Frequently Asked
Questions

* Are our horses Clydesdales?
      No, all of our horses are Belgians.  Both are different breeds
among the Draft Horse Family with the addition of the Percherons.  

*How much do they eat?
      Each horse is treated like an athlete here at A Better Way
Belgians.  They each have their own specific diet that meets their
nutritional needs.  However on average they each eat:
Hay - each horse will eat about one bale of hay per day.
       (One bale is on average 50 pounds)
Feed - one of our Belgians will eat 12-15 pounds of grain                
           a day.
Water - depending on the time of year depends on the water              
                   intake..... Summer = 40-50 gallons per day
                                  Winter = 30-40 gallons per day
      Each horse gets fed twice a day and always has water
available to him.

*How big are our horses?
      The size of each of our horses ranges from 17'3 hands to 18'3
hands.  A hand is the way horses height is measured.  Each hand is
four inches and you measure the horse from the ground up to the
base of it's neck, or more simply from the ground to the top of the
horse's rump.
      The horses on the farm range in weight between 1700 pounds
to 2300 pounds.  
      To learn about a particular horse go to "Meet the Herd".

*Is it hard to work around the horses because of their size?
      The massive size of a Belgian can't be overlooked that is for
sure.  When working with them you need to remember NOT TO
FEAR THEM, BUT YOU MUST RESPECT THEM!  There is no
way that one person will be able to muscle around a Draft Horse,
so a corporative relationship is necessary in order to have a
successful career together.  

* Do the shoes that the horses wear hurt their feet when being
nailed on?
      No, the horse doesn't even feel it.  The nail is driven into the
hoof wall where there is no feeling.  This affects horses like a
manicure affects humans....no pain.
      The shoe then protects the foot of the horse.  On the bottom of
the shoes there is either studs nailed on or borium.  This helps the
horse with traction on slippery roads or on the grass.

*How long do Belgians live?
      The average life span of a Draft Horse is 20-30 years.  Ours
will reach that easily because what we do is simply just exercise
for the horses.  We do not do days of field work.

*What do they do when they are on the farm?
      Depending on the time of year depends on the work they do at
home.  
      In the spring and summer the business horses are trained to pull
hay wagons and to be in public.  Each horse is worked 3-4 times a
week.  As mentioned before we do not do field work with our
horses.  When they are worked it is simply exercise and training to
do what you see them doing.
      During this same time the show horses are trained.  They are
worked four times a week.  Their training is different because the
shows require different training then jobs do.
      Through out the winter months the horses are turned out to
enjoy some time off.  They put in a long spring, summer, and fall for
us, so the winter is their time to relax and simply just be horses.  
We may occasionally hook a team up here and there to go play in
the snow, but there is no rigorous training from January to April.