Updated March 7, 2005

So you don't like those pesky mosquitoes, especially now that they have the potential to carry the West Nile Virus? Here's a tip that was given at a recent gardening forum. Put some water in a white dinner plate and add a couple drops of Lemon Fresh Joy dish detergent. Set the dish on your porch, patio, or other outdoor area. Not sure what attracts them, the lemon smell, the white plate color, or what, but mosquitoes flock to it, and drop dead shortly after drinking the Lemon Fresh Joy/water mixture, and usually within about 10 feet of the plate. Check this out---it works just super! May seem trivial, but it may help control mosquitoes around your home, especially where the West Nile virus is reaching epidemic proportions in mosquitoes, birds, and humans.

Ride a great collected canter with this tip from Christopher Bartle, a world class trainer at the Yorkshire Riding Center, in Yorkshire England.

"In all the gaits but particularly the canter, many riders drive too much with the seat. This asks the horse to lengthen the stride, and so has to be contradicted by a holding hand. As a result riders find that their horses become heavier in the hand or tight in the back in the collected canter. Remember that the leg is for energy and the seat is for length of stride.

If the rider energizes the canter with the leg, supported if necessary by the spurs or dressage whip, and rides with a lighter and quieter seat, the horse will be able to round his back and engage the hind end better. You will be amazed how much lighter your horse becomes when he is moving from your leg.

In order to prevent wastage, hay is best fed from a feeder, which lessens the chance of it blowing away or getting trampled in to the mud. However, a group of horses around a hay feeder may fight and indeed one individual may dominate and keep the others away. In this situation, it would be better to place the hay in piles on the ground, separated enough that the horses cannot kick out at each other. Always make one more pile of hay than there are horses, so that everyone gets a fair share.

Used stockings are great to use for quick polishing boots during shows. From Jen Boyd, jboyd@netcommander.com 10/23/02.

What is a good fly spray and allergy relief? One good concoction is 1/3 Adams Flea and Tick spray, 1/3 water and 1/3 Skin so Soft. This concoction will not bead up as quickly as plain Skin so Soft.

A lot of hay is good for sand colic according to one vet study. The hay amount should be at least 2.5% of the horse's body weight.

Dressage Arena Markers

The sequence of letters around a dressage arena can be very hard to remember! The following acronyms should hopefully help!

For a 20 meter x 40 meter arena

1. All Fat Brown Mares Can Hardly Ever Kick
2. All King Edwards Horses Consume Much Bad Feed
3. All King Edward's Horses Can't Make Big Fences
4. All Kind Elephants Have Cute Mothers, Bald Fathers.
5. All Fat Boys Make Cute Husbands Except Kevin
6. All King Edward's Horses Can Manage Big Fences
7. Any Kicking Eagles Have Cool Magic Blue Feathers
8. All King Edwards Horses Carry Many Brave Fighters
9. A Kindly Elephant Has Crushed My Blinking Foot!
10. A Fat Black Mother Cat Has Eight Kittens
11. All King Edward's Horses Can Make Big Foals.
12. All Fat Black Manx Cats Hate Eating Kippers

For a 20 meter x 60 meter arena

1. All King Victor Emmanuel's Show Horses Can Make Really Beautiful People Fall.
2. Any Kind Vet Enjoys Sharing Horse Care Methods Recommended By Professional Farms
3. A First Place Blue Ribbon Makes Common Horsemen Savor Each Victory Keenly

Click below for books on Equine Research and Health Care Topics

Top Ten Exercises for Horsewomen

10. Drop a steel object on your foot. Don't pick it up right away. Shout, "Get off, stupid! GET OFF!!!"

9. Leap out of a moving vehicle and practice "relaxing into the fall". Roll Lithely into a ball and spring to your feet. (I can relate!!)

8. Learn to grab your checkbook out of your purse and write a $200 check without even looking down. (I can relate - big time!!)

7. Jog long distances carrying a halter and a carrot. Go ahead and tell the neighbors what your doing; they might as well know now.

6. Affix a pair of reins to a moving freight train and practice pulling to a halt. Smile as if you're having fun.

5. Hone your fibbing skills: "See hon? Moving hay bales in FUN!" and, "No, really, I'm glad your lucky performance and mulit-million dollar horse won the blue ribbon. I am just thankful that my hard work and actual ability won me second place."

4. Practice dialing your chiropracter's number with both arms paralyzed to the shoulder and one foot anchoring the lead of a frisky horse.

3. Borrow the U.S. army's slogan: "Be all that you can be: bitten, thrown, kicked, slimed, trampled, frozen...

2. Lie face down in a puddle of mud in your most expensive riding clothes and repeat yourself, "This is a learning experience, this is a learning experience, this is..."

1. AND THE NUMBER ONE EXERCISE TO BECOME A BETTER EQUESTRIAN: Marry money. (Oh, well...)

After cleaning your tack for shows, pour a bit of leather conditioner in a Tupperware container and soak some paper towels in it. After the paper towels have been soaking for a bit (maybe 30 minutes) remove the towels, ring out gently and pack in a Ziploc bag or in another Tupperware bowl WITH a lid. Before your class, wipe your tack down with these, it will give your saddle, bridle, etc. a nice shine and look like you just cleaned it again. (NFDA Newsletter)

Did you know?
The median income for all U.S. households is $36,000, while the median income for horse owning households is $60,000. 14% of horse-owning households have incomes under $25,000, 38% under $50,000 and 64% under $75,000. (source: American Horse Council)

Add apple cider vinegar to your horse's feed to repel mosquitos. This doesn't seem to work for ordinary house flies, but does work for mosquitos (helps keep the West Nile infected mosquitos away, too). TR

Mix equal parts of "Skin So Soft" and vinegar in a bucket of water and wipe your horse down after you ride to help repel flies.  Do also after every rain (when your horse gets wet) to prevent skin fungus (rain rot).  (From Kathy Daly)

Plant Marigolds around your barn to help repel flies. (From Lee Ann Rodgers)

Horsey Joke:

An out-of-towner drove his car into a ditch in a desolated area.
Luckily, a local farmer came to help with his big strong horse, named Buddy. He hitched Buddy up to the car and yelled, "Pull, Nellie, pull!" Buddy didn't move.

Then the farmer hollered, "Pull, Buster, pull!" Buddy didn't respond.

Once more the farmer commanded, "Pull, Coco, pull!" Nothing.

Then the farmer nonchalantly said, "Pull, Buddy, pull!" And the horse easily dragged the car out of the ditch.

The motorist was most appreciative and very curious. He asked the farmer why he called his horse by the wrong name three times.

The farmer said, "Oh, Buddy is blind and if he thought he was the only one pulling, he wouldn't even try."

Nikken makes patented Magnetic Therapy "ElastoMag" wraps for people that also fit horses.  Their ankle wrap is being used by horse people for suspensory injuries and conditions around the fetlock joint; the thigh wrap is used for lower leg injuries and conditions; the knee wrap is used for hock and knee injuries and conditions (as seen in The Horse Journal); the "MagCreator" (a large magnetic roller) and the "MagBoys" (a small magnetic roller) is being used for all over discomfort, relaxation and for strength and range of motion and now we have the PalmMag and Mini PalmMag!  Contact Teri Rehkopf for a demonstration and a 'million' testimonials!!