What this Chesapeake horseman can teach you - Virginia Horse ...

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ON THE MONEY www.horsenation.us 10 LESSONS FROM LuRAY Horsewoman shares money-saving tips By Joan Hughes Aude Bauserman was well-prepared for today’s economic crisis. “My parents are divorced now but before that we were very affluent. I was basically living every dressage girl’s dream,” said Bauserman who, at the time of the divorce, was a freshman at Mary Baldwin College in Staunton. “After the divorce I had to make ends meet.” And she had to figure out how to maintain what was now her only horse — she had four before her parents divorced — and her lifestyle. “What did I need to do to make things work and still provide the same care [for her horse] I did before?” she wondered. Bauserman said she taught French classes in an afterschool program for elementary school students, served as a teaching assistant and worked as a cashier at Wal-Mart. In addition, she said she became a professional clipper and braider to earn money for entry fees for horse shows. It was while providing these services at the barns of clients that she first started collecting ways to save money. Then in 2003 she married a “recycle junkie.” “Everything has another purpose so I kind of piggybacked off his ideas as well,” the 29-year-old Luray resident said. Bauserman said that in January, when the poor state of the economy became even more apparent, she put together a list of ways horse people could save money. The list was posted on virginiaequestrian.com and sent to the Shenandoah Valley Dressage Association, of which Bauserman is a member. “Many people find themselves unable to continue feeding their horse and in some cases themselves. I have been blessed with the ability to keep my horses and continue to care for them as I always have but I have revaluated what I can do to make it through the long haul if needed,” she said in her news release. “I have found a few small alternatives that I thought I would pass along that may help some of you save a few dollars. I know for many people cutting even just a few dollars can make all the difference between being able to keep your horse and having to sell it. Over the years I have done many of the things on this list, and shared them with my students,” she continued. ▪The Post welcomes feedback and story ideas. To contact us, e-mail Joan Hughes at jchruby@msn.com or call (804) 512-4373. Aude Bauserman with Gage, her Hanoverian gelding. Aude Bauserman’s tips: ▪ Switch from shavings to pellet bedding. ▪ Weed out your unused tack and sell it. ▪ Find someone to do a partial lease if you own a horse and want to share expenses. ▪ Switch from stall board to field board. ▪ Buy shower caps from the dollar store and use them to cover pre-set-up feed buckets so mice/birds can’t eat the feed. ▪ Switch from individual lessons to group lessons. ▪ Take biweekly lessons. Think of it as more time to practice what you’ve learned. ▪ Videotape yourself during lessons so you can go over key points. Videotape yourself at other times to see things you might need to work on. ▪ Find a volunteer at your barn to host even a small clinic to help out financially. Be creative in finding ways to get people involved. ▪ Have your horses teeth floated. Regular equine dental care helps your horse chew food efficiently. A horse with sore teeth will drop and waste a lot of food. The cost of a visit from an equine dentist is offset in feed savings. ▪ Repair instead of replace. Learn to do your own Fall 2009 Photo courtesy of Aude Bauserman repairs. A great deal of equipment can be hand-sewn. ▪ Talk with you farrier and vet to see if your horse can go barefoot or only have shoes in the front. And check to see if you can stretch out your farrier visits. ▪ Clean your horse blankets with a water hose, car brush, a little livestock shampoo and some elbow grease. ▪ Organize a tack swap. ▪ Make your own polish with salt and baking soda and vinegar to shine brass on harnesses, bridles and halters. ▪ A hay net will save hay and keep your horse busy if he is in the stall a lot. ▪ Clean your tack. Well-cared for tack lasts much longer and you will look sharp. ▪ If you own a farm, grab a hammer and wire cutter and take a stroll around your fences. Nails and stray bits of wire are just waiting to tear a hole in your expensive blankets or cut your horse. ▪ Do a little branding to increase the chances of your tack and accessories eventually becoming family heirlooms. ▪ Create a compost pile for manure and used bedding. Gardeners love manure compost and will remove it for free. Advertise on free Web sites or contact your local garden club.
Fall 2009 (804) 598-6095 contact@hobbyhillfarm.com www.hobbyhillfarm.com Photo courtesy of Aude Bauserman ▪ You do not need expensive stall toys. Clean out a milk bottle and fill with molasses. Poke a few holes in it and tie it to a tree or rafter. Your horse will spend hours licking the jug to get the molasses out. ▪ A small football or round ball placed in a water bucket overnight can help prevent freezing. If the water does freeze over, push the ball through to break the ice. If you put an apple in the bucket, the horse may play with it enough to prevent the water from freezing. Cheaper than a de-icer and safer. ▪ Old broom handles can be tied up with string to support blankets. ▪ Old condiment bottles are convenient for storing small amounts of creams or lotions and just squirting out “Check out Hobby Hill for the fi nest gifts, cooling apparel and VA made Purses & Totes” Tuckahoe Plantation Stables Richmond’s Best Kept Secret Manager: Susan Donovan at 784-3679 Stall & pasture board available 12601 River Road Richmond, Virginia 23238 Conveniently located in eastern Goochland the amount needed. ▪ Volunteer at a clinic or show so you can attend without paying. ▪ Buying tack and supplements online is almost always cheaper than buying them in a tack store. ▪ Evaluate the supplements your horse is on. Does he need all of them? Ask your vet. ▪ Swap horse magazines and horse books with a friend. ▪ Buy a big bag of horse treats and then split it and the cost with the barn. ▪ Water Babies sunscreen works wonders on horses’ white noses and is much cheaper than the horse version and has the same ingredients. ▪ If you have a talent such as braiding or body clipping, see if you can swap with others at your barn for talents they may have. ▪ Save old dish towels and blankets to use around the barn. ▪ Save feed bags to use as trash bags in the barn. ▪ Visit a farm store for buckets, rakes and pitchforks. Generally much cheaper than tack stores. ▪ Clean out your trailer. Prevent rusting by removing urine and feces. Fix small damages before they get larger. After cleaning out the trailer and letting it dry, sprinkle baking soda on the floor to pick up the rest of the moisture and help neutralize any ammonia. Sweep it out in a few days. ▪ Buy a step stool at a discount store. It’s cheaper than a mounting block. ▪ Check out the sports aisle at a discount store for unbreakable orange cones to set up patterns to ride. ▪ Make your own arena markers and cover them with contact paper. This is cheaper than buying them from the tack shop. ▪ Start a communal first aid box. Anytime someone sees something at a great price, add it to the box. We also get bottles of Banamine and Bute (medications) from the vet and all the boarders split the cost. ▪ Pack a cooler with snacks and drinks if going to a horse show where the food can be very expensive. ▪ To save the costs of going to a clinic, organize a horse Offering two facilities to suit all of your needs Mechanicsville and Ashland Everyone Welcome! • Horse Boarding with Top Notch Care (804) 746-4072 • Premium Feeds/Quality Hay • Riding Lessons for Beginners and Intermediates on Professionally Trained Arabian Show Horses www.springwoodstation.com springwoodstation@comcast.net CENTRAL VA’S QUALITY USED RIDING SUPPLY SHOP Riding Apparel Tack Gifts Antiques 106 S. Railroad Ave. Ashland, VA 23005 804.752.6782/ www.changingreinsinc.com 11 ON THE MONEY video evening and have people bring snacks and watch and comment on a horse video or tutorial. ▪ Fly spray is expensive. Buy a bottle of citronella shampoo and wash your horse with it once or twice a week. Use it full strength and let the suds stay on for 10 to 15 minutes and then rinse. I was amazed at how the bath alone reduced the flies on my horse by about 50 percent. more on auDe bauserman born: April 19, 1980 in Tours, France. residence: Luray. Family: Husband Mark Andrew Bauserman, a teacher at Stanley Elementary School. Pets: Chihuahuas Lilly, Godiva and Little Girl and cats Cracker, Bisou and Navaho. Horses: Prince, a Belgian stallion; Gage, a Hanoverian gelding; Princess, a Belgian. education: Bachelor’s degree in biology from Mary Baldwin College. occupation: French and biology teacher at Luray High School. Freelance dressage instructor. Philosophy on life: “When God shuts a door he always opens a window.” Also, “Function in disaster, finish in style.” “I definitely have lived my life sort of by that,” Bauserman said, adding that was a saying at The Madeira School, the girls’ school she attended in McLean. best horse advice ever received: “Take your time and do the basics well and the advanced movements will come.” what she won’t skimp on: “One place I would never cut corners on is lessons. I would rather have one lesson every three months but have it from someone who can give me enough information for me to work on for a couple of weeks.” Jockey Colors-Flat/Steeplechase • Blinkers Helmet Covers • Saddlecloths • Paddock Blankets Custom Embroidery P:(800) 464-3840/(410) 770-3357 www.stitchesbychloe.com www.horsenation.us
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