2)Horses are herd animals capable of strong and enduring emotional and social bonds with members of their herd.
3)Horse herds are matriarchal with the lead/dominant mare being the ultimate boss over other herd members.
4)Thousands of horses are used to help both physically and emotionally disabled and/or disturbed children and adults every day in many different therapeutic stable-environments. I.E. Horses Help, ASU ARC, Hopeful Hooves Equine Outreach Program, Humane Society Youth Outreach, The Special Olympics, etc.
5)When used in therapeutic programs horses have helped troubled children learn greater skills in regards to empathy for others, increased self-esteem, the benefits of staying focused on positive goals, enhanced communication skills, etc.
6)Horses used in therapeutic programs for disabled youth have created near miracles in children's abilities in regards to physical coordination, increased concentration, improved social skills, increased vocabulary, increased self-esteem, etc.
7)Horses have proven successful in programs to aid victims of anorexia, bulimia, domestic violence, depression, anxiety and PTSD.
8)A horse has a memory similar to that of an Elephant. They never truly forget.
9)The horse is the most severely misunderstood and abused domesticated animals in America and many other countries.
10)Horses are fear animals. As prey animals these gentle giants are easily frightened and therefore many common and harsh training techniques cause severe emotional distress and damage to horses.
11)A horse has more nerve endings in its skin than a human being does. This makes the horse's skin infinitely more sensitive to touch.
12)A spoiled horse is oftentimes as dangerous as an abused horse. To comprehend horses one must view them in a herd setting. When correctly understood this environment is the blue print for the successful training of horses.
13)The idea that a child should be given a very young horse is a bad idea. A young horse doesn't have the training to be a safe companion or riding animal for a child. Also younger horses oftentimes tend to react before thinking. They are unpredictable.
14)The best horse for a beginner is usually a well yet humanely trained animal between the ages of 10 and 16.
15)A pre-purchase veterinary exam is a great idea for anyone considering the purchase of a horse.
16)Pursuing quality riding lessons for six months or longer before purchasing a first horse is an excellent idea. This is the only good way an individual can truly become prepared for the reality of future horse ownership and care.
17)If a trainer's techniques seem to terrify or injure the horse they are likely cruel, unnecessary and damaging to the animal.
18)Horses can't physically run for hours like they do in the Old Western movies.
19)A horse's muscles develop with exercise far faster than its bones, joints, ligaments and tendons. Therefore, a horse can appear to be perfectly fit by the look of its muscles, however, the animal is actually not yet ready to be worked harder as it is only surface fit. Working a surface fit animal too hard leads to the break down and damage of its bones, joints, ligaments and tendons. This damage can be crippling and permanent.
20)Due to the low acidity in the horse's digestive tract ingested sand (i.e. eaten accidentally with the hay or on purpose in cases of horses with a dietary mineral imbalance) remains in there and turns into stones. For this reason it is vital to keep horses off of sandy ground, feed them plenty of quality feed and treat them with a sand colic prevention product for one week every month, consistently for 12 months per year.
21)Horses should never be fed on sandy ground.
22)Over feeding horses, especially grain, leads to the crippling disorder of founder and/or laminitis and it also causes colic. Colic is known as the "Silent Killer" among horse people because of its sudden onset and its oftentimes deadly outcome.
23)A horse may live up to 30 or more years. Many horses have been known to live to the age of 40.
24)Horses aren't fully grown until they are between 4 and 5 years old. This time period is extended for slower growing and maturing breeds such as warm bloods and Arabians.
25)Horses have tremendous hearts and minds, which are eager to please humane trainers. Many horses are worked or even run into over-exhaustion by riders and trainers, particularly under-educated and/or abusive riders and/or trainers.
26)Most horses are not aware of their great size and strength.
27)Many horse owners are unaware of the dangers things such as neglect to provide all necessary vaccines, Metamucil (for sand colic prevention), neglect of proper deworming techniques, farrier neglect, neglect of basic dental care (teeth floating), and inappropriate training and riding poses for their horses.
28)Horses are incredibly versatile athletes capable of thrilling their human partners in sports ranging from Western Pleasure to stadium jumping and dressage.
29)Not all breeds of horses are the same and within breeds not all individuals are the same. Horses have individual personalities and very individual physical capabilities as well.
30)Horses in a herd setting adhere to very strict social rules. These rules apply to all members of the herd including the herd stallion.
31)An adult horse can be seriously harmed or even killed by a small pack of aggressive average sized dogs.
32)Miniature horses can be trained to function as Seeing Eye animals for the blind.
33)Trucks that transport horses to slaughter-houses frequently do not provide a humane environment for horses. Horses are commonly loaded in double-decker trailers and the top layer has been known to crash down on top of the bottom layer of horses crushing them alive. Moreover, many slaughter trucks do not stop to water horses along the way. Other forms of horrendous and shocking animal abuse has been reported at the slaughter-houses themselves.
34)All types and ages of horses are sent to slaughter every year. This includes countless foals (babies), pregnant mares, Thoroughbreds, retired show horses, riding horses in their prime, stallions, geldings, young untrained horses, injured horses and sick horses, etc. Many of these horses are salvageable animals with a great deal of life and future left in them.
35)Horse rescues are inundated with endless cases of horse abuse and neglect caused by purposeful malice, ignorance or desperation on the part of the owner seeking equine rescue services for animals they currently own yet cannot understand or control.
36)Most horse rescue organizations fund nearly all to all of their projects out of pocket as there is very little understanding of the reality of horses and horse rescue among members of the general population.
