Rachael's Corner: Sarcoids in Horses

In the Tictac Equestrian office today we have been discussing the horrible equine ailment of “sarcoids”.  My horse Honey is currently suffering from sarcoids on her chest and underneath her girth area – one of which stopped me from riding for a while.  Jenny, the boss, also had a horse with a sarcoid, sadly due to the speed of its growth – it was a particularly terrible type, eventually her horse had to be put to sleep L she was heartbroken.

Often people in the equine community know surprisingly little about this disease and a lot of false information is often passed about. For years sarcoids have been belittled and under estimated by the term "wart." Believe it or not, sarcoids are actually a form of equine skin cancer. Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer diagnosed in horses, sarcoids being the most common of these.

It is thought that if a horse has a sarcoid, it can decrease their value by 90% (therefore, if a horse was worth £10,000, it would be considered to only be worth £1000 due to this condition)… quite a scary fact!  Research is still being carried out across the world to find further treatment for this horrible disease.

It is common for sarcoids to re occur even if removing previous lesions have been successful. There are many treatments available through your vet; including steroid creams, surgical removing, arsenic cream or freezing with liquid nitrogen. If you prefer the more natural / herbal treatments, Botanica has proven extremely successful at healing sarcoids, wounds and mudrash – whilst preventing scars in horses.

If you have any suspicion that your horse may have a sarcoid, please do contact your vet. The earlier they are treated, the higher the likeliness of successful treatment! GOOD LUCK! and please let us know how you get on – we would love to hear your stories and see your before and after photos. Contact us through our Facebook or Twitter page.

Tictac Equestrian Want To Sponsor You!

Have you heard about our exciting sponsorship competition yet? Over the past few weeks, our Tictac team have been working hard to bring our customers an exciting new competition; giving one lucky person the opportunity to win a year sponsorship by Tictac Equestrian, along with lots of fabulous horsey goodies!

We are giving you the chance to win a Mark Todd blouson jacket, a Mark Todd saddle cloth and a hoodie, all embroidered with our lovely Tictac Equestrian logo and also 20% off of all of your orders from www.tictacequestrian.com for a full year! 

We have had an amazing response so far with over one hundred entries. All of our team love to read about all of your successes and look at your lovel pictures. To enter, we would like you to like and share our Facebook page then post a small paragraph on our page, along with a picture of your horse or pony, stating why you think you deserve to win this amazing prize and sign up to our Tictac newsletter on our website (easy peasy!) After a short time, our Tictac team will select the top twenty people that we believe to be the most deserving to be put forward for this prize. Our quarter finalists will then be sent a short list of bio questions that we would like you to complete and submit, along with a few more pictures of you and your horse. We will then post the interview questions for all twenty finalists onto our Tictac Equestrian blog and from then we will select our top four contestants.  We will then make profiles up for our final four contestants on our website as products and our customers will decide from there by adding the person they believe is the most deserving to win to the shopping basket. We don’t want it to be a popularity contest – we want it to be fair and for the prize to go to a hard-working, dedicated person J

Our team wish you the best of luck and look forward to reading your stories. If you have any questions about our competition, please don’t hesitate in contacting us, either through our Facebook or Twitter page or call our office.

Rachael's Corner: Visit Us at Campsie Show!

At Tictac Equestrian, all of our team are excited about the upcoming show season and all of the agricultural shows we are going to be visiting. Our first show of this year is Campsie Agricultural Show, held by Campsie, Strathblane and Baldernock Agricultural Society on Saturday 1^st June.

Our Tictac Equestrian team will be there all day enjoying all of the events going on and meeting all of our loyal online customers! Even if you are not competing at the show, there are lots of different events going on throughout the day for the whole family including light horses (showing and jumping), heavy horses, cattle and sheep, vintage cars and tractors, dog show, a home craft tent, craft tent, children’s entertainment, inflatables, ALBA Falconry static display, young farmers entertainment, Torrance gala parade/crowning of Gala Queen and of course a variety of trade stands including our fabulous Tictac Equestrian stand stocking Mark Todd, John Whitaker, JHL, Fal Pro, Botanica, Carr and Day and Martin, Pikeur, Equino, Dainese, Coolex and many more amazing equestrian brands. 

We look forward to meeting you all and hope that you have an amazing day at the show! If you have any questions for our team, we are more than happy to help J Contact us through our Facebook or Twitter.

Rachael's Corner: Sell Your Unwanted Horsey Gear at Tictac Equestrian!

Do you have lots of unwanted equestrian clothing, rugs, boots, tack etc. lying around? Well in the Tictac Equestrian office today we have been chatting about our new exciting idea for our website and would like to hear what you all think!

 

Advertising anything you may have can be expensive and time consuming; often making you feel that you may have been better off keeping it! I know I've had that feeling before when i sold my saddle and websites take commission for advertising. At Tictac Equestrian, we were thinking about making a page on our busy website where you can sell any of your unwanted items, new or used, with little stress and of course it would be absolutely free!

What do you think about our idea? Would you use this service? We would love to hear from you. Contact us through our Facebook or Twitter.

Rachael’s Corner: New Gatehouse Conquest ZC Riding Hat with Swarovski Crystals

In the Tictac Equestrian office today, we are all very excited about one of our new hats that we are selling at an amazing introductory price. The Gatehouse Conquest hat is a stylish, comfortable hat and now you have the option of adding a little bit of sparkle with the genuine Swarovski Crystals lined along the centre panel of the hat. It is definitely on my wish list for this summer!

I have the Gatehouse F1 riding hat which is very comfortable and looks very expensive, even though we have it on offer just now for only £49.99, so I’m definitely buying the Conquest when I get paidJ At our amazing introductory price of £214.99, you can’t go wrong!

A Horse Is For Life Not Just For Christmas

'A pet is for life, not just for Christmas'

It's an old saying, but at this time of year, it's particularly important to remember. There is nothing quite as special as the first time the horse of your dreams comes into your life, especially on such a special day as Christmas Day itself. But as any horse owner will tell you, the reward of making this special connection comes with a lot of hard work. 

We don't need to tell you that it's worth it, but there is sadly a growing trend for treating animals as if they're disposable gifts, with many new owners who were once enamoured by the idea of spoiling a loved one with a wonderful Christmas gesture soon feeling overwhelmed by the responsibility and maintenance that comes with caring for a new pet, especially a horse. 

The BHS (British Horse Society) is currently trying to raise awareness of the problem, warning against any company that is encouraging people to buy a horse for Christmas.

As the BHS states: Horses need and deserve skilled care from knowledgeable people. In this market, they may be inexpensive to buy, but they can be costly to keep.

The company, Horsemart, recently sent out an email advertising: 'Horses under £500 make great Christmas presents.'

BHS Senior Welfare Executive Lee Hackett said: “We were so disappointed to see such an irresponsible email coming from Horsemart. A horse is for life, not just for Christmas.

Particularly reprehensible is that the horses shown in the email are all young animals designed to pull at the emotions of unsuspecting buyers. These horses would need careful handling from experienced people to develop and prepare for their future. They are most certainly not to be exploited for Christmas.”

The British Horse Society and we here at The Equestrian Blogger encourage anyone with the ability to properly care for a new horse to contact any reputable local Horse Rescue Centre, where you will find plenty of wonderful horses in need of a safe and reliable home. 

Clipping your horse for the Winter

It's that time of the year again where it's wise to think about clipping your horse. In their natural state, horses have all the protection they need against the harsh winter weather. However, in order to be able to handle different types of exercise and activity over the winter months, they need some, or in some cases, all of their winter coat removed to enable them to work efficiently and of course, to help us keep them clean! 

Reasons for clipping: 

• For quick drying after exercise
• To allow a horse to carry out fast work without too much stress
• To avoiding adverse effects caused by heavy sweating
• It makes grooming easier
• And it keeps you horse looking sharp!

What sort of clip should I consider for my horse? 
Your choice of clip depends on the type of work your horse will be doing over the winter period, taking into account how much he usually sweats. 

• Trace clip: A Trace Clip allows horses and ponies to be exercised without getting too hot. This also allows them to continue being turned-out in the winter. The coat is removed from the belly and up the underside of the neck. Hair is meanwhile left on the head, the topside of the neck, body and legs for warmth and protection. For a low trace, only a small section of hair is removed from the belly and neck whereas a high trace takes more hair from these areas going further up the horse's flank.

• Blanket clip: With a Blanket Clip, the coat is removed completely from the head, neck and flanks, leaving only an area of hair that looks like an exercise sheet over the back and hind-quarters and on the legs. This type of clip would suit a horse that has regular exercise, is turned-out in the field and does various events at the weekends. 
  
  
• Hunter clip: This is used mainly for horses in heavy work, such as hunters. The Hunter Clip is similar to the blanket clip, except that the hair over the hind-quarters is removed leaving only a patch in the saddle area. The leg hair remains for warmth and protection.
  
  
• Full clip: This is usually given to competition horses that compete in the winter months. The whole of the coat is removed, including body, legs and head. The full clip looks very smart but does require careful stable management. Horses with a full clip need to be rugged up at all times and may need to wear stable bandages in very cold weather.

Where do I start? 

• First of all you need to purchase a good quality pair of clippers. However, there are many different types available depending on the job you need them for so you wont be stuck for choice. Your choice of clippers depends on the type of clip as well as personal preference. 
  
  
• It's often wise to give your horse a bath first if they are particularly dirty. However, usually, you just need to make sure they are well-kept and thoroughly groomed, making sure you remove any and all dirt and sweat that could potentially clog up the clippers. 
  
  
• Have a rug ready to put on your horse after you finish clipping - we guarantee they'll notice the difference in temperature after their nice new haircut!
  
  
• If possible, try to have someone on hand to hold your horse and comfort them if they become agitated. 
  
  
• Use chalk to outline the area you are going to clip, particularly if you have not clipped a horse before. 
  
  
• While clipping the body, the clippers must run flat over the coat - don’t use too much pressure otherwise you will create lines known as ‘tram-lines’.  On the other hand, when clipping the legs and face you will need to clip against the hair as it is shorter than the rest of the hair on the horse’s body. 
  
  
• Start from the top of the neck and head and then work your way along the rest of the body. With experience you can develop your own clipping methods to suit both you and your horse, creating the least amount of stress possible. 
  
  
• Be firm, but gentle when working around the head. It is probably best to use a pair of finishing trimmers as they make less noise and are less likely to startle or cause stress. 
  
  
• After you have finished clipping, make sure that your horse is nice and rugged up and apply stable bandages if necessary - oh, and be sure to give them a well deserved treat! 
  
  
• If all else fails, get an expert to do it for you. It won’t cost you very much and it could cut out a lot of stress for both you and your horse.
  
  

For more info on our great range of clippers and other horse grooming items, be sure to check out the Tic Tac Equestrian store.

Likit Boredom Buster

At Tic Tac Equestrian, we know that winter boredom is bad enough for humans but we've got plenty of gadgets and TV boxsets to see in the long winter nights with a smile! For horses it's a tougher challenge staying sharp and satisfied having to spend long hours in the stable, but have no fear, before you start hooking up a flatscreen and an HD copy of Black Beauty there are plenty of fun ways to stave off the winter blues without breaking the bank and help keep your equine buddies full of beans and not just fed up!

One of our favourites is the Likit Boredom Buster (£20.99). As most horse lovers will know, lickable treats are universally loved by our four-legged friends, they can't get enough of them, and the fantastic range of diverse and delicious treats from Likit are among the best.

Their unique Boredom Buster Treats consist of a small plastic ball, suspended from a bouncy cord which you can hang inside the stable - just not too close to any walls! You pop your Horse's favourite Likit inside and watch them go! The more they try to control the ball, the more it spins, bounces and jumps, making it a fun way to make the most of a good treat! 

The more they spin, knock and push the Boredom Buster, the more irresistible the treat becomes and the more satisfying the reward! Don't worry, it's not to hard to get the hang of, but it's certainly a satisfying way to spend time and keep busy during long hours in the stable! 

At the Tic Tac Store, we have a huge range of Likit products you can use with the Boredom Buster, so have fun and try different combinations to keep your horses nice and busy this winter! Perfect Christmas Stocking Fillers!

In the meantime, here's a great video of the Boredom Buster in action!