Spring Horse Care: Vaccines, Fresh Grass, and Staying Ahead of Trouble

Spring is one of the best times of year to own horses.

The days get longer, the hair starts shedding, the mud eventually gives up, and everyone is ready to leg one up and get back outside. But spring is also the season where a few simple horse care decisions can save you a lot of trouble later.

Before everyone gets too busy hauling, riding, branding, showing, breeding, and turning horses out on grass, it is worth taking a minute to look over the basics.

Vaccines. Teeth. Feet. Body condition. Pasture. Feed changes.

None of it is very flashy, but it matters.

Start with spring vaccines

Spring is a good time to visit with your veterinarian about vaccines, especially before horses start traveling, getting exposed to new horses, or dealing with mosquito season.

The American Association of Equine Practitioners lists the core vaccines for horses as tetanus, Eastern and Western equine encephalomyelitis, West Nile virus, and rabies. These are considered core because they protect against serious diseases that can be widespread, dangerous, or fatal.

Depending on where you live and what your horse does, your vet may also recommend risk-based vaccines. Horses that travel, show, go to sales, stand at stud, live around a lot of traffic, or get hauled to clinics and events may need a different plan than one that stays home in a small herd.

That is why it is worth asking your vet what makes sense for your horses instead of guessing.

Do the boring checks before the busy season

Spring is also a good time to look at the things that are easy to put off.

If a horse is going to be ridden more, hauled more, or asked to go back to work, make sure the simple stuff is handled first. Check teeth, update Coggins if needed, stay current with deworming recommendations, and get horses back on a good farrier schedule.

A horse coming out of winter may also look different than you think once the hair starts coming off. Some are heavier than they need to be. Some are thinner. Some lost muscle. Some have sore feet that were easier to miss when they were not being used much.

Catching those things early makes spring go better for everyone.

Be careful with spring grass

Fresh grass feels like a gift after winter, but it can also get horses in trouble fast.

Lush spring pasture can be high in sugars and starches, often called nonstructural carbohydrates. Too much of that rich grass can increase the risk of pasture-associated laminitis, especially in easy keepers, overweight horses, ponies, horses with a history of founder, or horses with metabolic issues. Oregon State Extension notes that pasture-associated laminitis is common and preventable when grazing time and high-sugar grass intake are managed carefully.

This is where horse owners have to be honest.

Some horses can handle spring pasture just fine. Others absolutely cannot. The horse that lives on air, has a cresty neck, has foundered before, or gets foot sore every spring does not need unlimited access to fresh green grass just because it finally showed up.

Introduce pasture slowly

If your horse has been on hay all winter, do not make a hard switch to all-day grass.

Ease into it. Start with short periods of grazing and increase turnout gradually. Keep feeding hay so horses are not hitting fresh pasture with an empty stomach. For high-risk horses, a dry lot, limited turnout, or a grazing muzzle may be the better choice.

The AAEP recommends introducing horses to lush pasture gradually and notes that overweight, stressed, or ill horses may be at higher risk for laminitis. They also stress that suspected laminitis should be treated as a medical emergency.

That last part matters. Founder is not a “wait and see” situation.

Watch the easy keepers

Spring grass is hardest on the horses that already stay fat on very little feed.

The cresty-necked pony, the retired gelding, the broodmare that does not miss a meal, the ranch horse that had the winter off, or the one that has foundered before all need extra attention.

Watch for heat in the feet, a stronger digital pulse, short-strided movement, reluctance to turn, shifting weight, or standing rocked back off the front feet. Those are not things to ignore.

A horse does not have to be dramatic to be in trouble. Sometimes the first sign is just that they are not moving quite right.

Spring care is not complicated, but it does take management

Most spring horse problems are easier to prevent than fix.

Call the vet before the season gets away from you. Get vaccines handled. Keep up with farrier work. Pay attention to body condition. Make feed changes slowly. Do not let a horse that is already at risk live on unlimited spring grass and hope for the best.

Spring is supposed to be the season where we get to enjoy our horses again.

A little prevention now can mean fewer sore feet, fewer emergency calls, and a much better start to the year.