RE: Good Books?

["Bob Morris" <bobmorris@rmci.net>]

Jackie:

Sources of Helpful Information

There is a wealth of good information about horses, distance riding sports
and trails in books and videos.  Visit you local library to see what is
available.  Many titles are obtainable through inter-library loans so don't
be discouraged if the selection on the shelves is small.  New information is
available continually so the following is just a place to start.

Horse Selection - Shopping For A Partner

What you want to do with your horses determines what to buy.  Required
reading are Deb Bennett's three books Principles of Conformation Analysis I,
II, and III.  These are paperbacks that give insights into equine structure
and movement, all are well illustrated.  She also offers help in evaluating
a horse.  The information provided will help you make a correct choice.

Your First Horse by Jacquelind Dwelle and Horse for Sale (How to buy a horse
or sell the one you have) by Cherry Hill suggest to the reader what to look
for when buying a horse, i.e. way of moving, conformation, age, etc.  These
are paperbacks with non-technical language.

Understanding Horses
The horse is not a piece of sports equipment like skis or a tennis racket.
It is a living creature with its innate behavior patterns, its needs, and
the reactions proper to a creature of his kind.  Robert Miller's Western
Horse Behavior and Training, especially the first two chapters, has
extremely useful information for anyone who owns or is thinking of buying a
horse.  On the jacket of R.H. Smythe's The Mind of the Horse, are several
questions including "why does it learn?"  His book attempts to answer these
types of questions.  Practical Horse Psychology by Morya Williams reports on
some experiments done with horses.

The Body Language of Horses by Tom Ainslie and Bonnie Ledbetter is another
book that helps people understand their equine actions, needs and puzzling
behavior.  The Language of the Horse: Habits and Forms of Expression by
Michael Schafer has pictures as well as information about all aspects of a
horse, particularly good for those people who have a number of horses living
together in a pasture.  Jamie Jackson's The Natural Horse is an excellent
source of information for those whose horses live in a communal pasture.  It
is even more valuable for the data on hooves, length and break-over points.

An interesting book with non-technical terms is Horsefeathers Facts versus
Myths about your Horse's Health, authored David W. Ramey, a practicing
equine vet.  He disavows many of the old "rules" for good horse care.  In
Part V, the author illuminates the musculoskeletal system.  In easy to
understand terms, he explains about conditions and injuries that will cause
unsoundness.  Dr. Ramey states that is amazing that our horses survive with
all the legends and lore (often incorrect) about their care.

The Horse Owner's Preventative Maintenance Handbook by Elaine Pascoe is for
the horse owner who wants to keep their animal healthy and sound for many
years.  It explains, in easy to read form, the basic systems of the horse.
The author contends that many horses break down long before they should and
gives examples of the physical stress that can affect them.

Equine Care and Fitness

To care for your distance horse, you should own a handbook of general care
information.  Much research has added to the fund of knowledge about horses
making the older editions less useful.  Horses, A guide to Selection, Care
and Enjoyment edited by J. Warren Evans and designed as an undergraduate
textbook on horse management is very helpful.  Another good one also written
for the college student is Horses A Practical and Scientific Approach by
Melvin Bradley.  There are probably many other elementary tests equally as
instructive.  For more in depth information, Equine Fitness (The Care and
Training of the Athletic Horse) by Snow and Vogel in 1987 is of great value
for those who wish to be very competitive.  101 Arena Exercises - A Ringside
Guide for Horse & Rider by Cherry Hill has great suggestions for suppling
and strengthening your horse.

Anatomy and Conformation

As mentioned earlier, Deb Bennett's books Principles of Conformational
Analysis I, II and III are extremely valuable for anyone shopping for an
endurance horse.  Ben Green's Horse Conformation As To Soundness and
Performance has excellent illustrations and diagrams that are often used at
seminars and clinics.  For more in depth information, The Anatomy of the
Horse (A Pictorial Approach) by Way and Lee starts with the skin and peels
away layers of muscle until underlying skeleton is revealed.  R. H. Smythe's
The Horse Structure and Movement does not have many diagrams, so the reader
must be familiar with the names of bones and muscles to really understand
the kinesiology.

Several others to consider are The Coloring Atlas of Horse Anatomy by Robert
A. Kainer and Thomas O. McCracken, The Lame Horse - Causes, Symptoms &
Treatment by Dr. James R. Rooney, Lameness in Horses by O.R. Adams and
Practical Guide to Lameness in Horses by Ted S. Stashak.

Athletic horses as well as human athletes do get muscle injuries as well as
metabolic upsets.  Horses involved in distance riding activities develop
muscular aches and pains.  Beating Muscle Injuries for Horses by Jack
Meagher is a spiral bound paperback that details 25 common muscular problems
in horses.  It shows where the muscles are located and suggests types of
message and exercise to correct the difficulty.  New research has added to
the fund of knowledge available, especially for the equine athlete.
Dynamics of Equine Athletic Performance makes available to all the
proceedings of the 1985 Association for Equine Sports Medicine.  It devotes
an entire chapter to distance riding.

Horse Nutrition

Because a horse being ridden long hours and for many miles needs more food
than the average backyard pleasure horse or broodmare, endurance riders need
to know and be cognizant of the latest information on equine nutrition.
Horse Nutrition by Harold Hintz is the one of the more recent.  Lon Lewis's
book Feeding and Care of the Horse is also up on the latest research
findings.  Endurance horses require fuel to power their muscles; an
undernourished horse can not perform.  Pasture alone will not provide the
nutrients necessary to keep a horse fit and eager.

 Endurance Riding

An English rider, Ann Hyland, wrote one of the first books about the sport
in 1975.  Endurance Riding: How to Condition, Train and Manage Your Horse
for Long-Distance Competition is worth reading as it gives a view of the
sport and some English rides.  Two other books also written in the 1970's
when endurance riding and competitive trail riding were first becoming
popular give us some tips and pointers.  They are Distance Riding: From
Start to Finish by V. W. and T. Johnson and Long Distance Riding Explained
by Rachael Kydd.  Both detail some of the older and prestigious rides in a
number of countries.  A newer book on the subject is Successful Endurance
Riding by P. Ingram and Lew Hollander.  A new book updating the old one and
giving more information on being a fit rider is Endurance Riding from
Beginning to Winning by Lew Hollander and Patti Ingram.  Another new book on
the subject is Long Distance Riding by Marcy Drummond.  Published in early
1990 is Karen Paulo's book America's Long Distance Challenge.

Nancy S. Loving, DVM has published Go the Distance: A Complete Resource for
Endurance Horses and Veterinary Manual for the Performance Horse.  She
writes from a Vet's perspective.  Many pages are devoted to selection,
feeding and care of the equine.  The book contains many tips on the care of
an athletic horse.   Wining Strategies for Endurance Horse Racing by
Courtney Hart is another book to consider.  She He has coached many top
riders.  The book contains detailed care for the world class competitor.

Endurance and Competitive Trail Riding by Wentworth Tellington and Linda
Tellington-Jones was originally written in 1967 and then up-dated in 1979.
There is more current data on feeding available but their ideas and theories
make you think.  It also has a chapter on managing an endurance ride.  Linda
has now switched from endurance riding to promoting the T.E.A.M. Training
system; her new book on that subject is An Introduction to Tellington-Jones
Equine Awareness Method.  Both books list ways of massaging your horse to
calm him/her down.

Newsletters, Magazines

IAHA's Arabian Horse contains articles of training, conditioning, etc. as
well as an event calendar.  AERC's Endurance News lists rides, results and
contains articles pertaining to distance riding.  The Horse, Your Guide to
Equine Health Care, contains up-to-date articles on caring for your horse.
Others include Trail Blazer, NATRC Hoofprint, Equus and Western Horseman.
Many of the riding clubs produce a newsletter with valuable information and
articles.

Trails

When planning a trail riding trip, you need to start by looking at maps.
Some can be obtained through a US Forest Service or BLM office.  The US
Coast and Geodetic Service has topographic maps of the entire country.
Sometimes a local camping supply store will have a selection.  For maps of
the western half of the US contact: Branch of Distribution, US Geological
Survey, Federal Center, Denver, CO  80225.

A little booklet, Back Country Horsemen Guidebook, is also very useful for
people planning to ride in the back-country and wilderness areas of the
west.

Always check to see if camping is allowed and make sure horses are welcome
on the trail.  If you plan to take a dog, check the lease laws, etc.  Ask if
there is water available on the trail as well as at the trailhead.
 (This has no bearing on the biblio)
There are two books for traveling across country with your horses,  North
American Horse Travel Guide by Bruce McAllister and  Nationwide Overnight
Stabling Directory & Equestrian Vacation Guide by Equine Travelers of
America, Inc.  The books are divided up by states with maps to show location
of facilities.  Always best to plan ahead and call to ensure availability.
Some locations allow you to camp with access to trails.

Ride & Tie

For those interested in this sport there are several books on the subject.
Ride and Tie: The Challenge of Running and Riding by Donald Jacobs.  It was
written in 1978 gives all kinds of helpful information and is very complete.
Bud Johns, the originator of the sport, has a newer book out,  What is This
Madness.  Both are paperbacks and worth owning if you wish to learn about
strategy and tactics as well as basic information.

Videos

There are also video cassettes available on many horse subjects including
endurance riding.  The AERC has "Long Distance Riding" and "Cardiac Recovery
Index" available for rental or purchase.  "Mile after Mile" a video tape
about endurance riding was produced by Karen Paulo.  The AERC also has
several videos for sale or rent: "Long Distance Riding " with DVM's Dane
Frazier and Matthew Mackay-Smith, "Starting a Young Horse" by Linda
Tellington-Jones and "Cardiac Recovery Index" by Kerry Ridgway, DVM.


This was excerpted from my wife's manual on distance riding


Bob Morris
Morris endurance Enterprises
Boise, ID

-----Original Message-----
From:	Zeigen96@aol.com [mailto:Zeigen96@aol.com]
Sent:	Wednesday, September 15, 1999 7:44 PM
To:	ridecamp@endurance.net
Subject:	RC:  Good Books?

 Hi Hoss lovers,
        What are some good informative books on horses?  Not even jsu ER but
horses in general. I'd love some great reading material.  Thanks in Advance.

Jackie and Classy the QH


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=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.    
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/RideCamp   
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