Gail Holmes of Double Dove Ranch in Ft. Worth, Texas, desires only the best. Daughter of the late Jim Holmes, Gail is rooted in the cutting horse breeding industry. In fact, the family’s most noted sire, Dual Rey (bred by Gail’s sister Linda), is an Equi-Stat Elite $42 Million Sire. It’s safe to say Gail understands that continued commitment to quality is what makes a breeding program great. Wi…
When a woman is pregnant, the first recommendation a doctor
makes is to begin prenatal vitamins. This advice holds true for horses as well.
Pregnancy and lactation are the times of highest nutrient demand for any horse.
Roughly speaking, when a mare is providing milk for her foal, her calorie and
vitamin requirements have doubled, protein needs have tripled, and calcium,
phosphorus, and amino…
It’s a jungle out there when it comes to feeds and
supplements for horses. A simple Google search for ‘horse supplement’ turns up
over 67 million results, and ‘horse feed’ shows 485 million! Every ad feels the
same, and every company’s representative says their product is the best, so it
can quickly feel like a losing battle. When evaluating your options, here are a
few good questions to ask.…
Here are a
few general recommendations for hard keepers. These may sound simple but can
have a profound impact on how the horse utilizes nutrition.Have teeth
evaluated by a reputable equine dental specialist at least every 12 months.
Even little things like an under bite or overbite (which most horses have) can
cause hooks and ramps to develop on the molars where we can’t see. These
over gro…
Horses are known for the explosive power that comes from
strong, fully engaged muscles. Along with proper training, an amino acid supplement
can help improve muscling, stamina, and explosive strength in horses. Amino acids are critical to a horse’s health because they
are the building blocks of nearly every soft tissue component within the body
including muscles, tendons, ligaments, and the ne…
The objective of managing and caring for a newborn foal is
to allow them to grow and develop into the best athlete they can be. It doesn’t matter if you’re hoping to have an
international level competitor, a weekend hack horse or just a pasture ornament
we all want our horses to be healthy and sound.
So, what are the key parameters in growing horses that determine long
term soundness and he…
