.:EQUUS:.

Just a reminder that EQUUS is hosting the next Carnival of the Horses on September 1. There are benefits as the writer of a piece to receive more interest and readers on your blog, so why not consider submitting a piece or two for the carnival. Or for those of you that would rather read what others have to say about the horses in their lives, why not drop on inn on the current carnival at Innstyle Montana? See you at the carnival!

“The Joy of horses is not the riding, jumping, racing, showing, or grooming, but of owning!”

tag: life with horses, blog carnival, writing, horse blogs

uShip is an online marketplace that connects horse transportation providers with customers who need their horses transported. uShip makes it easy for service providers to find profitable loads and gives customers access to affordable and reliable shipping options. The uShip marketplace is built on user feedback which helps both service providers and customers. Here’s how it works:

- A customer needs a horse moved across the country, so they list it on uShip.
- A service provider who services the necessary route and has some extra cargo space finds this shipment and places a bid.
- The customer reviews the bid and feedback left by the service provider’s past customers.
- The customer accepts the bid, contact information is exchanged, and the service provider services the shipment.
- Upon completion of the transaction, both parties leave feedback to help future users.
- Now the horse is at its destination, the customer has saved a little money, and the service provider was able to fill empty cargo space and make some extra money on a trip they were already making anyway.

uShip is always seeking to improve its services with new technology and features to make horse transportation as easy as possible. Christine Nguyen of uShip.com took the time to answer some questions regarding this online service.

When did uship.com start?
uShip.com launched in January of 2003 and since then, has been leading the online shipping revolution. Our mission is to create the most efficient marketplace for shipping that has ever existed by reducing shipping costs for customers and giving Transportation Service Providers the marketing scale, technology, and credibility they need to grow their business.

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
Most of my day is related to horses. We are trying to reach out to horse owners and lovers who cannot transport their horse cross-country to find an affordable and reliable transportation service provider who can do it for them. In addition, we try to help horse carriers and transporters earn money (especially with the rising cost of gas) by making it easy to find these readily available jobs through our online marketplace.

In this field of providing a place online where people can search for transport for their horses, how is an income made by the provider? Is it the sort of income that could be considered livable?
Service providers generate income by placing winning bids and completing transportation jobs. Some service providers get a large portion of their business through uShip, while others may simply supplement their already substantial business with occasional loads from our marketplace. The great part is, this works for both of these functions.

What are the general steps taken to be able to provide this service to others for their livestock?
First of all, the service providers need to have a USDOT and MC number which ensures that they are a legitimate transporter. They also need to have a license to transport live animals. Finally, they would need to have good knowledge of interstate and intrastate transportation laws, as these laws differ from state to state.

Any advice for those interested in providing a similar service by means of the internet?
If you are looking to get into horse transportation – or any type of transportation service – the internet now offers a wealth of resources and tools, and uShip is a great place to get started. Make sure you know exactly what this job entails and that you can handle the often demanding schedule. The best way to do this is by talking to others who have been doing this for a while. They can give you a better idea of what life as a horse transporter will be like. uShip’s Community forums actually provide a great place for you to connect with other horse transporters.

Future goals?
We would like to expand awareness of the affordable, reliable horse transportation services available on uShip. As riding is becoming more popular, horses have become an important part of many peoples’ lives and are bought, sold, and transported more than ever. We want to be a resource to help service providers pursue a career in horse transportation and make a living being around horses.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
The best thing is helping to rescue horses. Many times unwanted horses are sent to slaughter houses and taken down by their owners. There are many horse lovers and enthusiasts who want to help, but cannot afford the expensive costs of getting these horses shipped from across the country. With the uShip marketplace, we are able to help people avoid the high costs and get horses hauled home at a reasonable and affordable price.

“We gaze upon their quiet beauty, their natural elegance, and we are captivated. They see us softly, in gentle light… rewarding human companionship with strength, grace and intelligence. As they run through arenas and open fields, past mountains and seas, moving like the wind toward heaven, we travel with them, if only in our hearts.”

tag: horse transport, shipping horses, transport services, auction, online horse business, driving license

Available qualified chiropractors within Australia are slowly growing in numbers, suiting the demand for this type of practice. There are those that cater to animals in general and those that specifically focus on horses.

The best I have seen so far may be qualified in this field but they also have a background of veterinary practice focusing on horses, acupuncture or perhaps osteopathy, causing them to be someone who is qualified to look at the horse from all angles, giving a holistic approach to alleviate a problem.

For someone interested in specialising in chiropractic work that is focused on horses, there is a long path ahead of you to be qualified in this area.

Chiropractic courses generally focus on work on people and these studies can be around five or six years in length. Once completing this or having become a certified veterinarian, there are animal specific chiropractic courses that are open to you, based on your acquired knowledge or qualification which is listed as a prerequisite to partake in the animal related chiropractic course.

Places that advertise chiropractic care for horses:
http://www.chirotechnic.com.au/horse.html
http://www.pomonavet.com.au/chiropractic.php
http://latrobevet.com.au/pages/chiropractic.htm - Also lists symptoms that may lead to the need for chiropractic work.
James Picton - Equine chiropractor, osteopath, acupuncturist.

Chiropractic Courses:
Chiropractic at RMIT
Animal Chiropractic Course, RMIT.

“Ten ways to get in shape to own a horse… practice dialing your chiropractor’s number with both arms paralyzed to the shoulder, and one foot anchoring the lead rope of a frisky horse.”

tag: horse chiropractic work, chiropractor course, acupuncture, australia, osteopathy, veterinary, horse course

Although it’s winter we’re still very much in a dry season and as someone who’s now saving to purchase a house and hoping in the not too distant future to have land – and plenty of it! – I’m very aware of what trees and other plants I need to be putting on the property.

I want shrubs or trees that are going to be windbreaks, protection from the sun, provide shelter in rain and why shouldn’t they also be something that is appealing to a horse’s palate?

I love the idea of a one stop shop where you can go for your hay needs – Lucerne, grass and clover – as well as trees suitable as windbreaks, shelter from the sun and rain and that are also edible. The perfect place to go for your all your forage and fodder needs!

I’m not sure such a place exists, but I’d be very interested in visiting a business that grew a variety of trees and shrubs that would be a good investment on any horse property to plant and could also be utilised as food if the grazing got scarce. A perfect example of this is the Lucerne tree or Tagasaste and there are many others.

So why not when considering your laneway plants and windbreaks look into a tree that perhaps is tolerant of dry conditions and fruitful in it’s foliage that could be used as fodder if need be?

Horses comment on a car -”150 horsepower, big deal. I’d be impressed if it ran on hay.”

Most of the places I’ve stayed at that are horse related have had their own horses and provided trail rides, but how wonderful it would be to stop at a Bed and Breakfast in the country with your own horse and check out someone else’s gorgeous trails!

While I was working on a Thoroughbred stud in North East Victoria, I knew of another property up the road that although their main income came from the racehorses that they bred and sold, they had an extra house on the property that was available as a B&B to anyone interested.

I know of another in Wangaratta that breeds pacers but they also have a B&B business and how lovely would it be to wake up and watch a couple of gorgeous animals racing around a track in a morning work out? Ok, so maybe you’re not interested in being up that early but the idea of staying at a B&B that also runs a horse business appeals to me!

My parents often slip away to the country for a weekend and a relaxing break and a self contained cottage is the most appealing for them – they’re able to live in a house and make it theirs for a weekend and do as they please during the day while admiring someone else’s work that has been put in to make beautiful gardens that have stunning flowers and attract the most colourful birds.

Perhaps it’s your dream when you’ve got that block of land to have a house that others can occupy for short periods at a time to come relax, rest and rejuvenate while admiring the beautiful surrounds that you own. And perhaps because of the gorgeous surroundings, it’s appealing and viable to provide stabling and paddock access for those who want to admire it all from horseback. Why not?

In South Africa while we were on trail, it was common to ride the horses to a particular distance and stop in on a friend of the owner’s. We’d untack the horses while hitched to a tree and then lead them into one of the many paddocks that belong to the friend and leave the horses to drink and graze while we went inside and had coffee or tea with cake and scones. How lovely!

I believe this concept would be awesome in a B&B and wouldn’t be surprised if it is already utilised (I’m rather ignorant to the ways of B&B’s). But how lovely would it be to have a place that you stay at, say for a couple of days with your own horse (because of course they provide stabling and paddocks for guests’ horses).

On the first day you arrive and let your horse have a spell in one of the paddocks while getting yourself settled in, have lunch and a bit of a rest. Then back into the saddle and out to explore the trails on the property.

The following morning you visit another trail you didn’t have time for the previous afternoon; break for lunch and pack your things and then head onto another B&B or self contained cottage that caters to horses that is situated 10kms down the road! Or perhaps there are properties nearby that allow you to ride to them, allow your horse to rest while you get refreshed and then head back to the B&B where you are staying.

Take a look at:
http://www.equusmeadowinn.com/
http://fvclassic.wordpress.com/

“Horses want one place rubbed: themselves.”

tag: trail riding, bed and breakfast, horse business, trotters, pacing, horse stud, south africa, australia, thoroughbred stud season, horseriding