For most horses, forage comprises the largest part of their diet. This means that for most owners, acquiring and managing hay stores is very important. With pasture not always available year-round and prices dependent on the harvest, the hay market is regularly fluctuating. As a horse owner, you make decisions daily, weekly, and monthly regarding how much hay you’re going to feed and when you’re going to feed it. Your priority? Finding a balance between your budget and the needs of your horse.

So, let’s talk about slow feeding. It’s a term you’ve probably heard more and more frequently over the past few years, but what do slow feeding hay mechanisms address?

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So you have qualified for the Royal Winter Fair—Congratulations! You cannot wait to make the trip down to the glamorous Exhibition Place for the best time of year and thoughts of pre-Royal preparation start to fill your mind. Schooling sessions, saddle fitting, coggins and performance evaluations are typical for this time of year but what about your horse’s respiratory health?

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It was a little over a year ago that Joe Lane and his crew approached us about the renovation of the paddock areas at Mohawk Raceway. They had a plan for the paddock stalls in place and needed a company with horse stall experience to bring it to reality. Sitting down with the design team at System Equine, the goal was to come up with a finished product that would be functional, very secure, as well as safe for the horses. Having horses be able to stay in the stalls overnight so as not to have to take them to the back stretch was another goal. With the heavy-duty double swing gates, trainers would now have the option of tie-free stalls.

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So you’re visiting the Royal Winter Fair! For Ontario-residing equestrians, the Royal is the best ten days of the year. It’s the pinnacle of the national hunter/jumper show circuit with some really fun international competition across disciplines featured as well. And not only are there horses, horses and more horses, there are cows, pigs, chickens, and goats - an animal lover’s dream. And obviously we can’t talk about the Royal without talking about the shopping. The Enercare Centre is filled with vendors of every type - from all your horsey needs, such as tack, trailers, clothing, and stalls & horse fencing options, to handcrafted sweaters, locally made tarts and baked goods, jewelry, art… the list goes on! Not only is it great personal retail therapy, it’s close enough to Christmas that you may be able to cross a good number of people off your list all in one go.

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A barn is more than just the walls and roof of the structure, it’s everything that goes into making it a useful building a place safe for horses and safe for people to work. That includes all of the various accessories you have inside and outside the barn. Without these items, it would be difficult to give your horses the home they deserve or do much of the work you do around the barn. Here are five indoor accessories and five outdoor accessories every barn needs. Read more...

Springtime is great to revamp your farm and start fresh! Especially if there are aspects that were damaged over the winter. There are endless possibilities for improvements that can make your barn look like new. In this article, we’re going to take a closer look at what can be improved during your extreme farm makeover this spring.

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Horse hair is in the air - and so is spring! Our equine friends can’t wait to get outside and graze to their heart’s content. In this article, we’re going to look at some things you can do to help keep your horses happy and healthy during turnout this spring.

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