Some highlights from our Fall 2011 Newsletter . . . .

Puppy Handling Tips

A new puppy will need your guidance to become a healthy, happy member of your family. Puppies are like sponges, absorbing everything they see and experience, and forming their ideas about life from those early experiences. The more a puppy sees, hears, smells, and touches as a youngster, the better adjusted they will be as adults.

Puppy classes are an excellent way to get your puppy accustomed to going to a new environment, meeting other people, and other dogs. It helps teach them appropriate ways of interacting with other dogs, and gives you the chance to ask a professional dog trainer your questions. Even if you are training your dog yourself at home, a puppy class is a great time for socialization and for “proofing” your training.

We would like to help make your puppies’ visits to us as low-stress as possible. We do as much as we can while your puppy is here with us, but what will really do the most good for your puppy is some homework!

Once daily, gently hold your puppy still. At first, your puppy will likely struggle and whine, but don’t relent! What you’re doing does not hurt, and is for the good of the puppy. Feed your puppy treats once they stop struggling (even for just a second or two) and praise your puppy lavishly, and as long as they are still holding still, let your puppy go. Gradually increase the amount of time the puppy needs to hold still to earn praise and treats.

Once your puppy is able to hold still for longer periods, start pretending you are gently examining them. Lift their ears and look in, probe in the ears with your fingers. Hold their mouth closed briefly, squeeze their belly, and play with their legs and feet. You can use treats as a distraction and a reward, but make sure you don’t stop what you are doing until your puppy holds still.

Handle your puppies’ feet as often as possible. A dog that is used to having its feet touched will be happier to have its nails trimmed later on. Keep your sessions short and positive!

Tips for winter horse care

Cold winter weather creates some challenges for horse owners! When temperatures drop below 45F, equines use additional calories to maintain their body temperature. Horses going into the winter at ideal body condition may require additional feed through the winter to maintain, and thin horses will require some extra help! For subzero temperatures, free choice hay is advised to help horses stay warm and maintain body condition.  Grain may also be needed by “hard keepers” to provide additional calories to the diet.

Keeping your horse warm and dry will not only keep them comfortable, but will also limit calories required for them to maintain body condition. Horses living outdoors should always have shelter from the wind, rain, or snow and blankets may be used to keep the horse warm and dry. If you blanket your horse please be sure to remove it every few days to check for rubs and also assess body condition. You will need to run your hands all over the horse’s topline and barrel to assess body condition under their fuzzy winter coats!

Having non-frozen water freely accessible to your horse through the winter is extremely important to maintaining their health. There are a variety of heated water tubs and bucket heaters to provide a constant source of water for your horse. Be sure they cannot chew on the cords and outlets are properly grounded! Though horses typically prefer cold water, they will drink more when provided a source of warmer water in the winter. Making sure your horse has adequate water intake in the winter will help maintain their overall health and may help prevent colic from impaction.

Footing is also a winter concern and making sure your horse can get around safely is important to minimize chance of injury. In general horses do much better in snow and ice barefoot than when shod. If your horse is shod, they may need special winter shoes with studs and / or pads to help maintain traction and prevent snow from balling up in the hooves.