Nova Quarter Horses Inc.

02/24/2025

Please join us in wishing our Shandy Girl a Happy 22nd Birthday!

02/24/2025

SHOWMANSHIP DATES! ✨

Please sign up with our office prior to the date of the class!

02/24/2025

MINI MONDAY 🌞

02/22/2025

Happy Saturday! 🐴

Our Featured rider photo is of Laura Kuchay and our beloved, Rodney! These two embody the love of horses and the passion for riding!

Share your love of horses with us below! Whether it’s a fond memory or photo of your favorite horse! ❤️

02/22/2025

🌟 Did you know? Horses can only breathe through their noses! 🌟

Unlike humans, horses don’t breathe through their mouths—they have a unique respiratory system that relies exclusively on their nasal passages. 🐴💨

Here’s why it matters:
-Nasal Anatomy: Horses have large, well-developed nostrils that are designed to filter, warm, and moisten the air they breathe before it reaches their lungs. This helps them take in the oxygen they need more efficiently.
-Efficient Breathing: Breathing through the nose helps prevent foreign particles like dust or debris from entering their lungs, which is essential for their overall respiratory health. Their nose acts like a built-in filter!
-Why They Can’t Breathe Through Their Mouth: A horse’s soft palate (the roof of the mouth) is positioned in such a way that it blocks airflow through the mouth. This means that they rely solely on their noses to regulate their breathing during activities like running, exercising, or even resting.
-Performance and Health: Because they can’t pant through their mouths like some animals, horses have to rely on controlled breathing through their nose to cool off and manage exertion levels. This makes their nasal passages even more important for maintaining health and stamina.

Next time you're near a horse, pay attention to how they breathe—it's a reminder of how specialized their body is for survival! 🌿🐴

02/21/2025

Time to come in, girls!

02/21/2025

Our LOCK-IN is one week from today!
Reminder to Friday evening lesson students, no lessons on 2/28.

02/19/2025

02/18/2025

📍🐴 Show us a recent picture of your horse (or you w/your horse) and tell us where you're from!

🤔 Who's our furthest fan?

02/18/2025

🥶 NO LESSONS TONIGHT 🥶

For the safety of our students and horses, all lessons will be canceled today Tuesday, February 18th.

We'll keep our babies safe and warm and you do the same!

02/17/2025

A few spots remain for our Little Buckaroos event in April! Sign your cowgirl or cowboy up today!

☎️ 708-479-3696

02/17/2025

Eddie Sweat once told a reporter, "I guess a groom gets closer to a horse than anyone. The owner, the trainer, they maybe see him once a day. But I lived with him worked with him."
While the world was elated with the 9th Triple Crown winner--Secretariat, it was a very sad day for Eddie and Secretariat...it was the day he boarded the plane to Kentucky to start his stud career at Claiborne Farm.
Eddie flew with Secretariat for the last time, shown here, Secretariat nibbles his sleeve and Eddie reassures Secretariat. Charlie Davis also has to be mentioned, as he was exercise rider and so close to Secretariat too!

02/16/2025

"Learning to ride takes commitment and discipline, and we might have to do a lot of things which are not very glorious."

In German, there is a saying: “Reiten lernt man nur durch Fegen”, which translates as “Riding is only learned by sweeping”. I have often thought about this saying.

Wherever there are horses, there is a lot of work to be done: Cleaning, sweeping, brushing, feeding, repairing…It’s not only the fun sides of pushing yourself off the ground and into the saddle. Learning to ride takes commitment and discipline, and we might have to do a lot of things which are not very glorious. Sweeping teaches us humility and keeps us grounded.

For me, this saying is also about apprenticeship. You start at the bottom, you sweep, you get off your high horse and you become open to learn. You admit to yourself that you don’t know everything. Sweeping is good for our ego. If you are an apprentice, the master can afford be honest to you. You don’t pay for lessons and s/he has nothing to loose if s/he scares you off. And that kind of honesty we need if we want to develop.

When we do chores around the barn, we also have the chance to develop a more natural kind of relationship with our horses, or with horses in general. We are not directly focused on them and can observe how they interact and what they are doing.

Sweeping is also my zen practice. Whatever my troubles are, I usually feel better after the morning chores at the barn are done.

02/15/2025

Adult Horsemanship Class! Thank you to everyone who signed up to begin or further their horsemanship experience with Nova. Lorri, Sam & Olivia look forward to sharing their knowledge with you. See ya'll tomorrow at 11:00!

02/14/2025

Happy Valentine's Day from everyone here at Nova! ❤️🩷❤️🩷

02/13/2025

Do you buy your horse (or other pets) a Valentine's gift? ❤️

02/12/2025

Good cold weather information from our vets at Premier Equine Veterinary Service!

❄️ How Horses Stay Warm in Winter: The Magic of Their Coat ❄️

As the temperature drops, horses have an incredible natural ability to stay warm: their hair! Here’s how it works:
-The Coat Grows Thicker: In colder months, horses grow a thicker, longer winter coat made up of more hair follicles. This helps to trap air close to the skin, creating an insulating layer that keeps warmth in and cold out.
-Hair Stands Up: When a horse is cold, tiny muscles at the base of each hair follicle contract, causing the hair to stand up. This process is called "piloerection." The hairs create small pockets of air that act as a cushion, adding extra insulation and helping to keep the horse warm.
-Natural Heat Regulation: Horses are excellent at regulating their own body temperature. When it gets really cold, their bodies produce more energy to maintain warmth. If they get too warm, their hair lays flat to allow heat to escape.
-Self-Grooming: A horse will often groom itself to keep its coat in tip-top shape, helping it maintain that important insulating layer.

💡 Fun Fact: A healthy, well-groomed winter coat can be so effective that horses can often stay warm in freezing temperatures without needing blankets, as long as they’re dry and have shelter!

So, next time you see your horse's coat standing on end, know it’s their natural way of staying toasty in the winter months! 🌨️

02/12/2025

In honor of Valentine's week, some facts about a horse's heart ❤️