February...

25 February 2022

… is a confusing month for the horses as well as us! The days are getting much longer – there’s a quarter of an hour of extra light night and morning every week. Great! Spring is on the way! Yet it’s still winter. The grass is not really growing, we still get frosts and no one could honestly say it’s warm yet! The horses are as conflicted as we are. Mares have been in season and some horses have started to shed their winter coats. Horses that live in at night with the lights going on for a late check may trigger an even greater perception of longer days – it is day length that is the major force for events in the horses’ calendar. Horses yearn the spring grass. The winter sun on their backs makes them feel good and the absence of spring in spite of its tantalising glimpses is frustrating, resulting in sometimes some undesirable behaviour. We cannot hasten spring’s true arrival, but what we can do is try to make up for some of what the horses are yearning for. See if you can make time for an extra-long hack with friends at the weekend. Make the most of turn out or even take your horse out for hand grazing. One or two Brix a day will help make up for the restricted grazing. Your horse will enjoy getting their teeth into these 1 kg forage blocks, which are nutrition as well as environmental enrichment. MeadowBrix are Timothy grass, LucieBrix are lucerne and Sainfoin Brix are sainfoin, a wonderful forage with health-promoting properties due to its condensed tannins. These are even more beneficial when the horse has no or very little access to grazing, they are very palatable, a satisfying chew and nice to know that their production is environmentally friendly. If your horse has not tried these before, they are highly recommended. Please note, our Brix are not suitable for elderly or dentally challenged horses. So, spare a little thought for your horse! They find February as frustrating as we do!