Kelner Equine Services

Too good not to share. We are not doing our younger generation any favors and the horses pay the price.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭

Once upon a time, in a land before TikTok tutorials and matchy matchy saddle pads, horse people actually knew how to take care of horses. Shocking, I know. Kids like me didn’t just rock up to the yard, hop on, and swan off afterward like some equestrian diva. No, we earned our time in the saddle mucking out stables that smelled like something out of a horror movie, filling haynets that somehow managed to tangle themselves around our legs, and lugging water buckets that felt heavier than our actual bodies.

And Friday nights? That was Pony Club night in Ireland, an unmissable ritual. First, the riding lesson, where we pushed ourselves to perfect our position or attempted (and often failed) to keep our ponies from launching us into orbit over a cross pole. Then, the real fun stable management. If you thought you were leaving without knowing how to spot colic, wrap a bandage properly, or pick out hooves without losing a finger, you were sorely mistaken.

But now? Stable management is disappearing faster than your horse’s dignity when it spots a plastic bag.

𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐌𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐮𝐭

These days, many young riders don’t spend hours at the yard learning the ins and outs of horse care. They arrive, their pony is miraculously tacked up and ready, they ride for an hour, and off they go probably to post a reel of their perfect canter transition. And look, I get it. Times have changed. Insurance policies have made it harder for kids to hang around stables, and busy modern life means people want things quick and easy.

But here’s the problem: a horse isn’t an Instagram prop. 𝙄𝙩’𝙨 𝙖 1,000-𝙥𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙚𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙞𝙩 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙮 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙙𝙙𝙡𝙚. And without that old-school, hands-on education, we’re seeing the consequences. Horses suffering from preventable colic, riders unable to recognize when their tack doesn’t fit, people feeding their cob the same as a Thoroughbred and wondering why it’s suddenly the size of a small elephant.

And the worst part? People are accepting standards of care that would have been unheard of years ago.

I hear owners justifying no turnout like it’s normal. Oh, my yard doesn’t turn out in winter.My horse copes fine without it. No, they don’t. Horses are designed to move. Keeping them in a box 24/7, walking them for 20 minutes on a horse walker, and thinking that’s a substitute for actual turnout? That’s not horsemanship, it’s convenience. And it’s a ticking time bomb for their physical and mental health.

It’s not just kids, either. There is now an entire generation of adult horse owners who don’t actually know how to look after their horses properly. People who have spent years on riding school horses, never mucked out a stable, never bandaged a leg, never had to nurse a horse through an illness, suddenly finding themselves with their first horse and no idea what they’re doing. And instead of admitting they need help, many of them turn to social media (sometimes it’s ok, but not posts like is this colic?) for advice rather than a vet, a farrier, or an experienced horse person.

It’s terrifying. These are the same people who will argue in Facebook groups about whether their horse is just lazy instead of recognizing pain, who think a horse standing in a stable 24/7 is fine because he doesn’t seem unhappy and who will spend more on a glittery saddle pad than on a proper equine dentist. Owning a horse should come with more than just a financial commitment, it should come with a commitment to education. But right now, there are too many owners who simply don’t know what they don’t know.

𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬, 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬

So, what’s the solution? We need to bring back the grit. Pony Clubs, riding schools, livery yards everyone needs to make stable management a non negotiable part of equestrian life again. Not a boring add on. Not an optional extra. An essential, just like knowing which end of the horse kicks.

And for those of us who lived through the ‘earn your saddle time’ era? It’s on us to pass that knowledge down. Teach the young ones how to tell the difference between a horse that’s playing up and a horse and a horse that’s in pain. Show them that grooming is not just a way to make your horse shiny for pictures it’s how you check for cuts, lumps, or signs of discomfort. Explain why turnout isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity.

𝐀 𝐋𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞

I miss those Friday nights at Pony Club. The smell of damp hay, the constant background noise of ponies trying to eat things they shouldn’t, the feeling of pride when you finally got your plaits neat enough that your instructor didn’t sigh in disappointment.

We need to bring that back, not just for nostalgia’s sake, but for the horses. Because if we don’t, we’re going to end up with a generation of riders who can execute a perfect flying change but don’t know what to do when their horse colics at 2 a.m. And that? That’s the kind of horror story no equestrian wants to live through.

Sunny and the farmer spec gate 😂

It’s the most addictive feeling when the energy flows through into your connection.. but not always easy to achieve

Great info ..

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With record temps in our area mud season is raring it’s ugly head. Here’s some great tips.!

🐴 Equine Hoof Abscesses: What to Watch for This Mud Season

As warmer weather arrives the fluffy stuff is melting and muddy conditions increase and we often see a rise in hoof abscesses in horses. Wet, soft hooves and bacteria-rich environments create the perfect conditions for infection beneath the hoof wall — and abscesses can develop quickly and become very painful.

What is a hoof abscess?

A hoof abscess is a pocket of infection trapped inside the hoof. Pressure builds as pus accumulates, often causing sudden, severe lameness — sometimes overnight.

Common signs of an abscess include:
• Sudden, severe limping or non-weight-bearing on one foot usually
• Heat in the hoof or lower leg
• A strong digital pulse
• Swelling above the hoof or pastern
• Sensitivity to hoof testers
• Reluctance to move or bear weight

What you can do at home:

If your horse becomes acutely lame:
• Confine them to a small, dry area
• Check the hoof for heat, swelling, or obvious injury
• Avoid forcing movement
• Do not dig into the hoof unless advised
• Contact your veterinarian for guidance


When to call your veterinarian:
• If lameness is severe or sudden
• If swelling travels up the leg
• If your horse will not bear weight
• If there is no improvement within 24–48 hours with soaking the foot
• If you’re unsure — it’s always better to check early

Prevention tips during muddy months:
• Maintain clean, dry turnout areas when possible
• Pick hooves daily
• Keep up with routine farrier care, we find when they’re overdue for a farrier visit, they’re more at risk for an abscess
• Address hoof cracks or thrush early
• Limit prolonged standing in mud or wet bedding

Hoof abscesses can look dramatic, but with early diagnosis and proper treatment, most horses recover very well. If you ever have concerns about sudden lameness, don’t hesitate to reach out — prompt care keeps small issues from becoming big ones.

This summarizes summer last year with my red head !

Being a horse owner is a very niche lifestyle choice where you pay large sums of money to feel constant, low-level panic.

It feels like your horse is either:
• Lame
• About to be lame
• Or not lame, but thinking about it

They walk out of the stable one millimetre differently and you’re instantly like:
‘Ah. Yes. This is it. We’re done. Cancel all plans. Sell the trailer. I knew I shouldn’t have been happy yesterday.’

You then spend 45 minutes watching them walk away from you, towards you, away again, on a circle, on a different surface, in slow motion, filming from so many angles that you look like a pro photographer and not a horse owner spiralling into insanity in a muddy gateway.

Next step: messaging everyone you know.
“Does Jude look lame or am I insane?”
Replies range from:
• “No, looks fine”
• “Maybe slightly?”
• “Is it front left? No, is it hind left? Right?”

Helpful.

So you call the vet. Obviously.
Vet arrives.
Horse: flawless.
Moves like a £500k Grand Prix prospect.
Vet squints at you. You squint at the horse. The horse squints back, completely innocent.

Vet says: “Well, he’s sound today.”
You nod, pretending this is reassuring and not deeply insulting.

You pay the bill.
The horse immediately trips on fresh air the moment the vet leaves.

And yet, despite the emotional damage, the financial ruin, and the fact they exist purely to test your mental stability… you’d still sell a kidney if they needed it. No questions asked.

Because being a horse owner means loving an animal who keeps you humble, broke, and one weird step away from a full breakdown.

Anyway. He’s fine. Thanks to everyone that has asked after him.

✌🏽 🩷

Fantastic Cold weather hack for keeping water available for horses or livestock!


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Why is there a heated trough sitting in our barn aisle?

With an extreme winter storm moving through Central Kentucky this weekend, we take extra precautions to make sure water access is never disrupted. Cold like this can cause water lines and automatic waterers to freeze, so we plan ahead rather than reacting after there’s a problem.

Inside both barns, we’ve set up large troughs with heaters. Outside, we’ve placed multiple 150-gallon troughs in the pastures where horses are living, since our automatic waterers are already starting to freeze in these temperatures.

By filling everything in advance, we now have roughly 800 gallons of heated water ready and available if we need to shut off any water lines during the storm.

The heated troughs in the barns also serve a really practical daily purpose. They allow us to quickly and efficiently swap out stall buckets using clean buckets to scoop and refill, rather than wrestling with frozen hoses or taps. Because the water in the troughs is slightly warmer than what comes straight out of the tap, it also slows down freezing without needing heated buckets in every single stall. And if a bucket does freeze solid, floating it in the trough for about 30 seconds releases the ice from the sides so we can dump it and refill it easily.

For an added layer of preparedness, we also keep two large transport water bladders on the Gator parked in our garage, each holding up to 100 gallons. Our house is on a separate, dedicated water meter, so even if we had to shut off water to the rest of the farm, we could still haul water from the house to the barns if needed.

Water intake is absolutely critical for horses year-round. It’s something people often associate with heat waves, but cold weather can be just as risky. Horses tend to drink less when water is icy, which increases the risk of dehydration, impaction colic, and other winter-related issues. That’s why planning ahead and closely monitoring water intake is one of the most important parts of caring for horses during extreme cold.

Staying warm matters. Staying hydrated matters even more.

I always appreciate working with horses new to massage, especially when they begin to process and respond to the work in their own way. Not every horse shows obvious release or dramatic reactions, so part of my job as an equine massage therapist is recognizing the more subtle physiological and behavioral cues that tell us the body is responding.

She is a lovely Andalusian mare, and we’re taking a gradual, methodical approach. Our current focus is improving front limb and shoulder mobility, which plays a major role in stride length, balance, and overall performance.

During this session, I concentrated on key structures that influence the shoulder and forelimb:
• Brachiocephalicus – important for advancing the forelimb and influencing head and neck position
• Trapezius – supports scapular movement and helps with lifting through the withers
• Triceps brachii – a primary extensor of the elbow, essential for weight-bearing and propulsion
• Ascending pectorals – part of the thoracic sling, helping suspend the trunk between the forelimbs
• Subclavian groove / shoulder sling region – critical for forelimb suspension, shock absorption, and fluid, unrestricted shoulder motion

By addressing these areas, we support better scapular freedom, improved limb reach, and more efficient movement patterns. With young or sensitive horses especially, slow and steady work allows the nervous system and soft tissues to adapt without overwhelm.