What dose back to nature mean?

There is a lot of talk nowadays about “getting back to nature”, but what dose it mean in real terms for the modern riding or competition horse? Is it just a passing fad? How possible is it to give your horse a more nature life? Madeleine hill investigates.

If you look at the warm up area, or the arena, at a dressage competition you could be forgiven for thinking that this has little to do with the natural environment of the horse. There are lights, music, exotic floral arrangements, advertising displays, cameras and cars. Yet even a Grand Prix Dressage horse is still a horse at the end of the day he would probably like to have a good roll in a meadow, a canter round and some other horses to relax with.

True nature of the horse

One of the most well known practitioners of Nature Horse Management is dressage rider Lucinda McAlpine and she says, “It is absolutely vital to remember that horse are free roaming, free grazing, herd animals”. At Bowhayes Farm in Devon, Lucinda has taken her theories to the limit and all her horses run free in herds-with stallions. They are unrugged, unclipped, and unshod-and she still competes. Lucinda has been developing her system of care and management for eleven years-she even runs courses called “De-Stressage”, so it is worth taking a look at her web site to find out more about her methods. At Bowhayes Farm they also help people to rehabilitate problem horses.

As natural as feasible

Of course, not everyone can keep their horse in a totally “natural” environment, but there are many things you can bear in mind which may be of great benefit to your horse. Amanda Sutton from the Association of Chartered physiotherapists in Animal Therapy says there are practical things you can do that will help your horse, and perhaps make him better to ride too: “People are beginning to realize that a lot of handing or riding problems they are experiencing are in fact management problems.” she asserts, “You may be getting bucked off because your horse has too much sugar in his diet. We all know what that dose to children- well, think about what you are feeding your horse too. You can even stop a horse weaving or box walking by the addition of certain minerals.”

What dose cause stress?

Amanda says we look at the stress in our own livers-but we should look at the things horse find stressful too. She says people like horse whisperers have made us think of new ways of looking at our horse, “look at your horse’s life, his daily routine and the whole layout of the stable. Make sure there is plenty of daylight-it helps the immune system, try and make sure the horse has a view-even when he’s on the horse walker. Think about where you put the water bucket- a lot of horse drink less if the bucker is near the door-it makes them nervous-they would rather is was in the far corner. Think about green rubber matting instead of black, it is reminiscent of fields and grass. Remember they graze with their heads down-so feed from the floor-it helps their respiration, and look at trickle feeding where the horse can eat all day. Hand groom your horse, interact with him, feel your horse, he is a social animal.”

Nature and training

Natural methods can even play a part in training, Dr Gerd Heushmann is a dressage rider and a vet and he runs a clinic for Sports Horses in Germany. He has been touring this county explaining how he thinks dressage should return to the Classical Training methods, “Going back to the Classical method is the only way,” he declares, “Classical training goes step by step with the anatomical development of the horse. The horse need time to build up muscles and flexibility, you should not force it, or you will get physical problems later.” In his training programme Dr. Heuschmann believes in turning out, and also questions the need for shoes on dressage horse “you don’t need shoes unless you need them,” he says, “if your horse only goes from the stable or field to the arena-what’s the problem?”

Turnout

Dr. Heuschmann believes turning out is essential “horses are not out enough, if they are in the stable too much it restricts their movement, horses’ joints and tendons need constant movement” Natural medicine

You can even extend more natural thinking to the treatment of horses. As with humans, homeopathy is becoming increasingly popular. It is based on natural remedies, is non invasive and there are no side effects. John Sacton, President of the Faculty of Homeopathy, believes that more and more people are turing to alternatives to conventional medicine “I think because of the direction that conventional medicine has gone in recent years there is a powerful movement in the direction of more natural treatments in the horse world.” he says, “Horse are extremely responsive to homeopathic treatments and generally respond very well.”

With all natural methods remember that your horse is an individual and what may work for one dose not work for all. But there are many people out there happy to give advice-contact your feed company on your horse, there are new products aimed at a more natural way of feeding. There are many views on shoeing at the moment, if you want to consider leaving your horse unshod-consult your horse’s feet and lifestyle are suitable or not. It is also important to note that only vets are legally allowed to treat horses for anything, but it is possible to find vets who are also qualified alternative practitioners.

The essential trio

But Lucina warns“Back to Nature” is not necessarily a simple option: “You can’t just rip your horse’s rug off, rip his shoes off and chuck him in the field. It’s more complicated than that-you must tailor to the individual horse and do the best you can in the facilities available. There are three things that are essential to a horse: he needs to be moving, and to have constant access to food and he needs a social life-these are the things that will most improve his life.”