Safety check

[BSharpRanch]

Any death is sad, when it is horse related, it hits close to home. Even though the teen that died was doing a riding even, it makes one think about keeping yourself safe when riding/driving.

So let's start a thread on safety measures that we take around our horses. Are they just for when you drive or do you have safety things you do when just working around your horses?

who would like to start?

 

[Renee]

I'll start. I always wear a helmet and carry a sharp penknife. After I harness, I double check all straps. When out trail driving, I carry a lead rope and halter.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I try to remember to wear my safety vest when driving on the road. I have a flashing light on the cart also; I need to remember to turn it on.

I, too, carry a knife and a halter w/lead.

I did not hear about the accident.

 

[BSharpRanch]

It was in Australia this past weekend at a three day event. Her horse hit one of the cross country jumps and flipped over it. Very sad.

 

[MajorClementine]

My 5 year old son knows to always wait next to the cart but a few steps back until I tell him to step in. I get in first making sure I have full control of Clementine then my son climbs in quickly. I also make sure he is always wearing a helmet.

I always wear a helmet if I'm riding out alone.

 

[MiniNHF]

Being a past intermediate level eventer, I can say you can never plan for those unpredictable accidents such as a horse clipping a cross country jump just right and flipping over. When I did my first intermediate level with my eventer, who was a very talented boy and I trusted him 100% and he the same with me, I am not going to lie I was scared because when I did eventing the course designers were making the fences where the horses were not supposed to make it around or around clean. I even witnessed a girl two jumps ahead of me with her horse flip over and land in the ditch and had to be helicoptered out; talk about nerve racking for me. After I was done and I went clean, best ride of the entire day for intermediate, I got off my horse handed him to my parents and looked at my trainer and said "im done." I did not want to subject my horse or myself to that if the courses were going to be like that so after six or more years of eventing at the age of 16 I changed disciplines to show jumping where at least the jumps moved.

Now back to driving LOL.

I leave my horses halter under the driving bridle, just do not use the nose band, and make sure the bridle fits properly. That way if I need to lead him or hold him by his head, Im not doing it by the bit. Then I have a lead rope in the cart, my pocket knife that I only use for emergencies and make sure I got a very high quality one, my cell phone, duct tape (will fix any thing )

 

[OakLeafMiniatures]

I know that there's no way to prevent a freak accident like Olivia's but here is a few things we do to make our horses safer.

We desensitize to any thing we can think of, cap guns, umbrellas, whip cracking, motorcycles, bicycles, atvs, cars, trucks, kids, cats, dogs, you name it. Sometimes it's the things we do not think of too, once my stallion has been curious and snorty about a red scarf once and so I made sure I densensitized him with that too. It's constant and now we try to come up with crazier things but our boys just fall asleep and yawn. I know it won't save us from everything but it makes them that much safer. I think it also helps train them think through a "scary" situation before they react.

We've been working out a one rein stop situation too. It's tricky though, a one rein stop could easily turn into a one rein flip. Instead I've been reinforcing a complete halt when I say whoa with no contact on the bit to simulate a lost rein/s. It's worked really well so far, my stallion will put on the brakes before I even touch the reins. It's going to be one of those things that needs to be regularly tuned up. It would be nice to have brakes but I haven't found a good way to apply them on an EE cart.

For safety on the trail we carry a knife for cutting straps, hoof pick, brush, spares, a slow moving vehicle sign on the back of our carts, cellphone.

Drive safe!

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Yes, I'm working on the verbal Whoa also, in case of a dropped rein.

The one-rein stop has saved me many times, especially lately.

I think it is important for a horse to react appropriately to a startle. It is okay to startle, but he must develop a habit of reacting to it properly. That will be ongoing. Even my veteran startles, but he merely takes a quick sidestep.

 

[paintponylvr]

I agree with everyone here. We try to desensitize to lots of objects - not so much because you can desensitize to everything but because yes, it helps them learn to "think" about spooking and not reacting and it is also one less thing for them to react to.

We also drive with halters on under our bridles. When we rode, the lead was tied around the neck in a cavalry knot. When driving with a harness that has a collar and hames, we will leave a lead rope attached to the halter and wrapped around the near side of the hames. On a pair, the right side horse has lead rope on the off side hames. We will also carry an extra long lead rope or a lounge line tied to back of seat on either cart or wagon (has been used 2x to pull a heavy cart stuck in the mud loose w/o being in the muck with it - after the ponies unhitched) - allows for tying to extra large trees on our driving paths, too.

We try to let someone know approximately when we will be back and where we *think* we are going to be going. If we have a change of plans, now, we use our cell phones to notify someone that we've changed up. The trails we used to use - cell phones and GPS tracking were non-existent - however, both of those farms with extensive trails have been sold to non-horse people and the horse trails and campgrounds at both have been closed.

The Moss Foundation, in Southern Pines, is one of the places close by we can still go to - haven't been since well before we moved. Again, certain areas both GPS and any texting/calling didn't work in, though did in some. We actually have areas on our 21 acres where there is NO cell reception & we are putting driving paths thru those sections, so it could get interesting.

We are currently in TX (middle daughter & I flew in; youngest daughter drove up to MT first to visit with my mom; oldest daughter/family didn't make it - it's my Dad's 75th Bday and we will visit again today). While on her travels up in the Dakotas and across MT, Sierra (our youngest) discovered that even with Verizon and the newest phone - NO CELL worked anywhere when not in *major* cities. She actually went into media withdrawal - but she also mentioned *wow, how would you call out with a horse accident?* when she arrived here in TX last nite. I told her we had *walkie-talkie* radios when we lived in MT. Still didn't work deep in a canyon or arroyo - have no idea how Chanda (chandab) does contacts...

Knife, water (at least one bottle on the cart - in the wagon I carry a small bucket that will hold several bottles), couple of band-aids & neosporin/bacitracin in ziplock baggie, BUG SPRAY!! - Woods OFF - carried on cart for both humans and ponies- carried in saddle bags when we were riding; I use my whip to dislodge any persistent bugs that insist on landing/biting. Deer fly bites are painful and will drive both horses and ponies "mad" enough to ignore reins, lines and "whoas" if not careful.

Think that's it.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Bug spray! Good idea! I have frequently gone out driving when it is bug-free and been visited by those horrible biting gnats along the way.

 

[paintponylvr]

I haven't found anything that works for gnats here in NC. What works in OK, Marsha?

We also have driven with fly masks & quarter sheets or fly sheets (don't last on our critters or thru the woods here - they snag and rip) on and used either commercial Swat in the ears or home made "Swat" - Vaseline and straight fly spray concentrate.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I think the oil-based fly sprays are most effective for general use. I use one called "horse & pony"; I get it at Atwoods. My trimmer makes up an organic mixture but it is only good for while he is trimming. Where I live, regular flies are not a big problem. But those stupid little ones that chew on the insides of ears make me crazy. Fly mask with ears is the most effective.

I am going to put a can of OFF into my cart toolbox.

 

[BSharpRanch]

What we used for gnats when we had an issue is leave hair in the ear and apply vaseline. The greasyness acts as a great repellent.