Tack Box

• Purchase: grazing muzzles • Considerations: The purpose of a grazing muzzle is to slow a horse’s grass intake to control his weight and/or reduce his chances of developing laminitis. That means a muzzle will need to limit his grazing sufficiently, fit snugly without rubbing, and be hard for him to remove himself. • Options: One common style of muzzle features a “basket” of nylon straps; on others the basket is made of plastic. One popular type of grazing muzzle has a simple crown piece that slips over the horse’s head, while others incorporate throatlatches and some are designed to be attached to a halter. If your horse is the crafty sort, the more fasteners the better.

Look for a muzzle that allows you to adjust grass intake, typically by changing a disk at the bottom of the basket—a larger hole allows more grass, while a smaller one, less.

Finally, make sure the muzzle fits. A properly adjusted grazing muzzle won’t droop—if there’s too much slack a horse may push the basket aside to eat more. But you don’t want it to be too tight; make sure you can slip two fingers between the basket and your horse’s face. (For more tips on fitting a grazing muzzle visit www.equusmagazine.com.) • Cost: Grazing muzzles start around $25 and can cost as much as $45, depending on the design.