Spring is here and horses seem excited to get out on the green grass. However, remember the precautions that are necessary for your horse before you turn them out for summer.

With Spring upon us, remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Use these tips to help minimize the risk of injury or other problems to your horse’s well-being during this new season.

Check and repair pasture fences before weather gets nice enough to turn out your horses. Deer, as well as heavy snows, can destroy fences. Spring runoff may weaken or destroy water gaps. The thawing and heaving of the ground can loosen fence posts.

Observe your horses for stall vices and health issues. When confined during the winter months, horses often develop stall vices involving their mouth – such as wood chewing, cribbing and wind sucking – because they are unable to graze. Extended confinement in a poorly ventilated area can also produce heaves or pneumonia.

Shut off water tank heaters and scrub them thoroughly before storing for next winter.

Introduce to pasture gradually. Horses are natural grazers and anxious to get out on pasture. To prevent colic or bellyache and laminitis or founder, remember to turn them out for only an hour at first and then gradually increase the time over the course of 5 to 7 days until they can be safely left out. The bacteria in the hind gut must have time to change to the new diet. Also, horses that have been deprived of pasture will tend to overeat at first. You must protect them from themselves.

Groom frequently. In the Spring, horses will need frequent grooming to remove shedding hair. Deep currying helps loosen hair to be brushed out. Use a rubber curry comb on the legs and areas of the body with boney prominences. Farriers appreciate horses that have been groomed during the shedding months.

Be aware of estrous cycles. Mares are seasonally polyestrous and will begin cycling in the spring. Their estrous cycles will be erratic at first; later they will become more predictable. Estrous cycles are affected by day length and are individual to each horse, yet consistent within each horse. Estrus or heat is usually longer at the beginning of the season. Although stallions are year-round breeders, they are more fertile in the spring.

Remove dangerous plants. Poisonous plants should be identified and grubbed or sprayed early in the growing season. Although most horses will not touch them until later when forage is sparse and these plants are the only thing in the pasture that is green, it is a good idea to be proactive in removing them.

Deworm. Deworming should be done routinely during the year to control strongyle and ascarid infestation. Pinworms are eliminated at the same time. Occasionally, tapeworms can be a problem. Stomach worms are best controlled by deworming in May before the flies hatch that may cause summer sores (just as bot larvae in the stomach should be eliminated in the fall after the first freeze kills the flies). Internal deworming with a paste wormer every three months is adequate to control parasites in most areas.

Immunize. Immunizations should be given before the fly season, including West Nile Virus and other types of encephalitis shots (EEE, WEE, and VEE). All horses should be immunized against tetanus. Flu and rhino immunizations are also a good idea.

Consider a fly control program. All stables should look at providing a fly control program. Possibilities include: composting manure, using biological fly parasites, spreading manure on crops, using spays and fly traps.

One way of reducing the effect of flies on horses is to turn horses out at night and keep them in the dark barn during the day. Offering a small amount of feed in the morning will bring the horses in from pasture and makes them easier to catch. (Feed grain only to catch or reward horses.) When riding during the day, use a fly spray or wipe to repel horse flies and other flying pests.

Trim and shoe regularly. The horse’s feet should be trimmed every two months all winter long. When spring comes, many owners shoe their horses for hoof protection and traction, depending on the horse’s use. Fullered shoes give some traction, concave fullered shoes give more traction, and borium or studs are needed if you are going to ride on roads or slippery surfaces. If the horse’s feet are very soft, full pads may be needed to protect the foot from sharp rocks.

Check for bruising and other concerns. There are several other things you may notice about your horse’s feet in the Spring. Soles may appear red due to bruising caused by previous snow balling. Feet may have blood in the white line due to a mild laminitis caused by spring overeating. Horses that are at risk for laminitis, such as overweight or Cushinoid animals, may be shod with heart bar shoes as a precautionary measure.

Prevention is almost always more effective than treatment. Do what you can to minimize the risk of these conditions to your horse or the horses under your care – and Spring will arrive with fewer problems and concerns for your horse’s feet.