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How to Keep Your Racehorse Healthy

How to Keep Your Racehorse Healthy

If you own a racehorse, it is your responsibility to care for him properly and ensure he gets all the care, food, and comfort he needs. However, in addition to ensuring your racehorse is correctly stabled, properly fed, safely exercised, and professionally trained, there are some additional care steps you need to follow to keep your horse free from illness, disease, or injury.


Regular Visits from an Equine Veterinarian

One of the most important aspects of racehorse care is ensuring your horse has regular visits from an equine veterinarian. Racehorse stables tend to work closely with vets who have considerable understanding of racehorse health, well-being, and knowledge about the specialised care they may require.

Your vet should visit your racehorse regularly for check-ups, not only when your horse falls ill, to ensure a good condition all year round. Whatโ€™s more, your vet may recommend specialist vitamins or supplements to improve the health of your horse, while also administering any required medicine.

Everyone needs help and support when caring for a racehorse and one of the best people to do this for you is a professional trained and qualified veterinarian.


Know the Signs of Good Health

To care for your racehorse properly, it is important you know the signs to look out for of a healthy horse. Signs of good health in a racehorse include a good appetite, an alertness, and a seek coat. If any of these things change, for example your horse loses his appetite, it can be a good indicator there is something more wrong that requires veterinary attention.


Hire a Professional Stablehand

There are so many essential elements to racecourse care and one of the ways you can ensure everything is getting done is by hiring a professional stablehand. Stablehands are important to help out with any duties in and around the stable, including mucking out the stall, tidying the stable yard, feeding, and attending races.

Not only does hiring a stablehand help you complete all those daily jobs that need doing around the stable, they also spend a lot of time with your racehorse and can build a strong bond that comes in useful for calming the horse when anxiety strikes.


The Racehorse Trainer

This role is self-explanatory. As the name suggests, a racehorse trainer is the person who works closely with your horse to ensure it races well and is at its peak performance. As you would expect, this is not necessarily a straightforward role and can demand a significant amount of time, patience, and work from all elements and people in the stables.

When working with a racehorse, it is essential you employ a professional trainer to ensure your horse does not retain an injury or get trained improperly. It is definitely worth sacrificing the extra cost for an outstanding racehorse trainer so it will give your horse the best possible training and avoid bad habits or possible injuries.


Horse Management and Turnout Regularity

Turnout for racehorses is increasing, so it is important to ensure your racehorse is turned out on a regular basis and kept active. 24/7 turnout is achievable if you have the correct stabling in place, however it is also important to encourage your horse to rest properly and ensure he is protected from the harsh elements.

Thoroughbred racehorses can be very sensitive to change and are often more prone to exhibiting signs of stress than other horse breeds. They can become particularly troublesome if boredom sets in and can become easily flustered. So, it is important to prioritise turning them out as regularly as possible to avoid any feelings of boredom, irritation or being too cooped up.


Provide the Correct Bedding for Comfort

The bedding you use for your racehorse in the stable has a significant impact on the quality of their rest and helps to protect your horseโ€™s health and well-being. So, ensure you provide bedding that is comfortable, dry, and good for your horse.

One of the best bedding types for stabling that we would recommend for your racehorse is rubber matting. This bedding has numerous benefits, including maintaining cleanliness, keeping the stable dry, and providing ultimate comfort for your horse. Find out more about the benefits of rubber matting here.


Find the Perfect Stable for Your Horse

Here at Prime Stables Ltd we are proud to provide a variety of fantastic stable options for racehorses. If youโ€™ve been looking for a professional horse stabling company, look no further than Prime Stables Ltd. Check out our extensive range of incredible horse stables for yourself โ€“ you are sure to find something that suits you!

If you would like more information about correct care for racehorses or appropriate stables, please do not hesitate to call the team at Prime Stables Ltd today. We would be more than happy to provide any help we can and answer your questions!

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