Summer Horse Keeping Tip Sheet Bundle

Each tip sheet in this bundle is a multi-page PDF packed with full color photographs and guidance from experts in the horse industry. Whether you print them out and store them in a binder or keep them on your digital device, they’re easy to refer back to whenever you need!

This bundle includes:

7 Top Tips for Spring Horse Pasture Management
It’s that time of year when the grass gets greener and grows fast! But is it time to let your horses begin grazing on the pastures you’ve carefully fenced off all winter? Putting horses out too soon can reduce the productivity of your pastures this coming summer and letting your horses graze too much too quickly can be dangerous to horse health. Here are tips to keep in mind before you open up the gates to the pasture.

Safer Grazing for Horses with Metabolic Issues
Regular exercise is essential for keeping your horse in good health, but if they are overweight or have a metabolic disorder, adjusting your grazing practices to reduce the sugar and carbohydrate load in your horse’s diet can prevent or manage diet-related issues.

Temporary Fencing for Horse Properties
Temporary fencing is a lightweight, inexpensive, and portable solution for a variety of horse keeping scenarios, including rotational grazing. However, it is vitally important to use the correct materials and setup for your horses, land, and management practices. Follow the simple tips in this guide to put temporary fencing to use on your horse property.

Managing Mud, Dust, and Drainage on Horse Properties
Many horse owners see mud as a universal but unavoidable inconvenience of horse keeping. However, mud can lead to disease, increased insect pests, dangerous conditions for both horses and their humans, and dust in the summer time. Mud also has a serious environmental impact when it pollutes streams, ponds, wetlands, and ground water. Stop mud before it starts with these smart solutions.

Water Conservation for Horse Owners
As drought conditions intensify, learn practical strategies to maximize water efficiency in landscaping, pasture irrigation, and stock watering systems. From utilizing native plants to implementing rain barrels and cisterns, empower yourself to make a positive impact on water conservation and mitigate the effects of drought and climate change.

How to Build an Outdoor Wash Rack
Even if you already have an indoor wash stall, an outdoor wash rack can provide extra bathing capacity for your facility and keeps things from getting backed up during the warm summer months. And if you don’t already have a place to bathe your horse, an outdoor wash rack is an option that won’t cost much to build and maintain. Use this handy guide to get the most out of your outdoor wash rack.

How to Compost and Use Horse Manure
Turn your mountain of manure into black gold to use on pastures, food crops, and gardens. Composting benefits your land, your horses and your neighbors by reducing weeds, pollution, flies and pathogens. This tip sheet includes plans for building a three-bin compost system—perfect for operations of any size—plus tips for managing your compost and using it once it’s finished!

Odor Control for Horse Owners
As much as we love them, horses cause a variety of smells which may be particularly bothersome to our non-horsey neighbors. Say goodbye to unpleasant odors with effective strategies for minimizing urine and manure smells, creating a harmonious environment—for everyone’s sake.

Pollinator Hedgerows for Horse Properties
Beneficial insects and native pollinators are keystone species in most land-based ecosystems, which means that if they are removed, the ecosystem will change drastically. Conserving our pollinating insects is critically important to preserving both wider biodiversity and healthy agricultural systems. Hedgerows are an easy and fun way to turn your horse property into a valuable contributor in this process.

Insect Control for Horse Properties
While there may be a time and place for insecticides, there are environmentally sensitive methods for managing insect populations that should be considered first. Use the alternative control methods in this tip sheet to reduce the amount of insecticides used around your property and thereby reduce your impact on the environment.

Attracting Barn Owls for Pest Control on Horse Properties
Rodents are one of the toughest things to deal with on horse properties, but barn owls can help you reduce rodent populations without the use of traps or deadly chemicals. And the good news for horse owners is that attracting owls only requires the installation of a simple nest box. Follow the tips in this guide for putting barn owls to work on your horse property!

The Swallows are Coming: Natural Pest Control for Horse Farms
Swallows are one of many species that provide natural or integrated pest control by reducing flies, mosquitoes, and other pests that harm livestock and carry disease. Learn about attracting and providing habitat for these and other beneficial wildlife.

Minimizing Wildfire Risk on Horse Properties (FREE!)
Wildfire is a very real concern for horse owners, especially when extreme temperatures, limited summer rainfall, strong winds, and lightning storms all lead to high fire danger. Windblown embers from a nearby fire can travel a mile or more, landing on and igniting buildings or other combustibles and putting you and your horses at risk. This checklist will help you identify and reduce wildfire threats on your horse property, farm, or ranch.

Firewise Landscaping on Horse Properties (FREE!)
Reducing your risk of wildfire begins with properly landscaping your property. Follow this guide to learn how to create a defensible space, the area around your home or barn where vegetation is managed to reduce the chance of igniting during a wildfire.

After placing your order, you will receive an email with links to download a .zip folder containing your tip sheets. This link is active for 24 hours. If you do not see the email in your inbox, please check your spam folder.