A Move for NRCHA Futurity?

Denver, Fort Worth, and Scottsdale are among the venues vying to host the 2017 Snaffle Bit Futurity, the premier event of the National Reined Cow Horse Association. The futurity’s current home in Reno, Nevada, is also in the running; the Reno Livestock Events Center has hosted the Snaffle Bit Futurity for most of its 45-year history. At press time, the NRCHA board of directors was considering the four proposals to determine the best community partner for the popular event. “Our goal has always been to make the best choice for everyone involved— competitors, owners, sponsors, and spectators,” said NRCHA President Todd Bergen ( nrcha.com).

Donated a Therapy Horse?

We asked whether you’ve ever donated a horse to a therapeutic riding program. Above is a breakdown of the responses we received. (To read about five inspirational therapy horses, see page 56. To participate in future polls in future polls, “like” us at our Facebook page.)

Then, use that score to determine how much to increase his feed. For example, for every condition score below 5 (can’t see ribs but can easily feel them with your hand), a 1,100-pound horse needs to gain about 45 to 50 pounds. Each 1-pound gain requires about 8,000 to 9,000 kcals over the calories needed for maintenance.

So, if your horse needs to go from, say, a 4 to a 5, he needs to gain about 45 pounds, requiring a total of approximately 380,000 additional kcals. To add that amount safely over 90 days, you’d want him to gain about a half a pound a day. To achieve that, you’d increase his feed by about 4,500 kcals per day—which could be accomplished by adding about 2 pounds of alfalfa hay and 2 pounds of a commercial feed. (Build up to that change gradually to reduce the risks of digestive upsets; learn more at purinamills.com.)

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