As the last winter snow thaws and the days start getting longer, check out our March To-Do List for upcoming events, new training tips on E+ and everything you need to get a jumpstart on spring to keep your dressage partner healthy, happy and performing his best.

EVENTS

• World Equestrian Center March Dressage: March 5 – 9; Ocala, Florida
• Global Dressage Festival 9: March 6 – 9; Wellington, Florida
• Pacific Coast Dressage at Galway Downs: March 7 – 9; Temecula, California
• March Madness I: March 8; Tucson, Arizona
• March Madness II: March 9; Tucson, Arizona
• Global Dressage Festival 10: March 11 – 16; Wellington, Florida
• Golden State Dressage March Mania: March 14 – 16; Rancho Murieta, California
• Global Dressage Festival 11: March 20 – 23; Wellington, Florida
• Global Dressage Festival 12: March 26 – 30; Wellington, Florida

Watch & Learn on E+

Lateral Work, Changes & Trot Lengthenings: Dressage phenom Anna Buffini demonstrates how lateral movements build upon one another throughout your horse’s development and how to develop flying changes and trot lengthenings through the levels. Check out her new video series on EQUESTRIAN+ here.

Up Your Skills in the Saddle: Watch dressage Olympian Steffen Peters’ new video series from his Colorado clinic on EQUESTRIAN+. Peters focuses on intentional, effective riding and helps riders improve their horses’ contact, responsiveness, lateral movements, suppleness, collection and self-carriage.

Spring Health Checks

• Carefully check your horse’s pasterns for scratches.
• Inspect his hooves for thrush and/or soggy, weak hoof walls. For more on how to treat and manage thrush, click here.
• Get a Coggins test if your horse will be traveling this spring and summer.
• Do a fecal egg count test and deworm based on your horse’s living situation and your veterinarian’s recommendations.
• If your horse has had little to no access to quality pasture over the winter, consider checking with your vet to determine if you should have her vitamin E serum values checked.
• Schedule a dental exam and have your horse’s teeth floated if necessary.
• Work with your veterinarian to determine if your horse is due for any springtime vaccinations.
• As your horse is exposed to more light with the longer days and his winter coat starts shedding out, accelerate the process by using a shedding blade over the large areas of his body. Follow up with a stiff body brush to remove loose hair, dirt and dead skin cells to allow his sleeker, summer coat to grow in.
• Schedule a farrier appointment ahead of show season.
• Have your horse’s blood selenium levels check if you live in a selenium-deficient area.
• If your mare tends to get less-than-desirable to ride when she’s in heat and you use supplements, herbs or hormones to help manage her unwanted behaviors, check with your vet to see if now is the right time to start.

Barn & Trailer Management

• Check fence lines: Winter weather can be hard on fences. Examine your fences and enclosures carefully and make any necessary repairs.
• Clean out water troughs: Especially if your troughs have been partially frozen throughout the winter, give them a thorough cleaning.
• Trailer tune-up: This is good to do any time of year, but especially if your trailer has been sitting around for a few months, be sure to check the hitch, wheel bearings, tire pressure, lights, brakes, flooring and all latches.
• Start fly control: If you use a fly-control system like Fly Predators®, it might be time to deploy them depending on what part of the country you live in.
• Mud management: Use footing material like gravel or wood chips in areas heavily trafficked, manage manure, install gutters and downspouts, intercept surface flows and plant trees and shrubs to prevent your barn and surrounding areas from becoming a muddy mess as the last winter snow thaws.
• Spring cleaning: Power-wash stalls, scrub feed buckets, clear cobwebs, unclog gutters, declutter your medicine cabinet, organize your tack trunk, freshen up community areas and plant flowers to add a pop of color to your barn this spring.

Training & Show Prep

• Get the fresh out: Especially if your horse has been cooped up for much of the winter, help him get excessive energy out and ramp up his fitness with longeing sessions.
• Ready, set, check: Start your horse-show checklist to get all of your tack, apparel, equipment and other gear organized and ready for the competition season. Throw old or empty supplies out (or recycle) and replace as needed.
• Last call: Ensure all elements of your show apparel are clean, in good repair and working properly (if you wear a safety vest, for example). The same applies to your horse’s tack and other gear.

Baby On the Way?

• Prepare a foaling stall: Ideally, set up your mom-to-be’s foaling stall in a quiet location away from other horses and barn traffic. It should be roomy and open and free of any objects or protrusions that could pose a safety risk; be sure to provide safe water sources, non-stick bedding, fresh air and climate control for heat or cold. Washable walls and flooring will also make your life easier. Move your mare there well before her due date so she can get accustomed to her new quarters. For our full pre-foaling checklist, click here.
• Assemble a foaling kit: Key items include a halter and lead for your mare, headlamp with fresh batteries, stopwatch, notepad and pen (or your phone) to keep track of noteworthy events, tail wrap for your mare, small hand towels, large towels for drying the foal, bulb syringe, trash bags and disinfectant. Also, make sure you have your vet’s number programmed into your phone.
• Set up a foaling web cam: As your mare’s due date approaches, install a foaling webcam so you can easily keep an eye on her from anywhere and ensure it’s working properly well before the big day gets close.

Happy March, from your friends at Dressage Today!