more freedom * more joy * more horse
The practicalities and logistics of keeping horses healthy and happy in the best environment possible
The herd and I had a lovely time hanging out with a couple of horse listeners from Chicago and Cambodia – Christina and Maddalena – when they came to visit one afternoon. After spending time with them, they were struckRead more
Scientists have long been trying to figure out why Zebras have stripes. There’s been a lot of speculation/testing of theories related to confusing predators, social purpose, or heat regulation, but none of those have really panned out. Then a studyRead more
In early January, my mom and I spent 3 days traveling a 5 hour round trip to spend time supporting land defenders at the police blockade on the way up to Unist’ot’en Camp, where members of our neighbouring First Nation,Read more
By Mary Walby Rehabilitating the senior horse is a bit of science, with a whole lot of art (and heart!) thrown in the mix. But these same protocols of training, communicating and healing, can work incredibly well with all horsesRead more
By Mary Walby I first began feeding soaked hay pellets when I received a senior horse for rehab who suffered from chronic diarrhea. The equine dentist told me that his teeth were completely worn out and incapable of chewing hay.Read more
When Jax (Arab/Belgian) got a ginormous matted tangle in the middle of his tail, I posted a picture on Facebook and asked if anyone knew of a natural product that could untangle the mess. People told me about ShowSheen (notRead more
Stud piles are mounds of manure left by rival stallions in the wild. Poo is used to mark territory and so when rivals come along – just as you see dogs doing with urine – they poo on top ofRead more
Need a forest cleared of underbrush and great trails for hiking, biking, or riding? Just turn a herd of horses loose for a month or two! Forests are wonderful, stimulating environments for horses – much better than just a flatRead more
Here’s the story of my very first horse trailer purchase and our very first haul, picking up our wildie, Siyone, and her filly, Posa. And what Siyone thought about my choice! It took me two full years to decide whichRead more
You may have heard the advice, over and over again, to allow your pasture grasses to reach 6-8 inches in height before you let your horses graze. And then you’re also advised to pull them off when those grasses areRead more
When you want to give your confined (non-pastured) horse a more natural experience of eating, or, you want to continue their natural grazing during the winter months, or, when they’ve eaten down their pastures – slow feeding is the solution.Read more
After numerous experiments with culvert drainage for my graveled horse paddock, I finally decided to start all over again and do it properly – from start to finish. My cousin Adam was in town and since he used to workRead more
During a recent trip to the UK, I was finally introduced to the New Forest – more importantly, I was introduced to the New Forest Ponies. My sweetie, Tim, a southwest UK native, had been talking about taking me thereRead more
Sometimes the simple solutions are the ones that work brilliantly! If you want to greatly reduce the frequency with which you have to dump your water troughs and scrub them out, OR, if you have an algae problem in yourRead more
One of my subscribers asked if I could do a video on my paddock/pasture setup for my herd of 5 horses. I live in the Pacific Northwest (Langley, BC) so my setup is designed to keep horses healthy and happyRead more
Let’s take a look at a ground-feeding hay net called the Hay Pillow. I’m going to give you my review and what I think are the pros and cons of this slow feeding solution. And then, I’ve got a funRead more
For those of you that live in rainy climates (like the Pacific Northwest or the U.K.), or, maybe you get a really intense rainy season that lasts for a couple of months, then you know how nasty your paddock andRead more
As a South-Coast bumpkin, I never really had my horses in snow, unless you count the usual one-day affair with a few inches of fun before the inevitable melt-and-muck. It never affected feeding, just made poo-collection more arduous. But whenRead more
As we head into winter, some of us are going to get lots of snow, while others are going to get lots of rain! As it’s much easier to protect your hay stack against snow, I’m going to give youRead more
This may seem like a weird topic for a horse blog… but since most of us with horses also have dogs, I figure it’s all good! I’ve had my female dog Tiah for two years now. And after going throughRead more
This is an excellent presentation by an experienced Veterinarian, Geoff Tucker, who’s been to many different farms and barns. Geoff has then collected photos of some of the do’s and don’ts we can apply to our properties and barns. InRead more
All horses like to itch, scratch and rub themselves on an ongoing basis. But during shedding season the urge to itchy-scratchy gets pretty intense. So if you can set up a sturdy self-scratching area (the edge of a barn, aRead more
Although I bought Jamie Jackson’s, Paddock Paradise book over 3 years ago, I have not been able to implement anything yet as I am still boarding my horses on other people’s land – where I have already sunk tons ofRead more
We’ve all heard about the different ways you can cover your hay stack with a tarp so it doesn’t get wet or moldy. But have you ever heard about using commercial-size dessicant pouches to absorb moisture under your hay tarp?Read more
Looking for a faster way to build a fence? A tractor-mounted post pounder does all the hard work for you. In this video, Ray and Will also show you how to make sure your posts are straight and all theRead more
You may have heard of equine permaculture systems and yes, most of the information and sites are based in Australia. Which is not too helpful for those of us in rainy climates like the Pacific Northwest or UK! However, youRead more
If your horse is not prone to laminitis, or other complications, the standard way to transition from hay to grass in the spring is to start with only 15 minutes of grass per day and gradually build up from there;Read more
First of all, regardless of which hay you feed, if you place it in a slow feeder (or hay net) and allow your horse 24/7 access to hay – you will have a much healthier, happier horse. If you putRead more
Although I have 2 stalls as part of my barn, I also wanted to get a portable shelter to put out in the horse’s field in case they wanted to lie down out there – since we live in theRead more
~ Updated in 2019 ~ Let’s start with these pictures of my first set-up, where I self-boarded my horses on a friend’s property, and my adventures in paddock footing began. There are 4 acres of fields here, and three horsesRead more
I became motivated to investigate different feeding systems after I noticed how horses kept in any kind of enclosure other than pasture, became fixated on food! Even though they received the right amount of hay and/or feed for their bodyRead more
