Latest / Equestrian Tea Time / A soft spot for school horses: with Gabriella Medieros.

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A soft spot for school horses: with Gabriella Medieros. · Equestrian Tea Time

0:00
Isabeau: Hello, everybody.
0:01
Isabeau: Thanks again so much for joining us here on Question Tea Time.
0:06
Isabeau: I'm Isabel Solas.
0:07
Isabeau: My co-host is Emma Jacobson.
0:10
Isabeau: In this episode, we had a really awesome conversation with Gabriella Madeiros.
0:16
Isabeau: Gabriella runs Cadillera Equine in Texas.
0:22
Isabeau: Gabriella had so many wonderful stories to tell us, including some amazing stories about some of her clients who have made strides overcoming their riding fears, some of her amazing lesson horses.
0:35
Isabeau: And Gabriella has really hacked the market on finding affordable supplements for your horses for joint respiratory and the ever-important ulcer supplements.
0:46
Isabeau: We're going to jump in here on the conversation with Emma and Gabriella discussing school horses.
0:52
Isabeau: So thank you very much for joining us.
1:03
Gabriella: I would say one of my favorite stories, my clients who is, I think she came here a year and a half ago.
1:12
Gabriella: But she, so basically, she came to me and she was like, Look, I haven't ridden in six years because the last time I rode six years ago, like she had horses for a long time and everything, like fully involved, did uh competitive trail stuff, um, where it's like that they're actually outside doing competitive trail obstacles, like walking over giant boulders and stuff like that.
1:36
Gabriella: Like some really cool stuff.
1:37
Gabriella: Apparently, her horse, um, the last time she rode, something happened.
1:41
Gabriella: I think it was going into the canner transition.
1:44
Gabriella: And bottom line, the student believe almost broke her neck.
1:49
Gabriella: And so she didn't ride for six years because she was just, you know, in pain and terrified.
1:55
Gabriella: And she's like, but I want to get back into it because she signed herself up for one of those, like, it's it's this big trail ride in Wyoming that a company puts together and they do them all over the world and whatever.
2:05
Gabriella: So she's like, I need to get my riding legs back and my balance and confidence so I can like I told myself I I'm gonna go on this thing, I've paid for it, I need to do this.
2:15
Gabriella: I was like, okay.
2:16
Gabriella: So Santiago, I I I joke around he's 17 going on 27.
2:20
Gabriella: If you ask him, he's 27.
2:22
Gabriella: I was like, well, we'll start you on him and and we'll go from there because he's not gonna go anywhere, he's not gonna do anything stupid.
2:28
Gabriella: His favorite thing is to either stand there while we chit-chat or to just walk around and lolly gag.
2:34
Gabriella: That those are his two favorite things besides you know, cribbing, cookies, being groomed.
2:39
Gabriella: Obviously, those come first.
2:41
Gabriella: I mean, day one, she was absolutely fine around horses and everything, but getting on, this poor woman was like shaking her.
2:50
Gabriella: And and she once she's on, I think all she did was sit on him the first day because her body was shaking so bad.
2:57
Gabriella: And she goes, I can feel my heart racing, but I know I'm okay.
3:01
Gabriella: Like I know I can trust him, and I I know I can trust you.
3:04
Gabriella: So that was where we started day one for by her current horse.
3:08
Gabriella: This woman, I had to convince her to canter when she was ready to canter, you know, really walk her through it and everything.
3:15
Gabriella: She got a lot of PTSD.
3:17
Gabriella: But Santiago's steady presence really, really, really helped her.
3:22
Gabriella: And she she credits him with her getting so far back into things again, where now she has her AQHA gelding that is just wonderful.
3:32
Gabriella: And when she went to test ride him, it was so cute because she's in the arena test riding him.
3:38
Gabriella: The whole story is just adorable, but it'll take too long.
3:40
Gabriella: Mind you, this woman does not like sometimes she has a hard time trotting a new new to her horse.
3:46
Gabriella: She was walk, trot, and then cantering this new horse during the first test ride.
3:52
Gabriella: And I looked at the young gentleman and I said, I think your horse just sold himself.
3:56
Gabriella: And so he was laughing.
3:58
Gabriella: But she to this day credits Santiago with getting her back in the saddle, getting her confidence up.
4:04
Gabriella: Anytime there's someone with a lack of confidence issue, we rely heavily on him.
4:09
Gabriella: And they they really do trust him.
4:11
Gabriella: And the little kids, and even the teenagers I'm learning, he could be a therapy horse.
4:16
Gabriella: Like he he just has a wonderful presence.
4:19
Emma: That's wonderful.
4:20
Emma: I love that horse.
4:21
Emma: He's a saint, really.
4:23
Emma: Good temperament for a lesson horse.
4:26
Isabeau: How old is he?
4:26
Isabeau: How long have you had him?
4:28
Isabeau: How long did it take you to train him?
4:30
Isabeau: Uh, all that kind of stuff.
4:32
Isabeau: What what what is he like?
4:33
Isabeau: This this miracle.
4:34
Gabriella: I have his whole life story as Santiago uh apparently belonged to a married couple.
4:41
Gabriella: They went through a really nasty divorce.
4:44
Gabriella: These were his first owners, as far as we can tell.
4:47
Gabriella: I don't know them.
4:48
Gabriella: They don't know me.
4:49
Gabriella: During this nasty divorce, they were fighting over who gets the horse, and he ended up tied to a tree with no food.
4:56
Gabriella: Um, so then a rescue got him, and they, I guess, got him healthy and everything.
5:02
Gabriella: And then uh he was there for a while.
5:04
Gabriella: I guess I am assuming they did some training on him.
5:07
Gabriella: I don't really know him for a bit.
5:08
Gabriella: And then uh there was a lady, the lady I bought him from, got him from that rescue for her daughter to be a barrel horse.
5:16
Gabriella: The huge thing down here.
5:17
Gabriella: But she very quickly outgrew Santiago's uh level because he is he is just a walk-trot for horse for us.
5:24
Gabriella: He can canter, but there's only one kid that I know that can get him to canter.
5:29
Gabriella: It's it's it's just not it's just not for him.
5:33
Gabriella: He just tells us that's you know, my body's not gonna do that.
5:36
Gabriella: And it's like, okay, obviously he was just you know walk-trott, and he has a very like slow trot.
5:42
Gabriella: He's not gonna be a competitive trot barrel horse for like the pee wee division.
5:47
Gabriella: So they had him posted for sale.
5:49
Gabriella: They well actually they had one of their friends post him, and that friend ran a barrel racing lesson barn, or she still does.
5:58
Gabriella: And my client at the time was looking for her first horse.
6:02
Gabriella: Uh, this is a different client than the one that I mentioned, and I was like, oh, well, he looks like he's gonna be a steady eddie.
6:09
Gabriella: Let's go look at him.
6:10
Gabriella: She didn't fall in love with him, and he was, you know, a little depressed looking, and he he could use a couple of pounds for sure.
6:20
Gabriella: Um, you know, there there was some TLC to be done.
6:23
Gabriella: But I test rode him before I put my client on him, of course.
6:27
Gabriella: And I just I remember, you know, he was he was just so steady.
6:31
Gabriella: Like, I don't see this horse doing anything bad.
6:33
Gabriella: And so I just got a good vibe from him as far as just being a decent horse.
6:38
Gabriella: I think it was like two months later, I was like, you know what, I only have one lesson, horse couldn't my program is super true, but super small.
6:44
Gabriella: And I was like, I really need a backup lesson horse because she has some health problems.
6:48
Gabriella: And so, and so I just got a good vibe from him as far as just being a decent horse.
6:55
Gabriella: I think it was like two months later, I was like, you know what, I only have one lesson, horse couldn't my program is super true, but super small.
7:01
Gabriella: And I was like, I really need a backup lesson horse because she has some health problems.
7:05
Gabriella: And so I contacted and I was like, hey, do you still have that that that uh older Palomino?
7:10
Gabriella: She goes, Oh yeah, we still have them.
7:12
Gabriella: I was like, All right, I'll take them.
7:13
Gabriella: So I picked him up and uh brought him here, and he was so cute, he was so thankful.
7:18
Gabriella: Um, because I mean in two weeks I put probably, I don't know, a hundred pounds on him.
7:23
Gabriella: It was it was awesome.
7:25
Gabriella: And one day he just came up and he I was filling water buckets.
7:28
Gabriella: I was kind of hunched over, scrubbing, and he comes up and he just lays his head on my back and just takes a deep sigh.
7:35
Gabriella: And I was like, okay, buddy.
7:39
Gabriella: And he just he just laid his head there for a bit and I was like, okay.
7:43
Gabriella: And I I joke around we have a love-hate relationship because he must have been Proud Cut or something.
7:48
Gabriella: Um, I we we're pretty sure he pasture bred some mares back in the day, back in his youth.
7:53
Gabriella: Because if you turn him out with mares, oh lord, oh lord.
7:57
Gabriella: So he has to be in a gelding only, and I had to play a whole game.
8:01
Gabriella: So that is the story of how they came to me.
8:03
Gabriella: I had when I got him, he had a raging case of thrush because they apparently didn't pick out his feet much.
8:08
Gabriella: A year and a half to get that thrush under control.
8:10
Gabriella: Um we got him up to date on everything.
8:15
Gabriella: Um, found what herbs uh work for him because he is quite arthritic.
8:20
Gabriella: Thought I was gonna get him hawk injections because I knew his hawks were really not good.
8:26
Gabriella: I'm pretty sure he's gonna need hawk injections.
8:28
Gabriella: Let's get x-rays like you you tell me what we need to do.
8:31
Gabriella: And they took x-rays and they were like, like a 50-50 shot of getting a needle in there.
8:36
Gabriella: They're fusing.
8:37
Gabriella: And I was like, oh my god.
8:38
Gabriella: I was like, should I retire him?
8:39
Gabriella: Like, that's not a problem.
8:40
Gabriella: And they were and she actually advised me.
8:42
Gabriella: She's like, no, keep him in the walktrot lessons, just monitor his comfort and and adjust as necessary.
8:49
Gabriella: So we're that's what we've been doing.
8:50
Gabriella: And and honestly, he's he's been he just gets happier and happier, and honestly, like almost sounder.
8:58
Gabriella: Like, I he's more sound now than when I first got him, but um, he's been a sweetheart.
9:03
Gabriella: He's like he loves little girls, little kids, especially little girls.
9:09
Gabriella: Oh my god, he's got a favorite right now, I tell you.
9:12
Gabriella: Um, he loves babies.
9:14
Gabriella: Like, there was one client one time she'd have her her little girl would begin lessons, but then she had her baby.
9:20
Gabriella: And if her baby ever got away, like was crawling in the sand and got away from her, he would stop, he would look at the baby, look at me, look at the mom, look at the baby, like getting our attention to tell us there's a child on the loose.
9:34
Gabriella: And and then once we got the baby, he focused on his job again.
9:38
Emma: Oh, that's for you.
9:39
Emma: I will and I'll have to get a picture of him so we can.
9:44
Gabriella: I don't know.
9:45
Gabriella: I can earn mind you, he is the embodiment of Eeyore, guys.
9:51
Gabriella: He literally has airplane ears all the time, and I he does not wear a curving collar, he's a cripper because he gets depressed if I do that, and I can't like he already is Eeyore.
10:01
Gabriella: I can't have him be depressed.
10:02
Gabriella: I mean, more depressed, I don't know, like and he always has that like puppy eye of like be a cookie, like, okay.
10:09
Emma: Caring for school horses means juggling their needs with a fizzy lesson schedule.
10:13
Emma: What's the toughest juggling you've dealt with, like rehabbing an injury or your you breed horses, things like that.
10:22
Emma: How do you juggle those things?
10:24
Emma: Juggling their needs, the lesson program.
10:26
Gabriella: I would say probably the toughest juggle I had with rehabbing an injury or something was farrier that didn't listen to me or my horse's needs, really.
10:36
Gabriella: So I had a horse my my I've recently sold this horse, but he last summer abscessed on his coronary band.
10:44
Gabriella: It was terrible.
10:45
Gabriella: He was out of work for like three months.
10:47
Gabriella: I actually had to bring my brood mare into the lesson program, which I was not sure would work out, but she actually ended up being amazing.
10:54
Gabriella: I was like, oh thank god.
10:55
Gabriella: She knew she knew she had to come through for me.
10:58
Gabriella: So I was I was using her in the lesson program in his place.
11:02
Gabriella: She was picking up his slack because the poor guy was just crippled with this abscess that went on for a while.
11:08
Gabriella: You know, it was a couple of weeks of the abscess, and then I was like, okay, it's busted, and it's like it's not really that ouchy anymore.
11:15
Gabriella: He shouldn't be this lame with it.
11:18
Gabriella: Like, I understand some discomfort until it's healed a little bit more.
11:21
Gabriella: Like a barefoot practitioner is what they call it, which I am pro barefoot as much as possible.
11:28
Gabriella: So he doesn't do like regular shoes, metal shoes.
11:32
Gabriella: He would only do uh like order special boots or do uh polymer shoes if needed.
11:38
Gabriella: And I was literally begging him to put shoes on this horse.
11:41
Gabriella: I was like, I he's a thoroughbred, he's off the track, like I think he just has thin soles.
11:46
Gabriella: No, no, no, no, no, no.
11:47
Gabriella: Let's, you know, just give it some time.
11:49
Gabriella: And you know, if you put shoes, it'll it's just gonna do damage, kind of thing.
11:54
Gabriella: And I'm like, hey, come on, just put the plastic ones on, or like anything until literally the horse was so crippled.
12:02
Gabriella: And and you know, this is on me.
12:04
Gabriella: This is on me for not just firing him sooner, honestly, and getting a different ferry, but also we have slum pickings around here, so I was kind of nervous about doing that.
12:13
Gabriella: Um, and so then one day finally he goes, Oh my god, this horse has paper thin soles.
12:19
Gabriella: Yeah, but I can't put shoes on because there's nothing to put a shoe on in it, so he's gonna need boots.
12:23
Gabriella: And I was like, you know what?
12:24
Gabriella: You're not touching him anymore.
12:25
Gabriella: I'm taking him to the vet.
12:27
Gabriella: And so I took him to the vet and we got x-rays, and there was nothing else really going on that says, Yeah, just thin soles, it just needs shoes.
12:35
Gabriella: And now he needs some shoes with pads because it's you know been a problem for uh several weeks now.
12:40
Gabriella: And I was like, Okay, thank you.
12:41
Gabriella: So I fired the farrier and I got a different farrier, and he has been fantastic since.
12:47
Gabriella: That was just it learning to pivot.
12:50
Gabriella: This isn't exactly like a rehabbing a horse story, but this summer, that was last summer, this summer we had the issue of the lesson program didn't dwindle down a lot.
13:02
Gabriella: Like I was thinking about closing up shop because basically everyone's like, oh, we're just gonna take the few weeks off or the summer off or whatever, and then like no one was returning.
13:11
Gabriella: And I was just like, Well, I guess at the time, I think I had like three lesson horses, and I was like, and that horse um that needed the shoes being one of them, he's a little high maintenance for a lot of reasons.
13:23
Gabriella: Um, so I had to learn how to how to pivot, whether it's an injury, whether it's a tight schedule, um, to be adaptable and make sure that your clients are pretty adaptable and make a little note of those that aren't so much and kind of think ahead on those a little bit more.
13:40
Gabriella: Excellent advice.
13:42
Emma: So, for aspiring trainers, barn managers, or even riders who want to give back, what advice would you offer on developing a soft spot for school horses or helping school horses, or perhaps making a program that is good for school horses.
13:59
Emma: There's a lot.
14:00
Gabriella: Number one thing is nutrition.
14:02
Gabriella: Never ever ever skimp on your horses, especially your lesson horses nutrition.
14:07
Gabriella: Yeah, they're not jumping the meter 30s or doing the hunter derbies and or the Grand Prix Drusage, they're not doing these high-performance athletic careers, but they are still working hard.
14:20
Gabriella: They're in the trenches with the beginners and the the ones who are still learning and they're getting bounced on and they're they're getting pulled on inadvertently sometimes.
14:32
Gabriella: And, you know, people that aren't balanced, just that lack of balance even takes a toll on their bodies.
14:39
Gabriella: And it's nothing against the the students at all.
14:41
Gabriella: Like we have to learn.
14:43
Gabriella: There's that messy middle part before we really get more proficient and we're not as taxing on the horse's body.
14:50
Gabriella: And so you have to really look out for your school horses, their daily care.
14:55
Gabriella: So, nutrition number one, get the highest quality hay you can find, the absolute highest.
15:03
Gabriella: Don't skimp on it.
15:04
Gabriella: Make sure they have access to it 24-7, especially if they don't have a nice lush pasture.
15:10
Gabriella: And then for like feedstuffs or grain, I know a lot of people are right now, it's a really, really big thing to be forage only.
15:19
Gabriella: I'm not forage only, I am forage first.
15:23
Gabriella: So um, we do have a grain.
15:27
Gabriella: Uh, we use the blue bonnet intensify line, so it's uh alfalfa or beetbolt based.
15:32
Gabriella: So it's still a forage first grain, but there is a little bit of grains in it.
15:37
Gabriella: And I really like that line.
15:38
Gabriella: It's Santiago's on the Omega Force, which is almost $40 a bag.
15:43
Gabriella: And honestly, for uh for your horses to not be skimping, you're gonna be paying at least $30 a bag.
15:50
Gabriella: Don't skimp on it.
15:52
Gabriella: The quality of the product, just like our human food, although most of us don't eat the best human food, it's fine.
15:57
Gabriella: Horses can eat filet mignon, we can eat the ramen, especially equestrians.
16:02
Gabriella: I know, I know.
16:04
Gabriella: Don't skimp on the grain.
16:05
Gabriella: You don't have to pay for the $80 a bag stuff.
16:08
Gabriella: I feel like a lot of that is overpriced, but if you're paying, granted, this is gonna vary, but the those the cheapest thing in the store is cheap for a reason.
16:17
Gabriella: It's a lot of byproducts, it's a lot of crap, a lot of filler.
16:20
Gabriella: There is definitely something to when those uh forage only people say, Oh, there's it's a lot of inflammatory ingredients.
16:26
Gabriella: Yes, absolutely.
16:27
Gabriella: Uh, you want to keep those to a minimum.
16:28
Gabriella: The other thing is watching out for their wear and tear.
16:33
Gabriella: Uh, get ahead of it.
16:34
Gabriella: Don't wait until they're crippled.
16:36
Gabriella: Don't be like me.
16:37
Gabriella: No, I'm just kidding.
16:38
Gabriella: With poor Cooper.
16:39
Gabriella: Um, that was different.
16:40
Gabriella: That was an abscess and pencils.
16:42
Gabriella: Uh uh, Colette Sussman, she is a great resource.
16:46
Gabriella: And I've learned from a lot of others as well.
16:48
Gabriella: But her TikToks, uh, I very vividly remember her TikTok of someone asked, How do you keep your lesson horses sound?
16:54
Gabriella: Like what work schedule do you recommend?
16:56
Gabriella: And she recommended they have five days a week of one to two lessons a day.
17:02
Gabriella: They, if it's two lessons a day, they they do one in the morning, one in the evening that are really split it up, and then they have two days off in a row.
17:09
Gabriella: So I stick to that as much as I can now.
17:12
Gabriella: Being in deep southeast Texas, our weather can change on a dime.
17:15
Gabriella: And I, you know, we might have to pivot that a little bit here and there.
17:19
Gabriella: But for the most part, that's the schedule I try and stick to for all of them.
17:23
Gabriella: Basically, I tell all my clients my horses have a max of 10 rides a week.
17:29
Gabriella: And so if they're fully booked for that week, there I am not, I am not a I'm not putting in a lot of bread on them.
17:35
Gabriella: I will not budge on that.
17:37
Gabriella: You can have an unmounted lesson if you need to make it up that week or something.
17:40
Gabriella: And then they will get at least one full day off.
17:45
Gabriella: And that's with us having to have pivoted because of, you know, of a deluge.
17:51
Gabriella: We get our random deluges.
17:52
Gabriella: I call them washouts.
17:54
Gabriella: It will literally rain so hard that you can't even see in front of you.
17:57
Gabriella: It's insane.
17:58
Gabriella: Um, and then of course, finding good uh therapeutic things for them and educating yourself too, really get educated on as much as you can on saddle fit, have a good saddle fitter on hand as well, or several.
18:12
Gabriella: I have like three on hand, and then I can do stuff, and then there's a lot of people that can do it online too.
18:19
Gabriella: But I have three, no, I have sorry, two in-person ones.
18:23
Gabriella: One will come out, one we have to go to her.
18:26
Gabriella: It's very hard to find any sort of equine professional in this area, especially when I moved here three years ago.
18:32
Gabriella: And so it's gotten a lot better since then.
18:35
Gabriella: Make sure they're up to date on their dentals once or twice a year.
18:38
Gabriella: Learn some basic fascia massage.
18:40
Gabriella: That's super, it's not hard on your hands or anything.
18:42
Gabriella: Fasha massage is very easy to do.
18:44
Gabriella: You just need, like, you know, give yourself like a good 10 to 20 minutes of time.
18:48
Gabriella: And then I have uh a student who's now certified in equine massage, and so we're gonna be utilizing her for that.
18:56
Gabriella: And uh now there's finally an equine chiropractor and acupuncturist that's only an hour south of us, so we're gonna be utilizing that.
19:04
Gabriella: We got a MagnaWave lady that is only 20 minutes north of us, so a lot has come a long way.
19:10
Gabriella: I would recommend getting all of that done as like get it done as soon as you get your horse, pretty much, and then have that practitioner tell you, hey, this horse they might need here's what to look for, or they might need it in six months or whatever.
19:24
Gabriella: And keep up with it.
19:26
Gabriella: If you're teaching a kid how to post, liniment those backs after teaching those kids how to post.
19:32
Emma: That's really good advice.
19:33
Emma: And um, next, I think the next logical question would be how do you do all that with your crazy weather?
19:41
Emma: You've got crazy heat, humidity, and then apparently there's also like swimming conditions.
19:50
Gabriella: Yeah, no kidding on that.
19:51
Gabriella: Well, last year, the uh no, this past spring, I think it was this past spring.
19:57
Gabriella: I can't remember.
19:57
Gabriella: My my timelines are messed up, but we got a year's worth of rain, and we are borderline rainforest levels of rain, by the way, yearly.
20:06
Gabriella: And uh so this past spring we got a year's worth of rain in less than 30 days.
20:13
Gabriella: There was water all the way up to my stalls, almost, almost completely washed out my stalls.
20:19
Gabriella: You know how you like you have your tall muck boots that come up to your knees, right?
20:22
Gabriella: I had to walk through the water to get to some buckets that were floating away, and there's water just gushing into my boots.
20:29
Gabriella: I mean, I nearly floated away.
20:31
Gabriella: Um keep water out of your barn like that.
20:35
Gabriella: We had to pay a guy to bring in dirt and a tractor and like kind of grade it so that water doesn't come up so easy.
20:44
Gabriella: And so far, it's worked.
20:46
Gabriella: Yay! To get redone in a couple years, it's fine.
20:50
Gabriella: The worst thing for us most of the year is just the absolute full heat and humidity combination.
20:57
Gabriella: Pretty much like nine months out of the year, we're well above 80 degrees, and for like three months out of the year, we're well above 90 degrees with anywhere from 60 to 90 something percent humidity.
21:11
Gabriella: So, what we do is we have and a lot of places have like up north, you had kind of seasonal schedules because of the daylight issues.
21:21
Gabriella: So here we have a seasonal schedule more because of the heat issue.
21:24
Gabriella: So during the heat of the summer, the heat of the summer, six months of the year, the last, the very last lesson will be at 10 o'clock in the morning, sometimes even nine o'clock, preferably nine o'clock is the last lesson.
21:39
Gabriella: And then lessons don't start up again until earliest five o'clock in the evening, preferably six o'clock.
21:45
Gabriella: Horses will be hosed uh before and after lessons, during the heat of the day as well.
21:51
Gabriella: They'll be cold hosed.
21:52
Gabriella: It's a lot of it's a lot of hosing.
21:54
Gabriella: We have to really be careful about looking out for heat stress because they'll very easily go into anhydrosis, which is where they stop sweating proficiently or stop sweating altogether.
22:05
Gabriella: So if we see that nostrils are flared just standing out in the pasture, we'll make sure that they get into the paddock that has the barn because the pasture has like shady trees, but the barn has obviously shade, but also fans running.
22:20
Gabriella: So we'll make sure they have that to go in and we'll put their hay in the stall that has the fan.
22:24
Gabriella: So they don't have any reason to leave that stall because the way we're set up, we don't have a big fancy barn.
22:31
Gabriella: We just have it's a small little barn.
22:33
Gabriella: It's kind of almost like a run-in.
22:35
Gabriella: Um, but it works because we don't.
22:37
Gabriella: Yeah, it's what we've got, and we'll add on, we'll we'll do better, it'll get better.
22:44
Gabriella: So we'll make sure there's there's cold water, cool water, and cool, fresh water that's clean and hay in the stalls to encourage the ones that need it to be in a cooled-off area.
22:55
Gabriella: But we try and make sure that they're not locked in there because we do want them moving.
22:59
Gabriella: That also, I think turnout is huge to keep them comfortable because just like with us, you go and you do an hour workout and you just sit down afterwards, you're gonna be more sore than if you were actually walking around, just even just you know, walking around at the grocery store or something.
23:15
Gabriella: Not only is it better for their digestion and everything, like everyone already knows, but it's also good so that the lesson horses like it prevents a lot of soreness.
23:22
Gabriella: Loose salt in their feed, we do a tablespoon AM feeding and PM feeding, and electrolytes they will get a serving AM and PM.
23:31
Gabriella: That is absolutely vital.
23:33
Gabriella: Honestly, all year round.
23:35
Gabriella: All year round, because in the heat, they need the replenishment, and in the cold, they need the electrolytes and the salt not only to encourage them to drink, but also what little they do drink, because they're gonna drink less, it helps them retain that water in their system better.
23:51
Gabriella: Um, so we it's fantastic for preventing dehydration and thus preventing colic.
23:56
Gabriella: Let's see what else.
23:57
Gabriella: Herbs.
23:58
Gabriella: I'm a huge fan of herbs.
24:00
Gabriella: Herbs and and uh different uh supplements, so like hyaluronic acid is fantastic.
24:06
Gabriella: It's done such a good thing.
24:08
Gabriella: It's such a good thing, it's done wonders for Santiago.
24:11
Gabriella: He does just on a good nutrition and hyaluronic acid, 200 milligrams a day, that has the same effect as Equiox had on him.
24:20
Gabriella: Since the the lesson program's picking up again quite a bit, I went ahead and put him on a bunch of herbs.
24:26
Isabeau: So my question would be so what brand of HA do you use, hyaluronic acid, and where do you get your herbs from?
24:31
Isabeau: Are you buying from a specific company or all over the place?
24:35
Gabriella: I am a staunch researcher because I have to be frugal.
24:38
Gabriella: We all know lesson programs don't have very big profit margins.
24:41
Gabriella: So I came across Audra Christie on TikTok.
24:44
Gabriella: And although I don't agree with everything she has to say, that's okay.
24:46
Gabriella: We we don't have to agree on everything.
24:48
Gabriella: She is a wealth of information, especially on where to get.
24:51
Gabriella: So, like a lot of people love gut X.
24:53
Gabriella: Gut X is great, it works, nothing against it.
24:56
Gabriella: But, or like hyaluronic hyaluronic acid, like lubricin is hyaluronic acid, and it's great, it works, but it's $100 a month for lubricin.
25:03
Gabriella: If you just want something, you know, if you want something marketed for horses, great.
25:08
Gabriella: But what we do is uh for the hyaluronic acid, we use bulk supplements on Amazon and we get the capsules of it, and it's I think maybe $25 for a container, whatever of it.
25:23
Gabriella: It's like 200 and something cap capsules, and each capsule has 200 milligrams of hyaluronic acid.
25:28
Gabriella: So you can you can open the capsule and dump the thing in the feed, or you can just put the capsule in there if the horse will eat it.
25:34
Gabriella: Most of ours will just eat it.
25:36
Gabriella: So we just throw the capsule in there and they just eat it like a like a pellet.
25:40
Gabriella: Um, also, wet down your horse's food, guys.
25:43
Gabriella: Please wet it down and mix it up.
25:46
Gabriella: Don't don't let them chuck.
25:47
Gabriella: Also, extra hydration, and then they can't pick through the supplements.
25:50
Gabriella: That's what we do for hyaluronic acid.
25:52
Gabriella: For herbs, it depends.
25:55
Gabriella: Um, so we have one, she's in for training and she has heaves.
26:01
Gabriella: Initially, of course, we put her on, which by the way, gut X is mostly just um beta-glucan and hyaluronic acid, and you can get both of those on Amazon for cheap.
26:10
Gabriella: And the hyaluronic acid, that 200 capsules or whatever, last, I think one horse anywhere from three to six months, and it's way more cost effective than lubricin or whatever.
26:19
Gabriella: And then beta-glucan, it's the same thing.
26:21
Gabriella: It has a little thingy, has a little scoop in it, and it's like $22 for like three months worth.
26:26
Gabriella: And usually you're getting higher dosages with that human-grade stuff.
26:30
Gabriella: So the one with heaves, um, when I was doing a lot of research on herbs for her, we did initially put her on a round of steroids and benadryl to get it under control.
26:41
Gabriella: And then I was like, okay, let's try and lean her off of that and put her on some herbs.
26:45
Gabriella: Um, just because kind of like like I have Santiago on hyaluronic acid because there's less, there's it's not as it's not hard on his tummy, like uh, what is it called?
26:54
Gabriella: Um, which is still better than pute.
26:57
Gabriella: So steroids obviously have a lot of you know, not so great side effects long term.
27:02
Gabriella: Um, so I looked into different herbs, and the most cost effective for heaves herbs with the most effective herbs at effective dosages was actually silver linings, the respiratory, and they are I think it was like $80 something dollars, comes out to like $40 a month, but you buy two months supply at a time.
27:22
Gabriella: And so that's worked wonders for her.
27:24
Gabriella: Honestly, I think she's doing better on the herbs than she was on the stairwell.
27:29
Gabriella: And then uh, like she hasn't had any wheezing or any issues lately.
27:34
Gabriella: She's been doing great.
27:35
Gabriella: Like one week on the herbs, and her cough was like gone.
27:38
Gabriella: And then uh for the herbs I have Santiago on, which are basically a bunch of anti-inflammatories.
27:44
Gabriella: I think it's smart pack.
27:46
Gabriella: I'm a big fan of smart pack for ease of use.
27:49
Gabriella: I know it's a lot of waste, plastic waste, but when you have a big barn, it it helps.
27:54
Gabriella: So not everyone has to be like, wait, what?
27:56
Gabriella: How much how many scoot?
27:57
Gabriella: Oh no, I put it on the wrong bucket.
27:59
Gabriella: Like it's all just right there.
28:00
Gabriella: But yeah, bulk supplements on Amazon is great for a lot of things.
28:04
Gabriella: In fact, that's I I just got in some for we got a new surrender horse who's been a lesson horse in the past, and we think she'll make a really good one from what we've assessed, but she seems ulcerary.
28:16
Gabriella: So we're just gonna go ahead and put her on some natural remedy for that.
28:19
Gabriella: If it's bad enough, I'll put them on almaprozzle for like 30 days, and then I'll put them on this regime.
28:26
Gabriella: I'm gonna tell you so, which I got from Audrey Christie.
28:28
Gabriella: Give credit where credit is due.
28:29
Gabriella: And it's we get the aloe vera juice from Walmart.
28:33
Gabriella: I think like a two-week supply is like $10 now.
28:36
Gabriella: A slippery elm for bulk supplements on Amazon.
28:39
Gabriella: I get the one pound package and then um marshmallow root, one pound package, bulk supplements on Amazon.
28:46
Gabriella: And we'll do a tablespoon of the marshmallow root, a tablespoon of slippery elm, and a cup of aloe vera and mix it into her feed, and we'll do that until the packages run out, which is at least a month.
29:00
Gabriella: So it's usually a month and a half, and then sometimes I'll do a second round too, and there's no rebound effect on those.
29:07
Emma: Yep.
29:07
Emma: That's excellent.
29:08
Emma: I have my Belgian on at least aloe all the time.
29:13
Emma: And I did find on Amazon uh I can't remember what supplement company, but I got like a bag of powdered aloe beer extract, and I think it's like a year supply for 20.
29:25
Emma: You mix it with water.
29:27
Emma: Okay, you might have to send me the link for that because that would be easier than the juice.
29:32
Emma: Okay, I need the allergy one too, with a a link to that.
29:36
Emma: Oh, yeah.
29:37
Emma: Silverliner respiratory.
29:41
Emma: I think that might help my finger.
29:55
Gabriella: Oh, sorry, it was more cost effective to get it from them than it was to throw it.
29:59
Gabriella: To get all the different herbs through Fulk supplements.
30:01
Gabriella: So I just went with them and I was like, great, fantastic, wonderful company.
30:05
Gabriella: And then um, yeah, the marshmallow root and the slippery um are like $22 each, and it's like a month and a half.
30:11
Gabriella: So instead of, you know, having to deal with a possible rebound effect and paying $300 for omniprozal, I'm paying what, maybe $70 total for a month and a half and no rebound effect.
30:25
Emma: Yep.
30:25
Emma: And the herbs they just totally can work and then long-term father's and a benefit of like actually healing things most of the time, which is awesome.
30:39
Emma: It's worked.
30:40
Emma: We love herbs over here.
30:42
Gabriella: That ulcer remedy has worked every single time.
30:45
Gabriella: My mare was super ulcer prone and would have the rebound effect off all my prosal.
30:51
Gabriella: And when I did this for 90 days, we haven't had an issue since.
30:55
Emma: Cavalier Equine, where spirit and sport intertwine.
30:59
Emma: Gabrielle Menieros is located in Warren, Texas.
31:04
Emma: She teaches in-person lessons on school horses or with your horse at her ranch or at yours.
31:13
Emma: She also has clinics available and virtual instruction.
31:17
Emma: And we will link her website below.
31:20
Emma: She practices holistic methods and classical horsemanship.
31:26
Emma: Go check her out.
31:27
Emma: And please check out one of our last episodes.
31:31
Emma: Isabel will link it below.
31:34
Emma: Black horses and dark secrets.
31:37
Emma: And please reach out to us if you'd like to be on the podcast.
31:42
Emma: If you have any ideas on how to help a school horse or you help school horses yourself, like Gabby, you can contact us by emailing us at emmajenkinson dressage at gmail.com or at the contact section below.
32:00
Emma: We would love to have you on.