or a veterinarian with nutritional training. This allows them to rule out other causes of a poor coat (such as worms or skin conditions) and to make sure additional supplements won’t cause any adverse effects. If you found this article useful and helpful you can find more tips like this at the Hitching Post, a site for Single Cowboys and Country Folks in general.
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