tera fall 2015
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The Official Newsletter of theTexas Endurance Riders Association
www.texasenduranceriders.org
Volume 15, Issue 3Fall 2015
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In This Issue:
Ride Calendar - p2
AERC Regional Convention - p3
Editor’s Musings - p3
Locating the site of Lameness - p4
Reminiscing Through the Rides- p6-7
Pulsing Down - p8
An Old Ride - p9
Trot Out - p10
Trail Markers is published Quarterly in January, April, July, and October.
It is distributed solely to members of the Texas Endurance Riders Association, and
is comprised of both their input and the opinion of the editor, neither of which
represent the organization’s views or official stance. Of course, if there is no input from
members, then you’re pretty much stuck with the editor’s opinions. Which don’t amount to much, really, but they can sometimes make interesting reading. Other times … well, the
term “bird cage liner” comes to mind.
Advertising rates are as follows (these are for black and white. Call or email for color rates):Full page - $80Half page - $551/4 page - $32Business Card - $22These are one time rates. Contact Todd for yearly rates.
We are also offering a classified section free to TERA members. Non-TERA members -.50¢ a word.
Deadline for the next issue isJanurary 11th, 2016.
Wanna be published? Get it in!
Riders pass the windmill out on trail at this years Spirit of Texas ride at the LBJ National Grasslands.
2015 -2016 TERA Sponsored RidesOld Glory
Oct 31 Nov 1, 2015 Parrie Haynes Ranch, Kileen, TX
John Nowell972-672-8250 [email protected]
Shuffle Away the SummerNov 14-15, 2015
Trace Trails, Athens, TXJamie Lemon281-732-0629
River Run at Los Caminos NaturalesDec 5, 2015
Land Heritage InstituteSan Antonio TX
Eron Howell830-537-4604 [email protected]
Heart of the HillsMar 5-6, 2015
Hill Country State Natural AreaBandera, TXEron Howell
830-537-4604 [email protected]
Racing StripesApril 9-10, 2016
Priefert Ranch, Mt Pleasant, TXKhristin Seymore
903-563-6639 [email protected]
Spirit of TexasApril 23, 2016
LBJ National GrasslandsSelena Copeland
The Last HoorahMay 14th, 2016
Six 0 Ranch, Cleburne, TXBo Parrish
936-852-3532 [email protected]
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President Vickie Roden
11227 Wild Rose LaneAnna, TX 75409972-978-0072
Vice-President Caryne Edwards
311 Hunters Creek Dr.New Braunfels,TX 78132
Secretary John Nowell
3651 White River Dr.Dallas, TX 75287
Treasurer Russell Betts
6101 FM 1374New Waverly, TX 77358
Ride Manager Director Valerie Bixler3598 CR 406
McKinney, TX 75071214-514-3618
Publicity & Awards Director Khristin Seymore
PO Box 559Daingerfield, TX 75638
Membership Director Hope Finan
1560 Rogers Hill Rd.Waco, TX 76705254-339-0012
Education DirectorSelena Copeland
2219 County Rd 2690Alvord TX 76225214-793-0311
2015 Board of Directors
Editor, Todd Hezeau7259 CR 3223 Lone Oak, TX 75453
469.261.8733 [email protected]
The Editor’s Musings...
Welcome to fall!
As well as the wet. October has been a busy month with rides and we have plenty left to ride. Looking forward to a busy fall ride season and so much so, the cooler weather. We have a new ride that is coming up in the first of December to start off the new ride season and please do not forget about the Central Region Convention going on in Januarary as well as sending in your renewal for memberswhip! See you on the trail...Safe Riding,Todd
Make your plans now to join the Central Region AERC family for our annual mini-convention in Ardmore, OK. The event will start with a meet and greet on Friday night; continue with vendor browsing (including the popular used tack exchange), speakers and the Awards
Banquet for TERA and OCER on Saturday, and conclude with our annual members meeting on Sunday morning.
Susan Garlinghouse will be our primary speaker. She will present two sessions: Ten Things You Can Do Better and The Myths of (Mostly Facebook) Equine Nutrition
in the afternoon.Jamie Lemon will have a presentation on Mentoring and Membership, and our favorite Vet
panel will close the sessions. TERA and OCER awards will be presented at the annual awards banquet Saturday evening,
followed by our “PARTY TIME”.
AERC CENTRAL REGION CONVENTIONJanuary 15-17, 2016
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When examining the lame horse, care must be taken to avoid causing further pain and harm. First, look for obvious signs while the horse is at rest. Does the horse appear to be favoring a leg? It is normal for a horse to rest a hind leg; however, it should willingly take weight on the rested leg. It is not normal for a horse to rest a front leg.
If the lame leg is not apparent, pick up and pick out all the feet. Inspect the legs and feet for signs of injury such as bleeding, swelling, heat, or a bounding pulse. Check to see if the horse is unwilling to put full weight on a limb when the opposite foot is picked up. Look for objects such as stones, nails, or wire that may have caused injury to the foot.
Further investigation can involve having the horse led at a trot on a hard, level surface. The horse should be trotted away from, towards, and past the observer. It is vital that the horse trots on a loose rein so its head is free to move up and down. If the horse is lame in a front leg, the head goes up when the lame leg hits the ground (as the horse attempts to put as little weight as possible on that leg), and the head goes down when the good leg takes weight. If the horse is sore in both front legs it will have a stiff, choppy action. Sometimes longeing a horse will demonstrate lameness that is not evident when moving in a straight line, and working on a soft rather than a hard surface may reveal different
degrees of lameness. Hind limb lameness is harder to detect than forelimb lameness because the head nodding may not be as obvious. The horse may nod its head down when taking weight on the sore hind limb. From the side view, short stepping in the lame leg may be seen; from behind, the hindquarter on the side of the lame leg may rise higher than the other side (again, as the horse attempts to put less weight on the painful leg).
Once the lame leg has been identified, recheck for heat in the leg and foot; swelling; a strong digital pulse; pain when a joint is palpated or flexed.
Determining exactly where the problem is once the lame leg has been identified can take a lot of skill, and usually a veterinary examination is required. This may involve a number of diagnostic procedures or tests such as:
• a flexion test in which the leg is held in a flexed position for one minute and the horse is then immediately trotted out by a handler; the vet will watch for lameness in the first steps taken after release;• hoof test using hoof testers;• diagnostic imaging using ultrasound, thermography, radiography, and/or scintigraphy; • nerve blocks
The history of the horse is important for making a
diagnosis. Keeping a record of the following factors will be helpful for the vet.
• Has the horse been lame in the past?• When was the horse last shod, and does the horse have any abnormal shoe wear?• Have there been any recent changes in the management of the horse?• Does the lameness increase when the horse is ridden?• Does the lameness disappear/change with exercise?• How old is the horse?• What type of work is the horse doing now?• Is the horse stumbling?• Is the horse undergoing any treatments?• What surface does the horse usually work on?
Once the exact site and possible cause of the lameness have been determined, a proper course of treatment can be prescribed.
Locating the Site of a Horse’s Lameness By Kentucky Equine Research Staff · May 14, 2012
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Pokie Okie Pioneer RideSep 11-13th 2015Stillwater, OK
Reminiscing Through the Rides
Photos courtesy: John Nowell http://www.remuda.smugmug.com
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Reminiscing Through the Rides
Wacky Waco WideOct 3-4th 2015C-Bar Ranch
Photos courtesy: Shane Prevost
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Continued on page 11
PULSING DOWN By Selena Copeland
There is an art to pulsing down at the vet check. AERC allows you 30 minutes to pulse down to criteria, but ideally you want your horse to pulse down within 5 to 10 minutes of arriving at the vet check. Your horse’s pulse can be elevated for several reasons including not being recovered from strenuous exercise, being overheated, being in pain, having anxiety or being worried. Your horse can be in pain from lameness, sore muscles, cramping muscles, poor saddle fit, carrying an unbalanced rider, having a wound or tack gall or colic or the beginnings of colic. Your job is to eliminate the high pulse due to anxiety, worry or not being recovered from exercise. The vet will identify the other reasons and if necessary either pull your horse or give you an opportunity to “fix the problem” by at least identifying it for you.
With that in mind, you should know about how long it takes for your horse to pulse down from a training run similar to the loop you just finished. (Because you should not be going any faster than you would go at home on the same type of terrain or in the same type of weather.) If he can normally pulse down in 10 minutes, then 10 minutes before you arrive, dismount, loosen the girth 1 hole (unless it is already too loose) and drop your bit, reattaching your reins to the halter part of your bridle. Make sure your girth is comfortable for the horse, but will not allow your saddle to slip during the trot out. Doing these 3 things will drop your horse’s pulse from 10 to 30 beats. It tells him he is done for now and can relax. Sometimes when you loosen your girth, you lose the heart beat on your
monitor so it is difficult to know when to present your horse to the pulse takers. If your horse has trouble pulsing down, I would suggest buying a handheld heart check that you can use even if you strip your saddle.
The next step is to allow him to drink. Most horses will drink after their pulse has dropped to 90 and they will drink more right off of trail than they will after you have let them stand around and cool off. Drinking is the most important duty of an endurance horse, so do whatever it takes to encourage drinking. If your horse will continue drinking while you cool him then start sponging or pouring water on him from a container. Remember that the horse does not get cooled from the addition of water, but from scraping the water off. Feel your horse’s body temperature with your hand, if he feels hot, he is hot. If you just keep pouring on water without removing it, the water will heat up from his body temperature and it will be like adding humidity to the heat. Always keep a scraper in your crew bag or at least use your sponge to remove the water, do not just add the water.
If you have a horse that pulses down and cools down readily, we usually leave the saddle on simply because of the time required to remove it and the hassle of hauling your tack back to your campsite for the hold. But, if your horse is hot to the touch and doesn’t cool immediately or you are at a hot or especially hot and humid ride, you need to remove the saddle and pad as soon as you arrive in camp. Because cooling your horse is your 2nd most important job after getting your horse to drink.
If you rode that loop with a buddy horse or your horse has an important buddy left in camp that he is anxious to see, make sure the 2 horses stick together until after you have pulsed in and completed the vet check. Nothing raises a pulse faster than a missing buddy horse. You probably need to discuss the need for the other horse to stay with yours before you arrive in camp, so that the other person doesn’t go directly to the vet and then leave you. Also be aware, if you don’t know the person that well, they may not be willing to waste part of their 30 minute hold waiting on you to get your horse’s pulse down. In that case, you may be better off separating before you arrive in camp to see if your horse can get over the separation anxiety before you arrive in camp.
When standing in line to have your horse’s pulse taken or after you have pulsed in, but you are in line for the vet check, there are a couple of other things you can do. If your horse expects a treat as soon as his ride is over, by all means give him one, munching on grass hay or alfalfa while waiting in line is also relaxing for him and will help him recover. However, for most horses the actual act of chewing and swallowing seems to raise the pulse slightly, so make sure he is finished with his few bites right before it is your turn with the vet. Another thing that helps a horse relax and drops the pulse is lowering of the head. Placing hay on the ground accomplishes that, but that is not the best choice at the moment the PR person is taking your horse’s pulse, because of the chewing, swallowing and excitement over
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2016 MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION & MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL
PLEASE FILL OUT THE INFORMATION COMPLETELY. THIS WILL BE THE ONLY INFORMATION KEPT ON FILE.
Name: ___________________________________________________________ TERA #: ___________
Address: ______________________________________________________________________________
City: ______________________________________________________ Zip: ______________________
Home Phone: ________________________________ Mobile Phone: ___________________________
E-Mail: _________________________________________________ Date of Birth: ____ / ____ / _____
Renewing Member? ____ If so, prior year TERA #: _______________ AERC #: ______________
____ Single Membership is entitled to one vote at TERA meetings and is $25.00 per year.
____ Family Membership is entitled to two votes at TERA meetings and is $35.00 per year.
If you are registering as a family, please indicate below, the first and last names of your spouse and names and ages of any minor family members:
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
TERA has an emergency ride information contact program, in the event of an emergency
regarding some aspect of a specific TERA ride, you would be contacted with that information.
This is purely voluntary. If you wish to enroll, please fill out the following information.
Your Name: ___________________________________________________________________________
Horse’s Name: _________________________________________________________________________
Phone 1: ______________________________________________________________________________
Phone 2: ______________________________________________________________________________
Please mail this completed application and a check made payable to TERA to:Hope Finan1560 Rogers hill Rd.Waco, TX 76705
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An Old Ride Returns An old ride is returning after an 8 year absence. We, Ted and I are proud to announce that we will be hosting the Last Hoorah ride in May 14, 2016 at our Six O Ranch in Cleburne, TX. It will be a one day ride with a 25 and a 50 mile distance and we will have some new trails along with all the other great trails . The ranch has deep woods, open meadows and scenic overlooks. We hope all the riders who rode the last Last Hoorah! in 2008 will come along and ride as well as all the new riders who have never ridden the ride. It will be TERA and AERC sponsored .
Continued from page 8
having food. I have seen a lot of experienced endurance riders use some version of the Linda Tellington-Jones version for the “head-down cue”. She is best-known for her T-Touch techniques, but I found it interesting that a lot of her techniques were first tried on endurance horses and her personal Arabian. Did you know that Linda Tellington-Jones has completed several 100-mile endurance rides? Signal your horse to lower his head by standing just in front of him and slightly to the same side as the pulse taker and tug lightly on the lead rope. Show your horse how to respond to the signal by placing your left hand (if you are standing on his left side) on his head half-way between the muzzle and eyes and placing your right hand on the poll. Holding your right hand gently curved, fingers together, use the pads of your fingers to push the skin slowly in a circle, fingers on one side of the crest
and thumb on the other side. You can also use a motion gently lifting upwards. Linda Tellington-Jones calls this the Clouded Leopard Touch. Different horses respond to different levels of pressure. She says you can use pressure levels of 1 to 4. It is relaxing to the horse, kind of like having someone walk up and massage your neck for you when you are tense. I used it on my yearling who loves getting a bath, but is fearful of the shower stall. After she had learned to lower her head in a relaxing environment (her stall), I actually managed to get her to sigh and lower her head after she entered the shower stall. Keeping your breathing even, slow and deep will also help your horse to relax and lower their head. One of the most counter-productive things you can do is to yell at your crew or someone in camp even if it is to say hi. Your horse will also pick up on your mood and elevate his heart rate if you
are excited, anxious or worried or moving quickly. So, practice the head down cue at home to find just the right pressure that works to relax your horse and lower his head. You can also try rocking his crest gently from side to side.
If regardless of what you do your horse has an elevated heart rate, then he is probably in pain, overheated or overworked. The rest of your vet exam may pinpoint the problem. Remember the 4 corner posts of endurance riding - manage to stay on, avoid getting lost, pulse down quickly and trot out sound.
Fall 2015
Texas Endurance Riders Association
%Hope Finan1560 Rogers Hill Rd.Waco, TX 76705
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Trot Out
Showin some love!Photo courtesy of: John Nowell http://www.remuda.smugmug.com
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