Miniature Horse Keeping Questions

Hi,

Do you use the Mane-n-Tail Shampoo on the coat as well as on the mane/tail?

Thanks,

Tess

Hey Tess,

The product should specify whether it can be used as a body shampoo as well as for the mane and tail.

If it doesn't specify , I wouldn't be using it.

Mane n tail shampoo is good for everything, body included. It is even good to use on your own hair. Truly--I have used it in the past. In truth I liked it better for my own hair than for the horses--I ended up leaving the big bottle in the house and bought a different shampoo for the horses.

Welcome Tess!

Other than welcoming a new family member (birth/marriage/adoption) I am not sure what is more exciting than welcoming a new animal to the family. Minis are such a fun package and their size and longevity make them, I think, a great 'life' choice. You could purchase a younger animal in your youth/prime and still have that same animal when you are 'golden' and arthritic. Barring illness or accident they can easily live into their thirties - I know, as do many people on the forum have minis that age and older.

There are so many things you can do - just enjoy them - brush, walk, hike, drive, and generally show off to friends and neighbors. The more you handle them and expose them to new things, the more versatile they become.

I totally agree with those who have mentioned taking another look at the mini that can be hard to catch. This can be an interesting challenge that you enjoy overcoming, or it can just make you want to throw your hands in the air and yell! My small herd has a hard to catch mini that has gotten easier over the years, but walking away is her "automatic default". I have yet to be able to just walk up in the open paddock and lay my hands on her - I have to be crafty and bring treats - this can get annoying at times. Once I have my arm over her back she stands nicely and is very sweet. (She is the one I asked forum members for help in driving a couple of months ago)

I apologize if I am not understanding, but it sounds as if you have not actually met the horses yet? Depending on the distance and your circumstances the trip to see them before you buy would be worth some expense and time.

You have probably already got this covered, but just a thought..... do you have a farrier? vet? lined up for future needs?

Good luck and be safe!

I use the mane n tail conditioner for my hair. Otherwise I use dawn dish soap for the girls shampoo. With a Chris Christensen protein product

Mane N' Tail is great! For me, for our dogs and for the horses. I mix w/ water and actually use it 1/2 strength - for all of us.

The conditioner is meant as a leave in - I find that it makes the manes too ... sticky, gloppy and heavy. I use it 1/2 strength as above but then still rinse it out.

This post has been awesome - bouncing around in w/ answers to many differnt things. Neat to see such varied experiences and posts!

For shampoo type items, I feel pretty comfortable using anything marketed at human use (I suspect human products probably undergo more testing and are more regulated.) I've actually abandoned Mane N Tail because the conditioner is so "gloppy." One reason I've switched is that when the manufacturer stamps "horse" on the label they usually up the price significantly. I've been playing around with Garnier Fructis products. I've got a couple "leave-in" type products of that brand that I haven't tested yet (ran out of warm weather bathing season last year.)

Nobody has responded much to your initial question about insurance. Which type? There's medical/mortality type for the horse and there's liability type for you. For medical/mortality you'll have to contact insurance companies for quotes, most of them don't put costs on-line. Regarding liability, I would think it depends on circumstances. For example, if you own your own home and your horse injures someone (even if they trespass on your property--check out attractive nuisance laws in your state) you might as well just sign over your savings account and the title to your house. If you don't own a home or have a savings account, they'll just attach your wages for the next billion years. Most homeowner policies don't even cover big dogs, much less horses, unless you specifically add them (for an additional cost, of course.) That said, I don't have either type. Which might be a stupid choice. For example, if I had medical insurance I would have made out big-time in the last couple years, but if I bought it now I probably wouldn't have a sick horse for the years. I haven't spent on liability insurance either, but rather have relied on other methods. Never underestimate the stupidity of other people. For example, we now have electrical wire on the outside of our wooden fencing after some lady was trying to stuff her toddler through the rails at Nicky. Just this past weekend, a young boy was lying on the ground on his stomach halfway into Nicky's pasture under both wooden and electric fences, with a dog no less. Nicky's blind as a bat but he likes to chase dogs, and in addition to being a stallion his blindness causes him to be a little spooky when things happen outside his normal conditions (like little boys doing stupid things.)

Another comment on vets... One thing I didn't realize when we got our first two horses is that you can have a vet check (by a vet you hire.) Ours was an auction situation so they did have coggins certificates and the vet hospital had a vet check them all out and they were dewormed, but.... one of them ended up dead within the first three months. And if I sound like I'm harping on costs/expenses I am. I came out fairly cheap on that one (around $2000) when you add up the initial cost of the horse, the vet bills, and the cost of disposal (that one was a real head twist... Before I bought, I had really not considered that I would have a dead horse on my hands and what to do with it.) Anyway, I think a vet check could save you some grief; I wish I had of known about it.

Hi,

My 3-sided run in shed has a floor. Should I put some bedding in it? What kind? They might want to lay down in the shed.

Thanks,

Tess

What is the floor? I would worry about it being slick when wet.

The floor is plywood. It probably would not get that wet inside because it is facing away from the weather front. I also have wooden panels which would protect the minis from the weather. I was thinking if they wanted to lay down inside the shed they could on some nice bedding.

Also, what type of trailer would be nice to haul them? I am not showing so I do not need a fancy one. My trailer would only be used for going to the vet and bringing them home from the breeder.

Thanks

Hi,

What is a nice turnout/fleece blanket for a mini? Where I live the temps can get down to 10* (F) in winter and I usually get a lot of snow.

Thanks,

Tess

Plywood wi be very slick even when not wet. I would reccomend putting some mats down or tearing out the floor.

I use straw for bedding. Wet plywood will be slippery--and remember it will get wet from pee and even poop, not just rain or snow--so you will want it covered. Deep straw will give good footing. So will shavings if you prefer those

For liability insurance you could look into joining the United States Equestrian Federation. I haven't done it yet, but heard about it. Unless your minis are very valuable, I don't think you would need to insure them.

You could put rubber stall mats over your plywood floor and then lightly bed them. I think that would save your floors from urine and the shavings might provide some traction and comfort if they want to lie down. Be aware, however, that many times minis enjoy being outside of the shelter when we think they should be inside it!

There are many different opinions about blanketing. However, if your minis are going to live outside 24/7, I would be cautious about blanketing them routinely. I'd see the blanket as something to use only in extreme conditions, like high winds with a very low temperature. Without blankets, most (not all, but most) minis will grow a wonderful coat that will protect them very well even in snow and cold, and with the type of shelter you describe, they will be able to get out of the bad weather when then want to. What will dangerously chill a horse is being wet under a wet blanket, which can happen if the weather turns and your aren't around to deal with it.

Trailers- I can't afford one. If you have the funds to do it, you can invest in a safe used 2 horse that could be modified for minis. Another route is to know someone with a trailer that you could borrow/rent in the event of an emergency or occasional trip. If you don't plan on showing or doing mini therapy of site, you might not need to make the costly investment in a trailer that you will hardly ever use.

Tess said:

Also, what type of trailer would be nice to haul them? I am not showing so I do not need a fancy one. My trailer would only be used for going to the vet and bringing them home from the breeder.

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We started with a used, 3-horse slant (big horse size.) For hauling our minis, we removed the dividing bar-thingies in back; Nicky got stuffed up front in the tackroom (after removing spare tire and saddle racks.) From what I've read there's methods where you can adapt "big" horse trailers to minis, but it was just becoming one huge pain in the buttocks. ...add to it, the husband hated hauling that thing. So we traded it in.

You might want to consider the towing capacity of the vehicle that will be towing. Another thing I felt was important was a double set of wheels/tires (if you blow a tire, you've still got your trailer riding on something besides the axle.)

We ended up with a Hawk brand trailer; I'm quite pleased with it and the bonus is that I can tow it with my dinky Ford Ranger.

Trailers - I've used 2 horse trailers, 3 horse slant loads w/ the dividers latched open or removed, a single axle - custom built stock trailer (in a pinch - it carried our 2 shetlands down from MT to NC) and currently own two "stock type" trailers. One is a 1969 Gore trailer with a center divider and had a canvas roof (since getting the new trailer I haven't had the canvas replaced) and a 2012 CM steel stock trailer. The new trailer is both slightly longer and wider than the older one. I can put 6 ponies in the front (if they aren't too round) and the wagon and up to 8 sets of harness in the back of it...

Horses passing - not something an owner thinks about at first! - In MT, my parents buried a colt that died. 4 yrs later, I had a colt not make it but the mare wouldn't let us/vet remove him (large pony mare). When she finally accepted his death, we were able to remove him but in serious blizzard conditions could not bury him. We placed his body (at the vet's recommendation) in front of a fox den about a mile from my parent's home - the fox made it and to this day there are still fox living in that den!! Here in NC, we've buried a total of 5 since 1997. 1 - had to have permission from land owners we were leasing from to bury her. Another colt - a friend took him to her place and buried him next to her old lesson horse whom she'd owned for 20 years. 2 were euthanized by a vet and then buried on our leased land and one passed on her own - but the back hoe owner decided (too wet) it would be easier to have us load into our trailer and then he'd pick it up. He buried her on his property (wouldn't do that again-but it worked at the time)... I've also taken 2 foals up to the State Vet School and have had them do necropsy/disposal (significant difference in cost from 2003 to 2013). Here on our new place, we'd have to get a back hoe operator to come dig for us and we'd have to double check water tables as to where we can place graves (haven't done that yet). Several small properties on our road all have wells.

We don't currently have insurance on our ponies - but have had some different policies in the past... Used to carry equine business/farm liability insurance - stopped giving lessons when I wasn't giving enough to cover the insurance payments.

Lots of bedding on a wood floor. One barn I worked for had old wood floors - they had "cleats" (not sure if that's what they were) or "furring strips" down on some of the floors, but still heavily bedded them to keep the beween cleats spots from getting too slick.

Hi,

I was planning on going to see the minis, if we like them I will go back to the breeder with the vet. I also am going to ask the breeder for the health record of the mini. The stories of the horses passing away are very sad. I would not want that to happen to me. About the trailer I was thinking of just renting one when I need it. Thanks again for more wonderful advice.

One more question. Is it okay if when we chose to buy the minis we ask if we can board them at the breeder's place? I just asked that because I am thinking of buying them before I am done with the paddock. I want to see them soon, if everything goes well I am going to buy them. I want to see them soon because I don't want someone else buying them if I like them. Here where I live it can get pretty hard to find minis for sale. So here it had to be "finders keepers".

Thanks,

Tess

Boarding is a very very very good idea for first time horse owners. It will let you learn while still having the benefits of ownership.

I have been riding my whole life and grew up with horses, and I board. I work 70 hours a week and wouldn't have time to properly care for them. Instead of training time I would only have 'care time.' I get up there a LOT and love my board owner though. I trust him completely.

As far as horses passing, very few good rendering companies will charge you. It has always been free for me. I do not own property so I couldn't bury my colt that passed in December. The option was to bring him to the farm compost pile (a big hassle) 20 mins away where I live, or have him rendered. Ask local farmers who they use for rendering. It is a good number to have on hand - although hard to think about.

Do ask if you can board the horses with the breeder for a time after (if) you buy them. Most sellers will not mind keeping the horse for awhile. Be sure to ask how much you will be charged to keep the horses. Some sellers will keep the horse for free for 30 days and then start charging board after that; others may want to charge board right from time of purchase. Be aware that once you purchase the horses, even if they are still under the care of the seller, you will be responsible for any and all vet and farrier costs--those fees will not likely be covered by what you are paying for board.

Hi,

The land in the mini pen has small rocks and the dirt is more like clay. Do I need to till it? Would It be safe to till with the rocks? Or should I buy footing for it? If I buy footing how deep should it be? Grass does not grow in the paddock only weeds. I am open to different suggestions about the land. How do you keep yellow jackets & flies away? I heard they like water. How would I keep them away from the mini's water? I read somewhere that I could put a little vinegar in the water to keep them away. Would the mini's drink it still? Is it safe to put vinegar in it? If there are other ways to keep those nasty bugs away please tell.

Thanks,

Tess