Horses: Take care of Them

Malnourished horse- You can even see his ribs

            On February 27/2011, we, Animal Protectors went to a stable near our school in our town Juana Diaz. We interviewed some people and among them Mr. Rivera one of the caretakers and owner of the horses. It was very interesting to see the horses of movies and the real life ones. Like I say, that day we saw both sides of the story. We acquired some new knowledge that has helped us since that day. And now we can really compare and tell you about the differences about a healthy horse and one that is not.

Mr. Rivera's healthy horse

     

            Mr. Rivera is the owner of a horse that, as he told us, when it arrived it had signs that it had been abused, not treated as supposed and not even well nurtured. He told us that it took him a year for the horse to recover and be healthy as supposed to. He said that it's not easy because it takes a lot of time, money and care but if it's something you love, it doesn't matter any of that because you'll give it and more. He explained that a horse needs to be bathed once a week so that he doesn’t lose his hair. It also needs to be fed accordingly to its size. They need electrolytes, they have to be shod to protect their foot and also need to be walked, but what he said is that most of all they need, love lots of love. His horse is like another son for him he said, and we could obviously see by the way he talked and treated him. 

Unhealthy horse

          In the stable they had a horse that even though the owners went every day and fed him, it wasn't healthy. He was so skinny that you could see his ribs. Mr. Rivera told us that it probably was that he wasn't getting enough food, because obviously when it's a big horse or animal, it eats more. We also learned that you can know when a horse is dehydrated by looking at his neck. You pinch his neck and if it returns instantly he's good but if it takes seconds for the skin to return he's dehydrated, which he was. His conclusion was that for the horse to recover, it would take over 6 to 7 months and near $800.

  

          We asked him what he thought about the kids that have horses in their house or just on the streets. He said that it was really irresponsible because horses are not animals to be on the streets or on the houses. They need care, a measured diet, exercise, etc. He shared with us about an accident that he had not long ago, when he was at 5:00 a.m. driving to his house and hit a horse that was lose on the street. Mr. Rivera checked the horse and saw that he was fine, but his car was total loss.

         We just want to let you know that even though if you like an animal very much and get it as a pet, you have to know how to take care of it. Do some research, ask experts, take him to the vet. Don’t let it be like these horses. Don’t abandon it because it grew. If you make the compromise and love him when he’s little, do it when the animal grows up too. We’re the ones presenting to you the reality, now it’s up to you to defend and be the voice of your pets.