Happy Earth Day – 8 Items Horse Owners Can Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

As horse owners, we are often in touch with nature, especially if we trail ride, and we have a down to earth understanding of the cycle of life.  We also have some unique opportunities to contribute or detract from the health of the earth, depending on how we manage everyday occurrences such as grazing and manure disposal, and even the products we use regularly.

Horses For Clean Water developed eight simple ways horse owners can incorporate earth-day celebrating habits by reducing, reusing, and recycling.

Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle Barn Edition By Jessica Friedman of Horses for Clean Water:

Feed Sacks

Thanks to their durability and water-resistant surfaces, feed sacks can be repurposed in a variety of creative ways. For example, they can be turned into gardening aprons, reusable shopping bags, or a tablecloth for your next picnic. You could even stitch several of them together to make a new tarp for your hay.

Horseshoes

Because horseshoes are made out of steel, you can recycle old shoes at the scrap yard—and possibly get some money back to help pad your horse fund. If your farrier has a forge, he or she may also be able to reuse your old horseshoes. Or, if you are creative, you can turn horseshoes into boot racks, bridle hooks, or attractive home décor.

Twine

Hay strings or baling twine can be handy for a quick fix around the barn, but they can also be dangerous for wildlife. Ospreys are especially fond of using baling twine to line their nests, but they can become entangled. Carefully collecting your twine in a safe location can prevent the unnecessary injury or death of these birds—and even your horses!

Some community recycling programs will accept plastic baling twine, but if yours does not, you can use the twine to make hardy door mats that hold up very well against muddy boots.

Thrifty Tack Storage

It’s nice to dream of a beautiful, custom tack trunk or locker, but you might find everything you need in your attic. Clean out an old trunk or a shelving unit with doors, add a few castors to make it easy to move around, attach a lock for extra security, and you’ve got yourself a “new” place to store your tack and grooming supplies.

Old T-Shirts

Instead of throwing out that old t-shirt, consider cutting it up into smaller pieces that can be used as washable rags. These can be used to clean up messes, apply fly spray to horses that don’t like the spray bottle, or give your horse, tack, and boots a quick polish before heading into the show ring.

#10 Cans

Large tin cans, such as those used to store coffee or bulk food storage, can be repurposed as bridle hangers in your tack room. The width of the can keeps your bridle leather from creasing over narrower hooks, and the inside of the can makes an excellent storage space for bell boots and polo wraps. If your can comes with a plastic lid, you can use that to cover this space to prevent rodents or insects from making a home inside.

Spray Bottles and Ointment Jars

Thankfully, most of the plastic bottles and jars that our fly spray, ointments, and other topical treatments come in are recyclable. Check for the recycle symbol on the bottom and make sure that your local recycling program takes that type of plastic. Many recycling programs require you to rinse out plastic containers, so be sure to get the bottle as empty as possible before hosing them out to help prevent groundwater contamination.

Repurposed Enrichment Tools

Many things can be repurposed to make enrichment tools for your horses: railroad ties can be used to build terraces, boxes, and bridges in your trail course; tires can be filled with dirt to make small platforms; and old tarps and pool noodles can be tied to a frame to help with desensitization training.