WELCOME TO OUR RANCH!

Quality Care Program

The following information addresses the way we personally care for the well being of our horses. We will address our  programs. This vital information is provided for the folks who have an interest in the way a horse is cared for prior to their purchase. We pride ourselves on the care we provide and feel strongly that you get out of a horse what you put into it.

Please feel free to contact us for any additional information about our programs.
INTRODUCTION

Our web site has been designed to help educate the public about our breed of horses. An educated consumer can make wiser choices prior to purchasing a companion; therefore it is our hope you will feel comfortable contacting us with any questions you may have. We understand that purchasing a horse can be challenging and especially frustrating when the breed is not completely familiar. This is especially true when purchasing gaited horses. We hope that with proper research you will find that our horses are top of the line for our breed.

If you are considering buying a horse we would like to encourage you to become familiar with the importance of a balanced or conformationally correct horse. A balanced horse can make the difference in smoothness of gait, allowing for higher energy-endurance and can improve all round strength. Less overall leg injuries are another benefit. If you are interesting in learning more on the subject of conformation, here is one of our favorite web sites written by Dr. Deb Bennett a leading authority on this subject www.equinestudies.org/conformation.htm . There are many books offered on this subject as well and can be found at www.amazon.com.
 

GENERAL CARE

    Once a foal or horse arrives at our facility we make every effort to reinforce human bonding by providing positive contact in a peaceful environment. Ground manners are taught ongoing to our foals with patience. Our young horses are well socialized since they are able to walk around in large, clean, well-maintained areas with the ability to visit with people. It is up to our horses if they choose to mingle with people and true to their curious nature they greet us and enjoy our company.

    Our horses are moved indoors when it rains. They are then placed into large clean stalls containing rubber mats and fresh fir shavings. Our indoor arena serves a multi-purpose, offering a place for our horses to be exercised, trained, play with each other, stretch their legs, and roll off the boredom of the winter months in the sand.

    Training begins slowly. We take into consideration a horse's age and readiness to learn. Readiness to learn is determined by their ability to concentrate and for the most part, to enjoy what they are being taught. We understand the importance of starting a horse correctly to prevent a lifetime of bad habits and leg injuries.

FEEDING

    Feeding takes into account that our horses are cold-blooded, calm, and very easy to maintain. Our food program is based on veterinary recommendations, which recognizes diets lower in protein allow horses to eat more frequently which in turn keeps food in their stomachs for long periods of time. This program helps sustain a healthy digestive tract while assisting in the prevention of colic/tying up and or founder problems. We feel that horses need to constantly forage to maintain adequate digestive balance. This is not a very cost-effective way of feeding since we feed many tons of hay / horse / year. What you may find however from this method of feeding is we raise healthy horses, which have very healthy outward appearances.

    The exceptions to the low protein-feeding program would be made when our mares are pregnant, and in this case higher calcium needs are found in alfalfa grass and vitamins. We supplement pregnancy with a flake or so of alfalfa twice daily while still including low protein grasses.

    It is safe to say that we want our horses to grow up soundly not quickly and to have long careers. We therefore do not feel it is a very good idea to feed for maximum growth early on in life. We like to think ahead to maturity and long-term soundness. Some weanlings need to be brought along more slowly than other foals deliberately as a way to allow their bones and muscles to develop in a reasonably coordinated way. Overfeeding weanlings may reach full height at one year however the properly fed yearling may take two - three years or longer to reach the same height, but he'll reach it, and he'll have better bone for it.

    Other feeds used regularly are Equine Junior and Senior. Feedings vary depending on age and work schedule of a horse. Mare and Foal feeds are also provided. Mineral blocks are placed in all stalls; Horse-Guard Vitamins are given daily along with FastTracks Probiotics. Probiotics maintain stomach flora, helping prevent colic and or founder. This product is especially helpful in times of stress, such as when a mare gives birth, extreme cold weather, and frightening situations just to name a few examples. All stressful situations use up digestive enzymes found in the stomach of a horse's gut rapidly and in so doing, the horse can have trouble digesting food which in turn can ultimately cause lameness effecting circulation to the legs due to colic and founder. Adding these digestive enzymes needed for proper digestion daily will never hurt a horse and can only help prevent problems from occurring down the road. This product is also sold for other species such as dogs, cats and humans.

MAINTENANCE

    Horses feet are trimmed regularly about every 6-8 weeks depending on the season and age of horse. Our horse shoer enjoys trimming hooves according to the natural angle of the horse's body (shoulder and foot). We do not recommend excessively steep unnatural angling since this can strain and or damage sensitive tendons, ligaments and muscles in the horse's legs. Steep angling has been known to produce permanent injuries early on or later in a horse's life. This practice is especially not recommended for those interested in trail riding their horses. We have been asked questions about how to find a gaited horse shoer. In response we encourage the use of a regular horse shoer. With our breed you do not have to find a specialty shoers, just a good reliable one.

WORMING

    Worming helps maintain our horse's weight, health and shinny coats. This is done every 6-8 weeks. We alternate Strongid and Ivermectin paste products with the exception being spring and fall when we change to a Bot killing wormer.

VACCINATION

    Vaccinations are given annually and more frequently depending on the level of exposure our horses have to other horses. We vaccinate to maintain health of our herd and to increase life expectancy through preventative measures. We vaccinate conservatively, to avoid overstimulating the immune system.

CONCLUSION

Evaluating individual horse experiences, and provides options to newcomers of our breed can help assure our horses find proper homes. Since we do breed few horses per year at this time, we would be happy to offer assistance to anyone needing to locate other quality stock Rocky Mountain horses. When choosing a horse we will take into account numerous considerations, none of which are related to anything other than finding top quality horses.

Horse purchases made from our farm may include one or all of the following:

  • Photos at varying age levels
     
  • Video at different stages of life (to show a growth pattern and progression)
     
  • Various Rocky Mountain horse articles, references and resources
     
  • Our farm commitment to the public will always include honesty and straightforwardness. We breed for the love of our horses and nothing more.
     

Any feedback about our web site is always appreciated.

Sincerely,

THUNDER RIDGE ROCKIES OF WASHINGTON
If horses are your passion, the Rocky Mountain horse will be your pleasure