More books from my library being added to the BOG2F page !

More books from my personal library are being added to the Buy One, Get TWO FREE page – some vintage, some New Old Stock, some just plain old NEW !

Visit the BOG2F page now.

Take a look – here are just a few of the latest additions.

 

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Horse Coolers

Wool plaid cooler

Coolers

A cooler is a lightweight, absorbent cover designed to help a wet horse dry slowly without getting chilled. Essential during cold or cool, breezy weather, these items are also valuable in hot times. Even when he doesn’t need protection from chilling, a cooler can help dry a horse more quickly by wicking moisture away from his hair and letting it evaporate from the outer surface of the cooler. Sometimes, during cold weather, frost will form on the outside of the cooler, a sure sign that it’s working! In the winter, you can layer two coolers after bathing a horse and remove the inner cooler once it has absorbed most of the moisture.

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The typical cooler style covers the horse from poll to tail and hangs very long on the sides. It usually has a browband, two or more light tie straps under the neck, and a tail loop, but no surcingle or leg straps. This style is good for throwing over a horse, tack and all, after a workout to allow him to cool down while walking or untacking. Small size is 66 by 72 inches, Regular size is 84 by 90 inches, and Large is 90 by 96 inches.

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Coolers also come in a more fitted stable-sheet style, with one or more belly attachments, front closures, and possibly leg straps. Because this style is more secure on the horse, it’s better suited for a horse that’s unattended, such as a horse turned into a stall or paddock to munch hay after a bath or workout.

Click photo to purchase

Coolers used on sweaty horses need to be easily washable, since the dirt and minerals from sweat remain in the material after the moisture evaporates. Since wool coolers, even when washed cold, are more prone to shrinking than synthetic coolers, you can minimize their trips to the washing machine by double-layering them with a more washable synthetic cooler next to the horse.

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Utahn Vintage Leather Saddle Bags

No that is not a typo………..read on……….

These vintage leather saddle bags were made around the late 1940s to early 1950s by Keith Robbins, who was born in 1927. Following is an excerpt from Robbins biography that was written by his son.

It was at this time that Dad worked at the Utahn Saddle Co. (they couldn’t use “Utah” and have it as registered companies name so they called it Utahn). It was a business his father started because he couldn’t find a saddle that was comfortable to him. They began with about five employees, including my Dad. One of their main customers was Sears.

As a publicity stunt, they strapped a saddle on the outside of a single-engine airplane. A flight instructor rode around the Salt Lake valley while sitting in the saddle on the back of the airplane. Eventually, the Utahn Saddle Shop went bankrupt. Then my Dad went to work for Jenkins Saddle Shop.”

Utahn Saddle Co., Vernon Utah vintage Late 1940s, early 1950s heavy skirting leather all stitching intact very clean inside 39″ long from end to end each of the two expandable side pockets are 10 x 12 and the softer chrome tanned leather in the expansion area allows them to be 3 3/4″ deep so hold a lot of stuff

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Spring Cleaning the Tack Room

We are doing our annual spring cleaning of the barn and tack room and have discovered much horse tack that needs to find a new home. Most of it is brand new or used only once for a photo shoot.

If you are looking for bits, bridles, trailer boots, blankets, sheets, scrims and much more…………..browse our tack shop for great bargains on high quality items.

     

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Horse Information Roundup full of Articles and Q&A s

If you have a question about horse care, facilities, horse behavior or training, perhaps your questions has already been asked and answered on my Horse Information Roundup.
There you can browse by categories such as Hoof Care, Riding and Mounted Training or Horse Clothing just to name a few………

OR you can use the Horsekeeping search tool at the top of the page to type in a word or phrase and that will create a list of articles that contain that subject.

To get more in depth information, you can browse through my complete books list. Here is the complete chronology of my books and DVDs

and here is a place where you can look for books by category – the Book Barn.

Cherry Hill

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New Book by Cherry Hill – 101 Ground Training Exercises

So many of you have been asking me about my new book – well it is finally here !

101 GROUND TRAINING EXERCISES
for Every Horse & Handler

8 1/2″ x 11″
255 pages
over 200 drawings and photos
comb bound and punched for hanging

“Every moment you spend with your horse is an opportunity to instill good habits and develop his respect, trust, and willingness to work with you. All horses need a solid foundation of in-hand and guide-line training in order to be safe to handle and ride”.  

Cherry Hill’s comprehensive collection of 101 ground-training exercises leads you and your horse through catching, yielding, turning, sacking out, backing, longeing, long lining, doing obstacle work, and much more. Every exercise is fully illustrated and described in easy-to-follow, step-by-step language that you can refer to during your ground training work — simply hang the book in the barn or on a fence post, and your’re ready to go! The exercises include clear goals, variations, common problems to watch out for, and lesson reviews.

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Check those Winter Horse Blankets Daily !

When we were driving into town and back yesterday, I was checking out all the horses on pasture with turnout blankets, some good, some OK, some really downright awful. In a few cases, I wanted Richard to stop the car so I could either go adjust the blanket or take it off the horse before it became hopelessly tangled!

One horse in particular has had the same blanket on in the same remote pasture since late fall and I really doubt it has been attended to since then !

I know none of you would do that, but just in case you have friends that need some blanketing advice, I have quite a few winter blanket tips on my Horse Information Roundup under the heading Horse Clothing. 

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How do I keep from shocking my horse during dry weather?

Hi Cherry,

This past fall with the start of the dry weather I started shocking my horse when I would touch him or brush, which caused him to jump and me to jump as well.  It even happened one day when I kissed him on the nose.
When I started to blanket him during the cold weather in December, every time I took/ take his blanket off there is a large amount of static electricity, so he now jumps from his blanket being taken off also.  I have resorted to rubbing him with dryer sheets, as I slowly peel off his blanket and use Static Guard on his blanket right after I remove it.
This is a wonderful horse, who is now jumpy when I touch or give him treats with my open hand and to date we have not shocked one another in about 6 weeks, any suggestions on how to get his confidence back?
Thank you, Bridget

Hi Bridget

During dry weather, when you vigorously groom a horse or remove his blanket, static electricity can make a loud snap and cause a stinging zap that can make a horse blanket shy or spooky to your touch.

When a horse’s hair coat is very dry and fluffy, it is more likely to zap. Natural oils insulate the hair shafts and cut down on zapping – that’s one reason I minimizing bathing (which removes natural oils) and why I emphasize currying which stimulates the production of oil and distributes it to the ends of the hairs.

I’ve also found that various blanket and sheet materials work differently in different climates. Here in semi-arid Colorado, certain nylon sheets and blankets with nylon or fleece linings generate more static electricity than cotton sheets or blankets with wool linings. But this can vary according to the temperature and humidity in YOUR barn.

No matter what blanket or sheet I use, when removing it, I DON’T slide it across the horse’s hair coat, which could create static electricity. Instead, I lift the blanket UP and off. To avoid a zap at the moment I separate the blanket from the horse – I do it one handed. I remove the blanket with one hand and keep my other hand free of the horse’s body and the blanket. That way, I don’t complete an electrical circuit and my horse doesn’t get zapped.

I have a short video clip on my DVD “101 Horsekeeping Tips” that shows that.

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Arabian Puts Head Up During Bridling

Hi Cherry,

I am a very young person and i have a greenbroke arabian i green broke him myself but i cant get the bit in and he  always jerks back and i cant put it on the way i am supposed to cause i am shorter and his head goes up a long ways what do i do to keep his head down so i can bridle him. Maci

Hi Maci,

Did you read this post Head Handling?

Here is another article from my website: Difficult to Bridle.

Once you have read those articles and taught your horse not to fear you touching his head, ears and mouth and you have taught him to open his mouth – all without the bridle being anywhere around………then when you bring out the bridle, it will be easy.

You might also want to read this book.

I suggest using this bridling method – you ask your horse to lower his head, put your right arm between his ears with your right hand holding the headstall. Your left hand presents the bit to the horse’s mouth. This photo shows the first bridling for this horse which went well because he had done all his homework !

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Time to Downsize our Horse Book and DVD Library

When my dear hubby Richard built my scriptorium (the cottage where I write) he put in lots and lots of bookshelves…..that was, well, I don’t want to say HOW many years ago but a long time !!

The shelves are now overflowing and its time to downsize my collection.

Most of the books are new or like new. Many have never been opened. Some are current titles and others are vintage and out of print. I’ll be adding a handful every week or so, so keep an eye on Used Horse Books.

Likewise, Richard is also going through his video and DVD collection.

We hope you find something you need or have been looking for.

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