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So You Bought A Friesian, Now what!
06/21/2008 - By Dianne Olds Rossi
Running Free
Fantasy Horse
Help for the new Friesian horse owner
Chapture One
Look for further articlesSo You Bought a Friesian……Now What.
Common Sense Care for the New Friesian Owner
INTRODUCTION
The Dream Quest
He lazily shook his head causing his abundant forelock to fall over one eye. Watching the group of visitors walk towards his paddock he lifted himself, bringing his large frame upright and to attention. He was used to being admired for he was special and unusual enough for all to stop and admire his ebony color and long flowing hair. He hears the human’s oh’s and ahh’s as if they were looking upon him as some kind of magical creature. Standing at attention, head upright, the wind blew his mane gracefully around his neck. A tall slim lady separated from the group and strode toward him, her eyes never leaving his as she drew closer. He lowered his massive head snorted and stood, until the lady reached his fence, then he turned and strutted to the other side of his paddock, his long feathers swirling around each leg as he pranced. He arched his neck and threw his head sideways to see if she was still watching, bringing more adoration from the crowd now gathering beside her. Suddenly he turned and galloped back to the fence stopping in a half rear scattering all but the slim lady. Lowering his head, their eyes met and she laid her hand on his nose in a loving caress, his large dark eyes softened and he became quiet.
This was my first meeting with the horse of my dreams and I bet your magical encounter was not much different. Think you chose your black steed? Think again, as this magnificent creature has just captured your heart. He is what every girl dreams of… her fantasy and not so different from her dream of the Knight in shinning armor who whisks her off to never, never land. Move over husband you are about to share your sweetheart with a big, black, magical gentle giant.
CONGRADULATIONS YOU HAVE THE HORSE OF YOUR DREAMS!
Congratulations, you have just picked a friend for life…. your new Friesian now owns you lock stock and barrel. This hairy black teddy bear is going to rule your life and you are going to enjoy every minute of it. Don’t get taken in with that angel face and big black eyes, he is a jokester, a great big bundle of mischievous joy.
FIRST TEN OWNERSHIP REQUIREMENTS:
Have big pocketbooks.
Husbands, your horsy wife is now beyond your control.
Honey Do List – and it begins with rebuilding the barn to suit the big fellow.
Buy the biggest trailer you can then find a truck to match
Throw in trips to Holland with the girls and promise “No honey, I’m not going to buy another horse” always with a grin.
Special coat conditioners and shampoos for “blacker than black”
Learn new language i.e. “ster, Fhana, and runner”
Shop till you drop at the local saddler, everything is too small and the wrong color
Special horsy hair treatments, combs and hair & tail bags
Blankets, one for every season in the year and in matching colors
Find a farrier who knows a Friesian is a horse and not a cow
With that beginning, now let’s enjoy the world of the Friesian horse.
THE BEGINNING
The first few weeks have been exciting and fun. All your friends have given the appropriate Oh’s and Ah’s; he has strutted magnificently for all who came to see him. The excitement is over and you are together with your new Friesian horse, now what?
Friesians are different, this you already know after searching, saving and deciding which horse to bring home. Likely the one you brought home was the one with the big black eyes that nuzzled and cuddled you under your arm.
HOUSING
Own your own farm? Lucky you. You bought your Friesian because of his dream like qualities, he’s different but because of this some care and considerations are in order.
At first horses lived in the wild. It’s very romantic visualizing your black horse thundering across the open range, mane and tail flying. It’s the “free thing!” In actuality what you envision and what is true are two different things. If you have ever seen a herd of Mustangs up close and personal you know what I am saying. Picture your new equine friend with his feet unattended, broken and chipped; mane and tail knotted and missing; bites, scratches and scars from old injuries, ribs showing. Of course no one who spends the amount of money that just left your bank account is planning on this scenario but in fact a lot of this can happen in your own back yard.
No matter the breed or value, horses rub, scratch, dig, roll and scratch in the dirt. Your challenge is to keep these horsy antics within an acceptable range with as much comfort and freedom for the horse as possible.
A nice roomy stall is paramount and must be free of obstacles that encourage rubbing. I would also suggest strongly that you invest in rubber matting to save yourself the pain of filling up the hole that will continually grow no matter how well you clean. A paddock attached to the stall is a very nice touch and gives the horse room to move about. Ideally the paddock should not look greener on the other side. By this I mean that if you have grass growing up to his fence, he is going to try and get it by any means possible, through, under or around and you will walk in one morning to find your horse with a customized “hair doo” or “butch in the middle.” So a good rule of thumb is too keep the area around the paddock free of hay, grass or any delectable horse treats with a nice clean three foot area between his paddock and lawn or pasture. Also you might give a little less hay at each feeding and feed him three times a day, this way he is keeping himself busy.
Paddocks should be kept level and clean at all times, this is easily accomplished by cleaning up after your horse as least twice a day and leveling any areas he has banked up by walking or playing. You will find that in the end it is much easier on you and will also eliminate some of the fly problems. Leveling the paddock is essential otherwise when the weather turns you will end up with puddles of water standing in mud holes instead of a running off. It is also a good idea to lock your horse inside when it rains and not to let him back into the paddock until the ground has dried up a bit. This way he won’t make it a mud pen just by walking on it and in a few days his paddock is ready for him again. A little maintenance goes a long way and furry Friesian legs can get pretty messy not to mention the problem with scratches, a common occurrence with the fancy feathered feet.
Most of us do not have the large green pasture to keep our horses in, and if you are one of the lucky ones, good for you and good for Trigger. Careful of that privilege for it can come back and bite you. Carefully monitored, pastures are a wonderful and natural thing.
A couple years ago I was in an area that had these lush green pastures and observation found these traps.
Leaving the horse to fend for himself in the pasture is not a wise thing unless you check on him and his surroundings daily. It is very easy to glance at him as you drive by, see him happily munching away and you go on in your day. Did you check his water? Birds can fall in and foul the water, green mold forms in the still water so the tubs must be cleaned regularly, not to mention the friendly Kermit frogs who also love a dip in the pond. Is the fencing all upright and secure, what is the condition of the pasture, is there enough feed? In the summer your pasture can get what I call “burr weeds” and these are the pits. Soon without fail, your black friend will roll or walk through that exact spot they are gestating and before you know it you have a mass of burrs entangled in the manes and tails. If you don’t notice this for a week, you have a nightmare and in the process of removing them you are going to give that Friesian of yours the “Hunter Look.”
Is it not a good thing? Of course it is but just because he is self sufficient grazing all day is no reason to ignore his conditioning. I brought my horse in every evening for dinner and in that way I was able to check him over, knew what kind of condition he was in and gave him supplements needed in addition to the grass. Old Trigger knew what time I would arrive and he was waiting every evening at the gate nickering to come in. I also always brought him in if I knew there was a storm coming and if it came up while I was gone; I was secure in the knowledge that he had a pasture enclosure to get under and out of the storm.
GROOMING
We have all seen the magnificent manes and tails on the Friesian horses but just because you have a Friesian doesn’t mean you are going to have the same accessories. I have had Friesians that never grow a long mane although they may have a full and long flowing tail. I have been through all the moves to have the longest and fluffiest and I hope these following hints gives you an incite on keeping your beauty in the trim.
Sand is very detrimental to long hair. As horses roll, they rub and scratch causing the course grains in the sand do great harm actually cutting the hair. Most paddocks are sand so you are forewarned if you decide to keep your Friesian on this kind of ground. Braiding manes and tails under these conditions will further cause hair loss as the dirt will now mat into the braids even if you have them bagged. Of course if your horse lives outside on dirt you will get only half of the hair he can grow if you retain that much. In this case you can only wash him as often as you can and trust to luck.
I found that keeping the horses in at night, kept in heavily bedded stalls and turned out for awhile during the day works well. This way they are doing most of their lying down in the stall on bedding as they are busy during the day watching outside going on’s.
If your Friesian is prone to scratching you might want to try and control the situation or soon you will have a customized “doo by horse”, this usually in the form of completely bare spots along his mane where he delightfully rubbed to his heart’s content. A good attach is to buy a heavy duty slinky, one of those stretchy hoods that the horse can wear and be comfortable. Getting the heavy duty one will stand up to the wear and tear of rubbing but be sure and get the one with the zipper as trying to stretch one over the head will be a task.
Tails are a little different and keeping them clean and if necessary a fungus anti itch spray helps. There are all sorts of remedies for rubbing so try and find what works for you. After washing the tail I keep mine in tail bags so that the sand doesn’t break off the ends. Be aware though that tail bags and braiding takes care and I find if leaving it up any longer than 10 days at a time will cause a great deal of matting and loss of hair.
If he is really persistent you might want to hot wire the top rail so that he stays away from the rubbing post, this also will prevent him from arranging the paddock into different patterns then originally designed or removing the boards to his liking. Some Friesians don’t rub at all; in that case you are very lucky. Others are very insistent and will force you to be updated on the latest and greatest ways to keep them away from the poles and fences.
Letting a black horse stand out in the sun is the best way I know of getting a bleached black Friesian. Black horses turn a terrible color of red or orange. If this doesn’t bother you then of course let him spend his days in the sun however if you want the black beauty you bought it’s best that he be outside in the evening and not during the day. Another option is a summer scrim sheet that allows the air to come through but will keep at least his body free of the sun’s damage. There are also new summer scrim hoods that work well also.
If you are really a conorsiour of the magical look of the Friesian as I am then a great deal of care goes into the daily upkeep. This is my procedure that has proven to work on most horses. I am assuming he is in a stall, in a barn and on shavings.
Brush mane & tail daily with a non-grab hair brush, (available at your local Wal- Mart) but only after spraying the mane well with a good hair conditioner. This way you are not ripping through the hair and removing the knots and hair together. Gently combing the mane and tail daily separates the hairs making it softer and fluffier otherwise the natural curl in their hair makes it stay in long twisty condition. After awhile when the mane and tail stay fluffy, grooming daily is not as necessary.
Hold the ends of the mane and tail tightly with your hand and start freeing the tangled hair from the bottom first, then hold another piece higher up and do the same. After the tangles are free you can brush the hair freely. Most Friesians manes and tails are wavy and holding the hair keeps it from pulling out. Raking a brush or comb through the mane from the top and through the tangles will remove your horse’s mane almost immediately.
Do the same with the tail. Sometimes they are so thick it is hard to hold and comb but taking part of the hair and holding it between your legs while you comb out another area works well. Remember to spray with conditioner all through the tail and not just on top.
If your horse has rolled in sand it’s a good idea to wash both mane and tail when you bring him in, especially if you have him braided. Keeping him clean is a big part of maintaining his glorious looks.
The feathers on your horse are part of his mystic and I also spray and comb them daily also. The fancy hair on Friesian legs is very different and keeping them fluffy and clean makes a very attractive sight. Always check under the feathers for little scabs that must be dealt with. These are called scratches and are prevalent on any breed that carries the feathers because of the dampness retained close to their legs. In the summer the flies can make them raw and sore spreading them wildly. There are many fungus sprays available for horses and these usually work well to keep these scratches under control.
FEET
Friesians are a light-heavy draft breed of horse, although the breeding trend is changing to produce a lighter taller riding animal. The feet of any horse is one of great importance and who hasn’t heard the old saying “no feet, no horse.” I find there are two scenarios that are to be addressed. If your horse was imported from Holland you will want to watch the “pancake effect.,” this being the splaying out of the foot with a draft horse look. This mostly is not unhealthy for the horse but is rather unsightly and cumbersome making him appear rather heavy moving. I find that this is the case with horses that were raised in pastures and backyards in Holland, not specifically used for show. At the show barns in Holland you will almost never see this effect in their horses.
Regular maintenance will correct this pancake look only if you are aware of the look and you request your farrier to begin correcting it. Within about six months you will have a nice full and normal looking horse foot. I will interject here that it is important to have an experienced farrier and if you have no knowledge of “good or bad” farriers you might want to make a friendly trip to a local horse trainer or your saddle shop and ask for a few referrals.
BODY CARE
I use a large horse vacuum when grooming my horses. This stimulates the body and removes all trace of dust and dirt. I almost never have to wash the body of my horses other than spraying the sweat off after a good work out. Of course everyone doesn’t have a vacuum so good old sweat and hard work is the answer. I see many people grooming “at their horse” and you might as well blow on them for the effect you are having. Grooming is stimulating, it brings out the natural oils and produces a shinny healthy look to your horse. There are also many feed supplements to additionally help you achieve this look. Good tools are necessary and those include:
A. rubber curry
B. stiff brush
C. soft brush
D. finish brush
E. towels
F. hook pick
G. mane and tail comb
H. small bucket of tepid water
I. sponge
Now you are ready.
First run actively in a circular motion with the rubber curry comb. This stimulates the horse’s body oils and removes the dead hair. Of course you will be wearing this dead hair all day but I guess it's a good tradeoff. Horse brushes work well on jeans too but the fluffy warm fleece jackets are notorious hair and dirt catchers. I find that sweat shirts are best for me and I can remove them when I am finished grooming and then wear my fluffy stylish fleece coat. By now you might have guess I am a little set back by handlers and riders not looking as well kept as their horses and I find nothing as distractive as a disheveled unkempt handler leading a stunningly beautifully groomed horse.
Alas, I digress so BACK TO GROOMING.
After the rubber curry use the hard brush, this removes the dead hair and dirt and straightens the body hair. Don’t forget the legs and be sure to look beneath and under the belly for dirt and shavings. Next the soft brush smoothes the hair and removes more of the dust and by the way, horses usually love to have their faces done with this one. Don’t forget to comb his feathers also, each time you separate the hair with your mane comb they become light and fluffy instead of twisted together and dirty looking. Finally the flat finish brush really completes the grooming actually putting a finish shine on the horse’s coat. End with a good towel wipe all over his body, face, nose and you are good to go. There is much more to grooming a horse for the show ring but that is for another time and another book.
AFTER THE RIDE
I find the most distasteful thing in the horse world is seeing a horse put away with ugly saddle and bridle sweat marks. Not only is it very poor horsemanship but uncomfortable for the horse. He has just carried you around for an hour or so and it should be your attentiveness that makes sure he is comfortable when you leave. This happens more than you would believe and it is a pet peeve of mine. It takes just a little time to squeeze out a sponge and remove the sweat stains. Don’t forget between the hind legs as foam will gather in the tight folds of his skin with movement. Also pick up his tail and clean the sweat from around his tail and butt to avoid scabs forming from the sweat. A little vinegar in the wash water will remove the sweat and foam faster.
If it is summer and very warm I spray wash with a hose nosal to remove all the sweat from his coat. All my horses have ties in their stalls and they are stand there until they are dry. If you have cooled down your horse properly in your ride there is no need to hand walk them afterwards and they can go directly to the wash rack before their hair dries to a hard crust. Soon you will see the water beading while spraying your horse much like a wax job on your car all from the constant cleaning and brushing, it is a wonderful thing to see.
One thing about washing your horse, I find it very unsettling to see the handler squirting a horse’s face, the horse is frantically holding his head as high as possible to get away from the water. This is totally unfair to your horse and I suggest that you put your face directly into the spray coming out of a full running shower to see how really uncomfortable it is. There is no reason you cannot take a bucket of water with a big soft sponge and wash his face. He might still pull away until he gets used to it, the water will run down your arm and you will curse him under your breath but in the process of training you will keep you horse from the abuse.
