Natural disasters, such as forest fires and flooding, and man-made problems, such as natural gas expulsions, can occur with little or no warning.  Visible identification on your horse improves the chances of quick recovery in smokey and cloudy conditions.

Always permanently identify your horse by tattoo, microchip, brand or tag.  However, in the event of a disaster, additional measures should be taken for easy identification.  Here are some suggestions: clip your cell phone number onto the horses neck using a small animal clipper; spray paint with fluorescent paint the cell phone number on both sides of the horse’s body; spray paint (again using fluorescent paint) or etch the hooves; braid luggage type tags with your information including the horse’s name  into the mane and tail (do not tie around the tail).  If the horse’s halter is not permanently tagged,  fill out an index card with the same information on the luggage tag and wrap it around the halter using duct tape.

If your horse is lost during the disaster contact surrounding farms and other animal housing facilities.  Listen to the Local Emergency Broadcast Systems  for information on locating lost animals.  Most importantly, be prepared to identify and document ownership when claiming your horse.

Author: Dr. Toya S. McWilliams, D.V.M.
Dr. McWilliams is a licensed veterinarian
with over 20 years of experience. A native
of New Orleans, Dr. McWilliams is well versed
in disaster preparedness.

Good leather and tack are an investment so protect your invest wisely by properly maintaining your equipment. Your fine leather tack improves with age if cleaned and dressed correctly.  It becomes soft and increasingly more comfortable and it will last longer.  Also, protect your investment by organizing and storing them properly on the proper racks.  A nail in the wall is not sufficient.  Check out our leather care and tack storage products.  This is the first of a multi-part series on ways to take care of the investment you made in your equipment.

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