#Blogtober Day 2: Tip Tuesday - Autumn related

Day 2 of Blogtober is here, and my absolute top tip for autumn is that preparation is key!  🔐 Prepping everything in your tack room and in storage is vital for having an easy and stress-free as possible autumn and winter with horses.

Prepping in autumn for winter personally for me mainly means tidying up and sorting out everything... Before autumn truly sets in, I think it's a good idea to get your yard and stables clean and tidy. Things such as giving your stables a really thorough deep clean, scrubbing your water feeder/buckets clean and getting rid of cobwebs and dust. Luckily for me having just moved into a new barn means that this autumn I don't have to do a deep clean, but I do have to unpack and sort everything into it's correct place. All of my tack has had a proper deep cleaning too! You don't want to be spending your precious time around looking for that one specific rug, set of boots or lotions and potions when the weather is foul and your time is very limited, especially time before the sun sets. Last weekend we visited our local tackshop to ensure that we have a fully stocked first aid kit, and important products like barrier cream for mud fever and disinfectant for cuts!

For nearly everyone, clipping is a necessary evil at this time of year. As soon as we have hot water in the barn, I'll be clipping two of mine straight away! Make sure you have had your clippers serviced and clipper blades sharpened in readiness. I hate clipping, but I can't think of anything worse than having gotten ready to clip and then realising that my clippers weren't working and having to rush to the shops.

This little monster is getting a clip as soon as we have hot water in the barn!

And finally, are your feeds all set for autumn? The decline in the nutritional value of the grass during autumn often catches people out! With paddocks turning more sparse at this time of year, remember to include sufficient vitamins and minerals in their diet through hard feed and supplements. For our not so "well looking horses" I've been adding linseed oil to support them. It may also be a good time to consider adding a balancer to the diet to minimise the chance of nutrient deficiency. It's also good to remember that diet is key when it comes to to their hooves – it’s especially important in autumn and winter! Adjusting feeds is important, because if you're reducing the amount of time spent outside in their paddocks as well as exercising your horse less daylight hours, then you need to adjust the hard feed accordingly, as well as thinking about increasing the amount of hay/haylage. 🌾

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