Barrel racers..do you do this?

Question

I don't do alot of extra things for my horse in the way of suppliments for my horse. They are healthy and well taken care of but my question is this..I have a friend who is always adding things to her horses feed, giving injections for this or that, and then she gripes because her horse won't work for her. I think she is doing to much to him and he has all this crap in him and he doesn't know what to do. She trys all the new gimmicks to make your horse do this or that. I don't get it. Never have. I have noticed this alot in our profession and my friend is a very good horsewoman and I don't get how she doesn't see that all this crap is hurting her horse. I have tried to talk to her but she doesn't or won't hear me. Girls-guys any answers?

Whew! I am so glad I am not the only one that feels this way. I know some suppliments are needed but for the most part it is over-kill.
Thanks for your great answers! all but one and you all know who that is.

Answer 1

I know of several people doing the same sorts of things. Those dang injections, seems like everyone wants to give them 'cause every horse out there has a hock problem.... one girl does this every so many months and has even found a person to do this for $35.00 bucks...... now why would someone allow for possibly making the horse lame and I swear by what I've seen of this horse that it is not a hock injury it is in the stifle and I don't know if she actually had this horse checked out by a licensed vet or not since she is having joe blow out there risk her horses well being.

Anyway, moving on, no I do not fall into this category and I will retire a horse before I start paying to have it injected, thank god I don't have any facing that. People are constantly running there horses to chiropractors, message therapists, accupuncture etc. etc. and they never seem to do any better in that arena. I swear its an excuse, trying to take a short cut, like already said, and then when they screw up out there they have something to blame their mistakes on. You watch them and you can see that it was obvious rider error but when they come out and tell you what happened it's "oh my horse is too sore" or something similar and my thought always is "SO WHY DID YOU HAUL IN THE FIRST PLACE"

I am completely against all drugs, and I am SOO sick of ACE. "I have heard, well have you seen my horse run if I don't give it to him" but the girl claims to be a big shot trainer in our area. lol. These girls go out behind the trailer and sneak a shot into the mouth of the horse, or at larger events, get up and use the bathroom at about 4 am... you'll find people sneaking around their stalls, pearing out from around corners.. I have stopped and peared around myself thinking that I may be watching a horse theft in action and ready to stop it only to realise that they had a little bag of goodies they went into the stall with and then fed their horse and back off to bed they went.

If I need to supplement my horse with something I will do that but I do not fall prey to all those articles and advertising tactics out there. All the endorsements and promises of this and that, its all just hype if you ask me and everyone is so eager to win that $20.00 and gain points for year end prizes that they will spend hundreds leading up to the little local event and when it doesn't happen they are back to the catalogs buying new bits and getting on the phone to their chiro's etc. and telling them they need to get back in. If they would spend more time riding and conditioning their horses they may just be amazed at what will happen and the money they could save. (I'm not saying there isn't a horse out there that has issues but today it seems like EVERYONE is doing it and if that horse shoulders a barrel... there's something wrong with the horse, even though the rider has the horses nose tipped to the outside the whole distance to the next barrel.

Whew, I could go on and on. This is definately something we agree on in, and yes, she should back her horse down to the essentials and not pump all that into the horse.

Answer 2

My barrel horses all get a lil diffrent feed but its for there different needs my older barrel horses are on senior feed and a joint supplement and the best hay i can find my younger horses are on a feed with low corn just so that they arent all hyped up and i can keep there attention for training and for competition purposes I believe that you should evaluate your horses personal needs they are all different but most dont need supplements they usually just need an adjustment to there feed I have tried different things also but usually always ended up going back to this and had better results As for injection these can be a good and bad thing I have not personally had to have them done to my horses but have friends that are firm believers in them and have seen the results but in some cases it actually has a bad effect on the horse so if you are ever thinking of having this done make sure you go to a vet that has a lot of knowledge in this area and read as much as you can about it before doing it because there is a difference in the injections available I do have some of my horses chiropracted on and If I have the extra cash I ll treat them to a message I also spray or rub my horses down with linament after a work out and before and after a run Everyone has there own lil way of doing things but you have to find what works for you and your horse

Answer 3

To answer your question I completely agree with Shay P! I wasn't gonna answer this question i just gave Shay a thumbs up.. UNTIL!!!!!!!!!!!!! I read LITTLEGIRL's answer! I was going to just let it go but it angered me!!!

Littlegirl:
First off!!! BARREL RACING IS A PROFESSION!
You are honestly going to sit there and tell us BARREL RACERS what we do... We run our horses to death... we get new ones when the old ones are done and run them into the ground too! Hop them up on all sorts on drugs to make them insane and want to run!(Oh but not all the time... horses won't run full out all the time? right??? Ms. Professional!)
It is true that if you have a well trained horse you will do better! But DO NOT! sit there and say ANYONE can run and win on a well trained horse even someone who cannot ride because it is COMPLETELY FALSE! A finished barrel horse is what makes it to the professional level... but have you ever (if youve ever watched) seen the ladies at the NFR... are you gonna tell me they don't know how to ride and it's all thier horse... they only made it there because they have a good horse... but that one is prolly done at the end of the year after they gave it so many drugs. So thier gonna go get a new one... that's not how it works!
I am completely disgusted by your answer and can't imagine that you would know ANYTHING!!!!! about barrel racing much less actually competed!

I have been barrel racing my entire life. I know horses like the back of my hand. I have ridden the green and finished ones.. heck I've made the finished ones. We gone on to compete at the professional levels! I still have my barrel horse... i've had her since she was 5 she is 13 now. She has a very bad knee. (bone chips- removed- it calcified- lost some mobility) We have to give her supplements to help her. But i dont run her and run her until she is done, disregard her and then move on to find a new one, a better one!

I highly doubt that you have experience in this field and until you do keep your mouth shut about what you don't know! Because you can't get your facts straight! I dont know if you are speaking from a bad experience or have just been severly misinformed! I suggest gettin correct information, and have a lil experience in the field before answering questions!

Answer 4

Sounds as if your friend is looking for short cuts. Instead of Working on training - which requires work and repetition she is looking for a quick fix. There is no such thing. A little something in a needle is not going to teach her horse a thing. He won't do anything he has not been trained to do especially if her horsemanship skills are not up it either. All the gimmicks can just confuse an otherwise good horse. Don't know how you can get it across to her and I'll bet this is not the only area of her life that she acts like this either.

Answer 5

As a rule, I would say you shouldn't give your horse anything more or less than they need. Especially as they get older, many horses need supplements, however we have a 34 year old mare who's as blind as a bat,(her eye is actually getting pulled back into the socket.... icky) and looks like someone took a chunk out of her back she's so swaybacked, who only gets a senior feed and wormer.
I don't know what you can do for your friend, but if you guys use the same vet, mention your concerns to them. They might be able to help your friend.
Also, I'm not a barrel racer, but I know that most competitions have drug rules and if she's putting that much crap in her horse's system, SOMETHING has gotta be illegal in your association or whatever. Check out exactly what she uses and then see what the rules say. If you find something that she shouldn't be using in competitions, let her know. Even some of the organic stuff is illegal for us, and anything that's a stimulant, depressant(calming), or performance enhancing is illegal.
Good luck, I know that can be a tough situation!
PS Most of the stuff doesn't work anyways, no wonder the horse won't go well for her! Imagine getting poked and having nasty stuff given to you and then being told to go run around!

Answer 6

You certainly see it out there. The most I have ever done is joint supplements for my 10+ horses that have been running for years. This wouldn't fix a training issue, but if you have a perfectly finished horse who suddenly started having problems and you found it was do to sore joints, that often helps. As do the injections FOR A WHILE on bad hocks/knees. All of them are just a band aid though. They are just there to buy you more time before you have to retire that horse.

Barrel racing is a sport that really puts a wear and tear on a horse's legs. More insight has been brought to it in the last 10 years, so people are trying to prevent the problems now.

Again, these are physical bandaids, not training ones.

Answer 7

I barrel race and I only give my barrel horse a good feed, corn oil, beet pulp, hoof and joint supplements, sometimes he gets calf manna, and wormer. He has always been pretty hardy and never needed lots of supplements the joint and hoof is farrier/vet recommended. If your friend is putting that much into her horse it cannot be a good situation for her horse, you need to let her know how bad it is for her horse but besides that there is not much you can do. I too see how many stupid things lots of people give there horses.

Answer 8

The only thing I use on my horse is Corta flex because she dose snap crackle and pop. But the day that my horse refuses to enter the arena due to pain or starts doing things out of the natural for her, then she will be taken to the vet for an evaluation. I will not use butte on her just to race, and certainly no shots just to race. But if the vet says that they are needed then by all means.

Answer 9

I don't do that. The only thing I give my barrel mare is feed and hay. I never give her anything that could hurt her. Sounds like your friend is thinking that with all that crap her horse will go faster. Weeeellllllll, no that will just kill the poor thing.

Answer 10

The majority of supplements are made to make money. If you have a complete horse feed, good forage, and a salt/mineral block out 24/7, thats all they need. Just up their feed depending on how much they are worked, or if they are lactating or babies. Other than that just be sure the feed is good quality, low protein (10-12%) and high fat if they are hard keepers, and low fat if they are easy.
A regular deworming program that alternates pyrantel based and ivermectin based, and you're done.
Once my barrel horses reach ten, whether they start to become stiff or not, they are on a glucosamine supplement. I like the Corta RX, but it's one of the best on the market and sold only to vets. The Corta Flex corporation makes it, so its a high concentrated version of Cotra-Flex.
All the supplements that are advertised in BHN, and other barrel racing publications are mainly for money. A biotin supplement would be fine for healthy coat and hooves, but there aren't any out there that don't have extra protein, which is the reason for the cost. They never ever need extra protein. It can cause kidney/liver issues if the extra isn't extrcreted in the urine as urea and is a complete waste of money. Horses do NOT need more protein no matter how hard you work them, unless you are underfeeding them and they have to use amina acids from their muscles as an energy source. but that is simply owner stupidity. I recommend Nutrena Vitality. It is a similar feed to XTN, which I was religious about, but is evem SAFER than XTN by lowering the acidity, so it is now safe for horses that are prone to stomach ulcers and gastrc upset, so it is now a REALLY good all around feed. Both are NOT corn based, which is the main reason for colic/founder in horses and all sorts of gastric upset situations.
Now, as for your friend, that is the usualy direction young and unknowledgable barrel racers go. Talk to Charmayne James. She's a friend of mine. She will TELL you if your friend won't believe ME... supplements, especially if not really needed, can cause more harm than good.
As for her horse getting worse and not listening to her, it could be rider error, which at this point wouldn't suprise me, but its probably a health issue. Not b/c of the supplements, but b/c of the wear and tear to this horse's body by being asked so much of him. Get a vet to do a flexion test on him, it is not expensive, and will let you know if there are any lameness or soreness issues in the horse's legs, hips, and shoulders. He can also do a once over for minimal cost to check for issues in the head, neck, and back. I do this once a year in spring before the barrel races really start for all of my horses. Once you see how the vet does the flexion test and you understand the ANATOMY andphysiology of the horse, you can acually do it yourself on a regular basis. Just b e sure you ask all questions that come to mind to the vet during the process.
Now, be sure that you AND her are not running horses on the weekends for all they are worth and not working them right during the week. They need to be worked three + times weekly. Once in circles at trot and collected sllow lope. Once in straight lines at the same paces, and then onceon hillwork, but be sure it is gradual, as this can really stress a horse's body. Contact a professional to discuss details of time, and signs to watch for too much stress when introducing a new workout. YOU MUST do this to have your horse in the right condition, otherwise you risk him injuring himself. And thats not fun. If you are pressed for time, the circles can be done in a round pen, and you can lead one or two other horses up and down the hills while riding a third. Thats what I do. But never ever ever trot downhill.
If you have any more questions, my email is oen and free, and if your friend won't listen to you, inform someone else that she looks up to and see if they will sit her down and talk to her. Good Luck