Hi Everybody…

HorseyGal here. I don’t know about you, but I have been a lot of emails lately about Horse Rescues needing money to help their equine friends that need homes or have been abandoned.

I know in our area, people letting horses go in the streets for animal control to pick up or for citizens to take home.  I had a friend recently say they went on a trail ride, and when they came back, two horses where their trailer with a note asking that they be taken care of.

How You can HELP

It’s so sad that these big kind animals are being abandoned.  Many of them are still ridable and sound.

So I am asking you to give just a few dollars to your local rescue organizations.  One here locally is in desperate need for hay.  They only have a enough for two more weeks!  Tier Rescue in Riverside, CA is a well recognized organization that has an outstanding reputation.

I am not one to just jump on any bandwagon.  I check these organizations out.  I was on the board of directors for an organization that was later revealed to be co-mingling funds.  And were eventually shut down and prosecuted!  Luckily I had withdrawn my participation before any of the bad stuff happened.  I wasn’t getting a good feeling about it all.

But if you know of a local organization that needs help…even if you can volunteer your time, it would really help!

How You Can HELP

Bet you’re wondering what’s up with my new horse blanket repair business??

Well I went out scouting for barns today…and Leapin’ Lizards! I found a barn that was so anxious for me to pick up blankets.  They rounded up about 20 of them!

Okay…so I got my sewing machine, and I practiced using it.  I went out and got a heavy duty used washing machine just for the blankets.  I made a place where I can hang the blankets to dry.  I made my repair tags, and my fliers and had business cards made!

Then the barn manager that had given my first bunch of blankets was thrilled with the work I did!  So that’s why I went out scouting for more work!

20 blankets times 15.00 each to wash…hmmm let me do the math   $300.00 for washing and then the repairs will probably be around 15.00 to 20.00 for each blanket.  So that adds up to about $700.00 .  Now that I have had some practice, I can get the patches sewn on very quickly, and the harder repairs are going quickly too.

Karen mentioned in her book that she contracted with a local laundry to do all her blankets at one time.  She was doing about 50-60 blankets a week.

I might have to look into that…or find a laundry mat that wouldn’t mind me washing the blankets there.

She recommend asking first…because you’ll be more likely to build a good relationship with the owner by being upfront about what you are doing.

Well…I have blankets waiting for me…and a nice chunk of cash for 2 days work.

HorseyGal could end up being pretty well off, if she keeps this up!

Okay horsey friends…I hope you take action and look into what this business could mean for you.

Talk later!

HOW A STRESSED OUT MOM OF TWINS MADE $3500 PART-TIME AT HOME REPAIRING HORSE BLANKETS

“Does Your Horse Buck? Rear? Bite When Saddled?

Then Your Saddle Probably Doesn’t Fit!”

A saddle that doesn’t fit can make a horse uncomfortable and can even hurt him.

It can give your horse back pain and stiffness and it can eventually lead to lower leg lameness.  Here are a few tips you can use to check the saddle you use on your own horse to make sure it isn’t causing any harm.

First, take a moment just to look at how the saddle fits your horse overall.  Look at it from the side and from the back and try to determine if it conforms to the shape of the horse’s back.  Since some horses are fat and wide and some are skinny and narrow, and since some have straight backs and some have sway backs you absolutely must be sure to use a saddle that drapes over and wraps around the horse without pressing down too much in any one spot.

In saddles, one size does not fit all.

Next, look at the front of the saddle.  It should be completely behind the shoulder blades.  If it is too far forward it will hamper your horse’s shoulder movement and this will probably cause head tossing and stumbling, and if not corrected could cause cinch sores or even scar tissue to form behind the shoulder blades.  Then take a look at the pommel.  There should be a big enough space under it so that you can put two or three fingers between it and the horse’s withers.  This applies english and western saddles.

So many times I have seen riders put their English saddle right up on top of the shoulder blades.  This is wrong.  That will inhibit the movement of the shoulders which you need to have when riding dressage or jumping.

Then check the seat to be sure that it is setting level from side to side.  And then look at the cantle.  It should be level with, or just a bit higher than the pommel.  Then check the panels under the saddle.  They should touch the horse all the way from front to back as much as possible.  Sometimes when you get into the saddle your weight will help the panels to snug up to the horse.  Then look at the saddle skirt.  It must not dig into the horse’s hip bones.

When fitting the saddle to the horses back…sweep your hand up under the saddle, without the pad, to feel for any bridging, or gaps under the saddle and the back of the horse.   Most sore backs come from a saddle that is too small or too narrow.

Having a saddle that’s too big can cause problems too by sitting down right on top of the withers.   One good thing to remember is that if a saddle is too narrow it will keep trying to tilt back.  If it is too wide it will tilt forward.

The shape of a horse’s back will change over time as it ages and gains or loses weight.  A good saddle maker can often modify your saddle to respond to these gradual changes so that it keeps fitting right but sometimes you just might need to get a new saddle.

Go Here to Find Good Used and NEW SADDLES

HorseyGal here, and I am getting my horse blankets prewashed today during a break in the rain.  It has been cold and rainy here, so it’s been a bit of a struggle getting them outside and prewashing them.

You’ll remember I picked up those 15 blankets at the barn where my horseygal girlfriends were visiting.

I’m going to hang them on my fence so that I can hose them down and scrub them before putting them in the washer.  Getting the hair and dirt off really saves the washing machine.  I really recommend buying a second hand front loader washer so you can dedicate it to just washing the horse blankets.

I got half of them done today…and then hopefully I can get the other half done tomorrow. It goes pretty fast when you have them all hung up in a row like an assembly line.

For getting the hair off, I used an old horse brush, and then I bought a little portable shop Vac and it works great for vacuuming the hair!

I got the work room all set up for repairing the blankets.  I was going to do it out in the garage, but it gets too cold out there, so I decided to turn the spare bedroom into my work room.  I will have lots of room to work and places to store my hardware and fabric.

I found a local fabric wholesaler today that gave me a great deal on rolls of fabric that were considered irregular.  Nobody will notice when you’re using small squares of fabric.

Well, that was a huge score, and I’m sure if you decide to tackle a business like this, you will know how profitable it will be for you.  I just talked to somebody in Virginia, who has a huge business traveling and picking up horse blankets all the way into Washington, DC.  Amazing!

So I’m pretty excited about my new business…in case you want to know more READ HERE

“Step by Step How To Fit A Saddle For Any Discipline”

I watched this film two or three times.  She shows you exactly how to fit the saddle and how each horse is physically different.

If you are looking for a new or used saddle, I found a great place to buy saddles.

Buy Used Saddles Here