For many who do not dwell in the countryside with verdant pastures, the dream of owning a horse is made possible by privately owned stables that board horses. Because these equine stables vary in size and their services, owners need to select where they will board their horses.

Here are some options:

Full Boarding includes everything that a horse needs: quality feed, stall cleaning, grooming, shoeing, hoof care, and attendance to the animal’s general health. Daily turn out into pastures (except in cases of storms and cold weather) is also included. Horses naturally love to move around with others and graze, so performing such actions is necessary for them to remain healthy. The movement of horses’ feet is essential to these animals’ circulation and their hoof health. Without exercise and clean, dry ground, serious complications can develop that even an expert farrier cannot fix. 

For instance, standing in manure and urine in a stall can lead to hoof problems as white line disease and thrush. Without much movement, horses can develop nervous habits such as cribbing (chewing on a stall door or other wood structures) and stall-walking (nervously pacing around the stall), not eating. Being inactive is unnatural, and this condition can cause colic or equine gastric ulcer syndrome. Also, horses are herd animals. As such, they do not like isolation; they prefer to run and graze with other horses.

To continue reading, please visit Sarah Laud's equine blog!