There are so many things to be thankful for this holiday season but one thing, in particular, is your horse. Your horse may be who you spend most hours of the day with practicing for your next show or trail riding through the woods. Either way, you are likely best friends and that is something to be thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving from Classic Equine Equipment!

Soon enough you may have to decide whether to consider with pasture board or move your horse inside. Horses do quite well in colder temperatures as long as they have adequate shelter and/or blankets.

Now is the time of year when wildlife starts to find its way into your barn. While squirrels, mice, and birds might be enjoyable while they’re outside, when they come into your barn they become a nuisance and possible health hazard. If you need to keep wildlife out of your barn this fall and winter the following tips can help you do that!

As the days start to get shorter with corresponding longer nights, now is a good time to start thinking of additional lighting in your barn to help chase away the gloom of the darkness for both you and your horse. Horse’s eyes are sensitive to weak light. Their eyes don’t have the ability to adjust to darkness quickly, which is why they will often refuse to enter a dark building. In addition, shadows and poorly lit areas make stall cleaning cumbersome and inhibit observation and care. A combination of individual stall and general aisle way lighting is preferred. Place fixtures where they won’t create shadows for the horse when he enters his stall.

It’s Halloween and that means it's spooky season. So how can you protect yourself from things that go “bump in the night”? With a magic horse shoe, of course!

Two main problems with buying a new saddle are the cost and the uncomfortable process of breaking in the new leather. However, when buying a used saddle, you need to be on the lookout for a variety of issues that could signify that the saddle is damaged. Here’s what to look for:

With Fall hunting season coming up it is best to make sure you stay as safe as possible when outdoors and especially when riding on trails or pastures along hunting grounds.

It is always important to make safety #1 when riding, especially when you are riding with children.  

Making your barn more environmentally friendly is not only good for the environment but also makes good business sense. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has Cooperative Extension programs across the country. Congress created the Extension system nearly a century ago to address exclusively rural, agricultural issues. At that time, more than 50 percent of the U.S. population lived in rural areas, and 30 percent of the workforce was engaged in farming. Today, fewer than 2 percent of Americans farm for a living, and only 17 percent of Americans now live in rural areas. But Extension agents still serve a purpose by helping farmers grow crops and small farm owners plan and maintain their acreage.

Clicker training is a leading force-free method for training a number of diverse animals. It is a science-based method that traces its origins back to the work of B.F. Skinner. Karen Pryor, one of the early pioneers of marine mammal training, coined the term clicker training and helped expand the work into the broader training community.