This is a basic run down of what I do with the horses I bring in. The feed they're on will vary to their needs but the idea is the same and I will give more specific info with each horse.

Most of the horses come in with minor basic care needs that have been neglected and some will need follow up care to bring them up to par. The biggest problem we have around here is no one seems to ever get their horses feet done. This is a basic need for every horse out there and it should be understood that the horse you will recieve will need her feet cared for, possibly several trims to bring them back to a normal length.

Some are under weight and I typically have them back up to weight before they leave, or at least pretty close. Usually I feed these horses Alfalfa and a pelleted grain called Profile Complete, the active formula is 14% protein and it's about the best for putting the weight back on in my experience. I will also use Fast Track for them for the first two weeks to help build up the enzymes in the stomach so they can digest the feed better. I also use it after worming and in times of high stress like shows or moving.

All the horses are wormed and given a 5 way shot the day they arrive and again with the wormer ten days later. They're also bathed in Iodine scrub and cleaned up. I like the iodine scrub because it does many things at one shot, it cleans any scrapes or bites they might have gotten at the sale, kills external bugs and will help treat any skin fungus they might have. I also follow up with a second bath 15 days later to be sure I've killed anything they might have picked up at the sale barn.

If the horse is unhandlable without stressing it to much the second bath might be skipped. Most of the horses I pull are pretty green and I try to be certain every one is halter broke before it leaves. Some might be farther than others, each horse is different and I treat each horse as a unique individual. For example, you have your lap type calm minded puppy dog, that's easy and complacent and those horses are easy to work with. No stress for anyone, basic guidelines are used for halter breaking the horse and you will get a easy to handle horse from me.

Some horses are stronger willed, or smarter and not as easily taught as the other type listed above. Those horses take time, they need to learn to trust before they'll let me even think about halter breaking them. I like to work with that type of horse much slower, just letting them come to me. I put them in a smaller pen alone and leave the halter on and offer treats and scratches as bribes to come to me. When I get that horse coming to me without any sign of fear I then take things to the next step of getting them to let me put the rope on without any fuss, some are easy and some aren't as easy. Once we have that down I tie them in the cross ties and work with letting me touch them everywhere. Then we move to walking short walks around an enclosed area until they have the idea, then it's out for walks around the neighborhood.

With that technique, I've taken as long as six months to halter break some horses. Granted, the one that was the biggest challenge and took the longest is also still here and a one person horse. She trusts me, and will do anything for me, because I took the time to go slow and let her trust me first. This same horse has had other owners that tried to force her and she's cornered them and put one of them in the hospital. The thing about her that gets me is that she's not mean or nasty and is such an awesome horse that people are always trying to get me to sell her to them. She's not for sale though, for many reasons, first being that I can't trust that she would always be in the right home for her personality and temperament.

I am always honest and straight forward about everything with each horse, if I know, I'll tell you. If you and the horse aren't right, then you aren't right for each other and I'll tell you. I'm not doing that to be mean or nasty, but to protect you and the horse. If your a beginner and the horse is young and untaught, it's usually not a good match. Occasionally there are the rare exceptions and if that horse is that type of horse I will say so in my adds. Over all with most of these horses patience is the key, time and care help, but patience is the biggest thing you need to understand and look at when thinking about adopting a rescue from any rescue.