With warmer weather and more daylight hours just around the corner, it’s the ideal time to think about routine health, fitness and maintenance checks. We’ve created a handy list to help you through this process, including some useful tips on how myYardd can help you.
Now that the end of winter is within sight, it’s an exciting time to start filling your diary with lessons, competitions, clinics, camps and fun rides. But before stepping up your horse’s workload, it’s vital to perform routine checks to ensure your horse’s health and well-being.
Imagine you were going to run a marathon after spending winter just walking the dog. You would think about any health niggles you have, your training regime, optimise your diet and check your equipment to prevent injury and give yourself the best experience. Stepping up your horse’s workload is similar.
Here are our suggestions for Springtime Maintenance Checks for Equestrians
Weight Check
Monitoring your horse all year round and noting measurements in myYardd allows you to build a picture of their seasonal weight changes. In simple terms, a horse should lose weight in the winter, to allow for a controlled amount of weight gain in the summer.
Before stepping up your horse’s workload, take note of any excess weight they are carrying, and start increasing fitness slowly. Doing too much too soon if your horse is even just a little overweight can add significant stress to their joints and muscles which could result in injury.
myYardd Weight Tracker ⬇️
This is where you can record weight tape and weighbridge measurements on a graph to help you closely monitor your horse’s weight.
Worming
A programme of testing before treating for worm control is highly recommended. Resistance to equine worming medication is a real problem that all horse owners should consider. For in-depth, trustworthy advice on all things worming, we’d recommend Westgate Labs. Head to their website to find out all the worming advice you could need: https://www.westgatelabs.co.uk/
myYardd Worming ⬇️
You can record all your horse’s worming test results, and treatments in myYardd, it is useful to include any reactions or notes so you can remember what to do next time.
For example, your horse may have a gut reaction to a worming treatment, by taking note of this in myYardd you’ll be well equipped for the next time you worm so you can give a gut supplement to help them.
Vaccinations
It is recommended that all horses are vaccinated against potentially life-threatening diseases, namely equine influenza and tetanus.
It is your responsibility as a horse owner to ensure that your horse is vaccinated in line with current guidelines and any sporting governing bodies of organisations you plan on competing or training with.
myYardd Vet ➡️ Vaccinations ⬇️
Within the vet section of each of your horse’s profiles in myYardd, you can add all your vaccination dates. These link to your myYardd calendar as handy reminders. Missing vaccinations and having to restart can be costly and inconvenient.
Riding Hat and Body Protector Safety Standards
It can become a minefield figuring out if your hat and body protector safety standards are up-to-date. Since riding helmet standards were merged a few years ago, British Eventing, British Riding Clubs and the Pony Club require a single “hat tag” to be able to participate in all three organisations’ events.
For 2024, this is a pink tag, so once you’ve had your hat checked and tagged with this pink tag you can use it in events across BE, BRC and PC.
Remember, as of 1st January 2023, riding hats with the following standards will NOT be acceptable to wear at British Riding Club, British Eventing, Pony Club, and RDA events: PAS015:1998 and SNELL 2001
For everything you need to know about riding hat and body protector safety standard regulations for 2024, take a look at this blog post 👇
Riding Hat and Body Protector Standards 2024
myYardd Tack Room ⬇️
Riding helmets should be replaced after 3-5 years due to natural wear and tear on the materials. Check individual manufacturers for their official guidance on their riding hats. Of course, if you have a fall it is recommended that you replace your riding hat no matter how old. In myYardd, you can create a digital tack room to record the purchase dates of items and set reminders, so you know when they are due to be replaced.
Saddle Fitting
Many factors can change your horse’s shape, from workload, feeding, age, and turnout. A poorly fitting saddle due to your horse changing shape can cause many issues.
myYardd Tack Room ⬇️
Add your saddle to your tack room in myYardd. You can set reminders to get it checked throughout the season. Your saddler can recommend how often you should get this done.
Tack Check
After a winter of hacking out what could be described as the longest winter on record, your tack is probably crying out for a proper deep clean and condition. This is a great time to check the stitching and find any damage to the leather so you can repair or replace it as necessary.
myYardd Calendar ⬇️
Everyone loves ticking things off a list, right? You can use the calendar in myYardd to set yourself reminders that you can tick off from your myYardd homepage. Super satisfying!
Vital Signs
Are you aware of your horse’s ‘normal’ vital signs? It’s a great idea to monitor your horse’s vitals, especially if you are increasing your workload. This will help you to spot any early warning signs of health issues. You will be thankful if your horse becomes unwell and your vet asks you what their temperature, pulse or respiration normally is. Having this information close at hand makes stressful situations much easier.
myYardd Vital Signs ⬇️
We’ve created the vital signs section of myYardd to make this task super simple.
Transport Maintenance
If your horsebox or trailer hasn’t moved very far over the winter, it will likely need routine checks and maintenance before you can safely travel your horse.
As well as the mechanical checks, be sure to inspect any panelling and flooring. If you’re unsure about doing this yourself, make sure you seek guidance from a professional.
myYardd Transport ⬇️
Add your vehicle or trailer to your tack room in myYardd, and then you can record all your servicing, MOT and insurance details, and set any reminders you find useful.
Don’t have a myYardd account?
Click here to make your free account and start organising your horse today!
Add your first horse and discover how myYardd makes springtime maintenance checks for equestrians so much easier.