archives

Pre 2022 material from the old website

Study: Horses Able to Stay Fit When Kept at Pasture

By Kristen M. Janicki, MS, PAS Oct 01, 2013 I found this article of interest. Hope you do also. I know it can be hard to find a place in Boulder County to board your horse that can provide adequate pasture. Boulder County Horse Association continues to advocate for land use in Boulder County. We are able to do this by your continued support thought membership, donation and volunteer efforts. Please contact us if you have time to volunteer to help us to continue supported equine-related activities in Boulder County. There are many theories on how to best manage performance horses during periods with no forced exercise (whether after sustaining an injury or just for a rest period), and owners are often left with a dilemma: stall rest or pasture turn-out? To find the answer, a team of researchers recently completed a study evaluating how well horses maintain a certain fitness level with either pasture turnout or stall confinement. Patricia M. Graham-Thiers, PhD, and a team of Virginia Intermont College researchers assigned 16 horses in light to moderate work to one of three groups: pasture turnout (P), stalled and exercised (E), or stalled with no exercise (S). During the 14-week study, horses in the P group roamed on approximately 100 acres of pasture, while horses in the S and E groups stayed in stalls during the day and were allowed access to a one-acre paddock at night. The researchers exercised horses in the E group five days per week for one to two hours per day […]

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A job well done on the Sage trail

I was looking for a way to give back to the community after the flood. This volunteer opportunity, organized by the City of Boulder Open Space and the United Way, was perfect! On Thursday, October 3rd I worked alongside 14 other volunteers of all ages, and four City of Boulder Open Space employees. Volunteers met at Boulder Valley Ranch at 9 AM and worked until 12 PM. It was a very well organized trail restoration project. All the necessary equipment was provided along with water and snacks (donated by Cliff Bar and Kind Bars) for the volunteers. We had a specific plan about the work that needed to be done, and an overall good feeling that all of us were involved in an activity that benefited the Boulder Community. We rotated jobs shoveling new trail material into eroded areas, moving soil filled wheel barrows, loading dirt into the back of pickup trucks, and spreading and tamping the soil to restore a portion of the Sage trail. We were all happy to be able to help, and finished the project knowing we had done a good job. Thank you City of Boulder Open Space staff, you were so well organized and upbeat. It was a day well spent! I’m looking forward to my next opportunity to work with this group, and help with the flood relief effort. Smiles…Samantha M

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Risk of Spontaneous Combustion of Wet Hay

Information sourced from an article published by Steve Fransen and Ned Zaugg, Washington State University The recent flooding in Boulder County requires close monitoring of stored hay for signs of spontaneous combustion. Dry hay (stored at 15 percent moisture or less) is safe for long-term storage. However, if the hay has become wet the quality has been permanently changed and there is an increased potential of a fire hazard from spontaneous combustion. As microbial  organisms grow in wet hay they produce heat while drying out the surrounding surfaces of the hay for energy. More drying surfaces produces more microbial growth and different types of microbes live and die as the internal bale temperature climbs. When the bale temperature reaches about 150 Fº the hay is on a one-way street and going the wrong direction! The larger the haystack and the more densely packed the hay is the longer it may take to show signs of internal bale burning. Internal bale temperature may take several weeks before reaching 150 Fº, but from this point on more heat resistant bacteria start a process of chemical change that rapidly increases temperatures to the point of spontaneous combustion.Chemical reactions and microbial growth in hay occur because of the change in availability of moisture, oxygen, and pressure to create heat to the point of ignition and fire. Early warning signs are: Steam rising from bale surfaces and condensing on the roof and eves of the barn. Often molds will start to grow on all these surfaces too. An acrid, hot, tobacco

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USEF Equine Disaster Relief Fund seeks donations for Colorado horse owners

From The Horse Channel: Edited Press Release Historic flooding across Colorado has destroyed thousands of homes and farms. Thousands of horses have been displaced or are stranded across 4,500 square-miles of flood-ravaged terrain. This area is densely populated with horses, including many large breeding and training facilities all along the Front Range. Hay and feed are being airlifted to hundreds of stranded farm owners and delivered to hundreds more in dire need of feed for their horses. Recovery from a disaster of this magnitude will be arduous and ongoing, but not impossible. When the flooding stops, the recovery is only beginning. The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) is calling on the equestrian community to aid fellow horse owners by donating to the USEF Equine Disaster Relief Fund. With the support of USEF CEO John Long, the USEF asks that equestrians, equestrian fans, and all people who share a love for horses make a donation to the USEF Equine Disaster Relief Fund. These recent storms have struck the heart of Colorado’s horse country and have made the cost of relocating, feeding, and caring for horses overwhelming. With the support of the community, the fund will help make sure horses are not overlooked, forgotten, or abandoned, and help to relieve the burden of affected horse owners and caretakers in this, and in future, times of crisis. This fund was established with the goal of delivering aid in the most effective manner possible. “It is important to understand this fund is a dollar in and a dollar out,” says

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Our hearts go out to all in the Boulder area after the floods

A bit if sunshine has appeared after all this rain. I only hope the livestock in Boulder County has survived this historic event. We have been happy to house a dear friend isolated from her partner at the top of Pinebrook Hills. We just got word and a photo that the Boulder Valley Ranch horses (where I board) appear to have survived and are happily grazing this morning. The ranch house has been flooded and the area around the house was a lake. We hope that the Lover family is doing well after all this devastation and their losses minimal. Do not attempt to drive down Longhorn Road at this time it is washed out and extremely muddy. Many others have flooded barns, basements and hopefully their hay is high and dry. I hope those at the fairgrounds are safe and if the Boulder County Horse Association can be of any help by providing trailer transport please contact us and we will try to assist you in any way we can. Dry in downtown Boulder, Linda P

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Vedauwoo: It’s always an adventure!

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to catch another camp trip to one of my favorite places. I joined a group of fun gals some new some old acquaintances. Even though my allergies were raging (sage and ragweed this time of year in the area) I had enough antihistamines and a mask to help me out. I arrived Friday late morning and pulled into the campsite, unloaded and joined the group heading South past the Beaver Dam. It was a nice pace and all the riders and horses were doing great for a larger group, including the ponied horse. We crossed through a barbed wire fence gate and headed on towards the lovely rock formations to the South and some open meadows that in late September usually are popular as hunting camps. After a short pit stop lunch we all headed towards a water crossing that had a fairly easy access but a slight uphill rise on the exit side. One horse was not quite happy about this crossing. The rider dismounted and tried to lead him across—nope not interested. So another rider suggested ponying him. Hmmm…. I was a bit wary of this! Well sure enough the horse resisted, she had to release the rope hold and off he went. First running close by in a large circle, then a larger circle, then and even larger circle, and then well off he goes back from whence we came disappearing down the trail. The owner on foot, and a rider started tracking as the rest of the

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4th of July: Friends, Camping and a Helicopter Ride

BCHA member Dan Swenson just had a head-injury accident resulting from a bad fall off his wonderful and well-traveled, mellow mule, and wrote up the episode for the Northern Colorado Back Country Horsemen newsletter. Photos by Cynthia NCBCH. To Helmet, or Not to Helmet?  That is the question. I would like to share an experience I had over the fourth of July weekend with friends north of Red Feather Lakes. My wife and I were invited to go camping on private land for what we were going to make a four day weekend. Everything started out great! I rode my bike from our house west of Longmont up to Ted’s place at the intersection of 287 and Highway 14, and Mary Ann followed with the truck, picked me up, and off we went.  Arriving right before dark, we set up camp and settled in for the night. The following day was to be the norm for the weekend which included a nice breakfast, fellowship with friends, and of course, a horseback ride.  More fellowship, dinner, and as usual, lots of laughs followed. Now years ago I had made the decision to purchase a helmet to wear while riding. I do not ride my bike (mountain or road) or ski without wearing my helmet. My job requires the use of my brain, so that seemed only logical. Well things didn’t start off so good that day. Only a short distance from camp was a small creek crossing that was pretty well overgrown with willows. I dismounted and

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It was a fun first Fun Ride!

It was a beautiful day at Hermit Park for our first BCHA fun ride! The temperature was in the low 70s and the wildflowers incredible. A few of us tacked up and rode out from the Hermit Cabin site around 10:30 am, we decided to explore the old Sawmill site along with some new trail exploring. We ran into a few other Fun Riders as we descended down onto the two track that leads to Homestead meadow. They  had camped at the equestrian campground and rode out earlier. After the ride we sat around the picnic table sharing a refreshing Jicama salad, pasta salad, zucchini fritters, and mouth-watering watermelon. Thanks to all who came up, it was fun to see you, and look for another ride this Fall. Linda P

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Real war horse, Reckless, honored with statue at Marine museum in Quantico

By Kay Coyte Published July 22, 2013 Washington Post This weekend marks the 60th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice, the day an agreement was signed to end the fighting in the peninsula now divided into North and South Korea. On Saturday, men and women who fought in Korea will be honored in Washington. But the day before, another kind of leatherneck (a nickname for a Marine) will be honored: a little red horse. Her name was Sergeant Reckless, and the Marines “drafted” her to pack ammunition to the battlefield and carry the wounded back to safety. But here’s the thing: She did it on her own. She kept climbing those jagged hills even after she was wounded. The soldiers came to love her so much that they brought her home from Korea after the war to live at Camp Pendleton in California. On Friday, “Operation Reckless” at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Quantico will feature the unveiling of a life-size statue of Sergeant Reckless, a real war horse. “She was one of them, and that’s why they’re honoring her,” said Robin Hutton, of Ventura, California, who has written a book on the mare to be published this year. “She wasn’t a horse; she was a Marine.” You might think that Sergeant Reckless was the inspiration for last year’s movie “War Horse.” But that was based on a children’s fiction book about an English farm horse on the front lines of World War I. The story of Sergeant Reckless is just as epic, and all true. Lieutenant Colonel

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Full Moon Ride in Vedauwoo

It was a friends big 60th and we decided to head to one of my favorite riding places just over the border in Wyoming, Vedauwoo. Known to the Arapaho Indians as “Land of the Earthborn Spirit, it is a place that moves me. Rock formations, wildflowers, antelope, an occasional moose and usually wild weather make this primitive camping experience forever a place of wonder for me. This special weekend marked a milestone for my friend Jane, and just happened to also be when the closest and largest full moon of the year would present itself in 2013 (the next closest occurance will be in August, 2014). My BFF Jane is one of my most fun friends. She has ridden and completed the Tevis Endurance Race twice or maybe three times, I have stopped counting. After a full days ride we rested up, sat around sharing stories and opening birthday presents, while enjoying our camp dinner. The evening sky darkened and the moon rose in the east, then Jane blurted out, “let’s go for a ride a full moon ride”! Well I for one had never rode at night and was a bit hesitant and honestly nervous, but  she assured me and the other two riders thinking about going that the horses would be just fine! What the heck, I thought to myself, I only live once and  Doc Murray was in camp. We even had a veterinarian joining the night ride who was afraid of the dark (go figure) and a first timer like myself, so the

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