How To - Health

Now, I will start by saying that I firmly believe that the rehab is categorically the most important part of the Kissing Spine journey and the pivotal point between successful or unsuccessful recovery. I did A LOT of research and reading into the rehab stages before Dee’s treatment and there are so many varying opinions, options and directions in what is right, wrong or otherwise. So much so that I actually felt totally overwhelmed, confused and anxious about what the right thing to do was. Ho...

For a long time, the horse world has been more concerned by underweight horses than overweight – that picture of the obese horse just doesn’t tug on the heart strings the way the ‘poor, skinny soul’ does. Despite this, the facts remain that it is simply less dangerous for the horse to be underweight than overweight; it has many less far-reaching implications. However, an underweight horse still isn’t desirable in any way as it makes it difficult for them to carry the weight of a rider ...

I have wanted to document our journey for a while now and what better way to do so than by sharing it with all of you. Hopefully, at the very least, it will be an interesting read for most of you – written in total layman’s terms – documenting the reality of treating and rehabbing a horse with Kissing Spine. At best, I hope it may help, encourage or inspire someone going through the same thing themselves while they’re trying to find their way in making the right decisions for their own h...

Pastern dermatitis, commonly known as mud fever, is a skin condition that causes irritation and soreness – predominantly to horses’ lower legs. It most often occurs on the bulb of the heel or the pastern (the area between the fetlock and the hoof) but can spread higher up the legs or occasionally appear on other areas of the body. It is not a contagious condition, so cannot be passed from one horse to another, or to people, but can cause your horse a great deal of stress and discomfort.

Yes, we know, obesity in horses and the health problems it can lead to have been talked about extensively in the horse community. Yet it is still a major problem, with many cases of connected ailments being reported every year. So why is it still an ongoing issue, and what can we do to prevent it? We delve into the world of obesity, looking at common causes, effects, and what you can do to help.

Most of us know that we should have an extensive first aid kit on the yard at all times, but there is a huge difference between having an idea of what is actually useful for many occasions, and staring at the First Aid section in your tack store, without knowing what to spend money on! So, what should we have in our first aid kits? A clean bowl – This can be used for mixing up a solution of Hibiscrub and water; very important for cleaning any wounds. You can also use a water bucket if careful...