Let’s jump back in time about 150 years. A great fire has turned Chicago into a city of ashes. The James Gang had robbed its first train robbery. Cowboys are driving thousands of cattle up from Texas to the railheads in Kansas. And Charles D. Cheaney has opened up his saddle shop in Gainesville, Texas.
Five generations later, Bruce Cheaney, 71, is making saddles with the same attention to detail that his leather stitching ancestors did. Today, Bruce Cheaney is doing much more than making great saddles and leather work. He is introducing new generations of craftsmen to the wonders of leather work. Don’t believe me? Try tuning into https://www.youtube.com/cheaneysaddles, Bruce Cheaney’s YouTube channel, which has more than seventy-eight thousand followers. Even if you know nothing about the craft, Bruce will inspire you to pick up a piece of leather and start to work.
Why is his channel so popular?
“Leather working is a good way to express yourself through your work,” Bruce says with typical humility. It’s more than the appeal of leather work that makes Bruce Cheaney’s online and real-time work so popular. It’s the grace of his manner, his soft North Texas accent, and the obvious skill that he brings to his craft.
“Hello. Bruce Cheaney here in the saddle shop in Gainesville, Texas,” Bruce says to introduce one of his YouTube tutorials in his soft North Texas drawl. Bruce is all work but has the easy manner of your neighbor. He’s not Mr. Rogers. He’s not Roy Rogers. He’s the real deal.
“My most popular products are custom-made saddles and handmade mechanical hackamore bits with a flat leather nose band.” Yup, Bruce is best known for his saddles and tack, just like the Cheaney’s that have worked in Gainesville for a century and a half.
The tradition of saddle making goes way, way back, about 6,000 years back, to the time when horses were first domesticated. People have made saddles for camels, oxen, and even an ostrich or two, but making saddles for horses has always been the core of the saddle making business.
Eurasian nomads, Alexander the Great, Chinese Emperors, Roman Legionaries, the knights of the Middle Ages all used saddles, not just as tools to improve their horsemanship but also as symbols of power and taste. The modern western style saddle with a solid saddle tree, pommel, and stirrups has been around for hundreds of years. The western style saddle was first introduced into what is now the United States by Spanish conquistadors, who raised cattle and fought bulls on what we would recognize as western saddles.
A saddle is not as simple as it may appear. Saddles come in a wide variety of styles each designed for a specific equestrian discipline. The most important thing about a saddle is that it must be comfortable for both rider and horse. Making that happen is a challenge. A rule of thumb is that the saddle must not do any damage to the horse’s withers, and it must give a rider the proper balance to perform on horseback, whether he or she is roping, cutting, or trail riding.
“I use only the best saddle trees made by maker’s who know how to make a saddle tree that fits,” Bruce says. “I also have specs for saddle trees that have worked for me for many years.”
Bruce makes his saddles by hand featuring vegetable-tanned leather hand-carved and tooled in oak leaf and acorn pattern. He builds a saddle seat with loop-through stirrup leathers, and he makes the fenders, or pieces of leather on the side, with roughout leather to enhance the rider’s grip.
“Custom roping saddles are my favorite saddles to make,” Bruce says.
“I love to make heavy duty roping saddles that perform well and are comfortable for both horse and rider.”
Bruce is also well known for his mechanical hackamores. Decades ago, cutting horse champion Matlock Rose from Gainesville asked Bruce to make him a hackamore bit with long leverage so he wouldn’t have to hurt his horse’s mouth. Matlock Rose liked the tack so much, he became a regular visitor at the Cheaney’s shop.
Building a hackamore requires working with metal, a skill that Bruce has mastered in addition to his leather work. According to Bruce, “Metal working requires a separate workshop because of the grinding dust and equipment such as a Tig welder and heavy-duty belt sanders.”
Bruce’s customers include ranchers, working cowboys and well-known horsemen including J.D Yates, Frank G. Merrill, and the late Sam Rose and Robbie Schroeder.
Many of Bruce’s clients have become life-long customers. How has Bruce managed to develop such a loyal clientele? According to Bruce, “They just like what I make.”
Bruce also enjoys making belts, sheaths for knives, and even coasters. “The most challenging project I have ever worked on was a longhorn skull mount that I tooled and carved and antiqued. I also had to make the mounting brackets for it.”
No matter what his clients want, Bruce is up to the challenge. “A friend of mine asked me to make him a pair of hunting knives and sheaths. I made the handle with deer stag from the Stark Ranch. I added a concho bead on the end of the handle with the ranch brand. It took me two weeks.” Craftmanship takes time, but his clients appreciate Bruce’s attention to detail which is part of the Cheaney heritage.
“Joseph Madison Cheaney, 1808 – 1863, was listed in an 1850 census as a Baptist preacher and saddle maker,” Bruce says. “My Great Grandfather Charles D. Cheaney moved to Gainesville, Texas in 1877 and set up a saddlery and harness shop,” At that time, Gainesville, which is only seven miles from the Oklahoma border, was a supply point for cowboys driving cattle herds.
“My grandfather Sterling Price Cheaney worked in that shop too. Then later the shop ran under the name Cheaney & Woods. W.L. Woods was Charles D. Cheaney’s son-in-law.”
When the cattle boom faded, Gainesville thrived as an agricultural center. Nearby oil discoveries gave the town an added economic boost. Through it all, the Cheaney family kept on making saddles. “After the passing of W.L. Woods my grandfather Price Cheaney bought the shop from Wood’s widow and moved it to the corner of Main and Dixon in downtown Gainesville. Price and Blanche Cheaney had four son’s Harold, Charles, Thomas and Jack Cheaney, my father. This shop ran until the mid-1950’s.”
Bruce began building saddles as a boy, learning how to cut and craft every part of a saddle, from the cinch to the latigo. “I learned leather working and saddle making from my dad as well as my two brothers Pat and Phillip Cheaney,” Bruce says. Bruce and his wife Karen opened up their own saddle shop in Gainesville in May of 1981, just two years after they were married.
Phillip and his daughter Nicole own Cheaney Tack just down the street from Bruce’s shop. “Phillip can be pretty competitive.” Bruce laughs. “If he finds something new, he will make a couple hundred of them before he tells me anything.”
Today, Gainesville, Texas is a city of 17,000, the seat of Cooke County, and a tourist and manufacturing center for Texoma, as the area along the Texas-Oklahoma border is known. As Gainesville has changed over the decades, so has Bruce’s business. The craft of saddle-making hasn’t changed, but marketing sure has.
How did a traditionalist like Bruce Cheaney become a saddle-making YouTube star?
“My son Tom picked up a Sony mini camera one day here in the shop and said to me, ‘Here do something.’ I was fitting a saddle seat in a saddle, and we filmed the process. Then Tom set up the @cheaneysaddles YouTube Channel. It just kind of happened. I really did not know what I was getting into,” Bruce chuckles.
One of the first series Bruce posted documented a saddle restoration project in which Bruce repaired and cleaned up a leather saddle that was made by his family in 1946. “This saddle repair project took two months to complete,” Bruce explains on his YouTube channel. “A lot of the components had to be replaced in order to bring the saddles back to a usable condition. New stirrups, saddle fenders, flank straps, cinches and catchers. The saddle oil I used really helped recondition the leather bring it back to life. These custom-made roping saddles have seen a lot of use in the arena and were just about used up and consider un-repairable, but I took them in and did my thing to them.”
Bruce’s “thing” was good enough to bring the beat-up saddle back to its former elegance and the series has stood the test of time. It is as fascinating to watch as it was when it was first posted more than ten years ago.
Bruce has followed up the restoration video with a series of other how-to YouTube tutorials including: The Art of Hand Sewing Leather, How to Draw Leather Tooling Designs, Leather Carving for Beginners and Leather Burning, Pyrography and Steps in Making Spurs.
In his tutorials Bruce explains the basics of his craft and how to use a variety of tools including, awls, needles, threads punches and trimming knives. “I have a lot of tooling and carving leather videos. It gives newcomers to leathercraft and leather working confidence to give it a try.”
Most of these series have five episodes, with a total running length of less than an hour. Judging from viewer response, Bruce has really hit the YouTube sweet spot.
“I still watch all your videos, Bruce! You are inspiring! Thank you for all you have done for the art.”
“This is so incredible! So, satisfying to watch a master at work 🙂 Great job Bruce!”
“One of my childhood memories is lying in bed waking up, it might be two or three in the morning to the sound of my dad tapping on leather. He was also a great leather carver. Your work has to be the closest I have seen to his, extremely sharp and clean.”
“Love your videos… Enjoying here from Brazil…”
Whether they are from Brazil or Gainesville, Bruce appreciates his YouTube fans. He offers everyone who wants to take up leatherworking a piece of advice. “Keep it simple and just get enough high-quality tools to get started then add to your collection of tools after you figure out what you need.”
Bruce’s YouTube fans get a good look at his workshop in Gainesville. “My saddle shop is just about the right size for one or two workers. There’s plenty of room to get around and be energy efficient. Leather racks and work benches, a stamping bench, and a pattern cabinet line the walls. I have three sewing machines a Cowboy CB-4500 and a Singer 3115 plus an old Singer patching machine. My favorite tool is a small, curved blade knife much like the old Hyde leather knives,” Bruce says.
“Tooling and carving leather are the most enjoyable aspects of my work. I just love to carve leather. Sometimes I just sit down and carve some leather coasters for fun and practice. Some turn into artwork and some don’t.”
An artisan steeped in the traditions of his craft; Bruce has a bit of a wild streak. “One of my dream projects is to make some cigar box guitars,” he says. Any pickers out there interested?
When he is not in his studio, Bruce enjoys spending time with Karen, his wife, his three children, Thomas, Carey and Candace, and his church family.
His daughter Carey is putting her own spin on the family leather trade producing a distinctive line of handmade leather bags, clutches and jewelry. Bruce proudly notes that his son Tom has made twenty-two saddles.
“I have seven grandchildren,” Bruce says with pride, “and they are all creative and artistic.”
“My grandson Sage is all over horses. He’s a bronc rider. I just finished giving him some leather working training sessions on Saturday afternoons. He seems interested so I got him a set of tools for his 16th birthday. Sage is going to be the seventh generation of the Cheaney family to work leather. He’s really a country boy.”
Bruce is gratified to see Sage and his other grandchildren taking an interest in his work, but he has no interest in setting aside his tools. “I plan to keep on making one of a kind, handmade items,” Bruce says. “I have no plans to stop until I can’t do it anymore.”
These are the words of a truly legendary saddle maker, Bruce Cheaney.
This article originally appeared on Shoptalk Magazine and is published here with permission.
You can find all kinds of interesting articles in our section on Tack & Farm.
The following is an excerpt from Life as a Dressage Trainer in Three Countries, by Gunnar Ostergaard, with Pam Stone
With a consistent address, and a string of students and horses to train, I was beginning to settle into my life at Frederiksdal. I felt content and confident in my ability, as all the horses in my training were developing according to my expectations. The apple of my eye was Lotus, a Hanoverian mare imported from Germany. In those days, that was pretty impressive, as it was quite expensive to import horses from Germany. She was a beautiful mare who moved well enough to be competitive in dressage and had the bonus ability of being able to jump.
With happy anticipation, I entered Lotus in my first show since arriving back in Denmark. To be honest, I felt a little cocky. After all, I had been trained in Germany, was doing well in Denmark, and had a talented horse. Convinced that I would win, I rode what I thought was a very good, error-free test, and left the arena with a smile on my face and a pat for the mare.
When the scores were posted, I was gutted. I finished third. At the bottom of the sheet the judges had written, “Rider is sitting crooked.” How could that possibly be? How could I have not felt that? I was mortified, and wished the ground would open up and swallow me whole. It is said that pride goeth before a fall, and it certainly did with me. That day, I wasn’t just served a slice of humble pie, I was given the whole thing.
My self-esteem in tatters, I wandered around the showgrounds to watch the other classes. I had heard of a show-jumping trainer named N.K. Hansen, who had an envious string of wealthy clients, good horses, and skilled riders. I spotted Hansen riding a horse that was notorious for refusing, but with N.K. in the saddle, that was not an option for this horse. I watched him soar over jump after jump.
One of the things that was becoming apparent in Denmark was that I was expected to teach jumping as well as dressage. I had jumped, and competed in jumping—it was required to earn my bereiter certificate—but my focus in Flensburg had been dressage. In Denmark, however, you both jumped and rode dressage.
There was only one thing to do: find a book on it; memorize the details such as distances and combinations, as well as teaching methods; and then try to sound as if I knew what the hell I was talking about. In the end, I absorbed the material, and sounded quite convincing.
While my students weren’t on the road to becoming professional show jumpers, they improved, and our lessons went well. Luckily, these students only jumped once a week, and the indoor wasn’t nearly big enough for advanced jumping!
I enjoyed adding more jumping to my own personal repertoire, even if I didn’t always come home with a ribbon. Lotus, with her abilities in both dressage and jumping, also possessed the frustrating ability to regularly drop a rail somewhere on course, thus earning four faults at competitions.
I finally found success on a Thoroughbred cross named Tonka, who had courage in spades. He was fearless. His owner found Tonka intimidating, which gave me the opportunity to take the horse to a few shows. The one I will never forget was at one of the more impressive venues in North Zealand—the place to be in Denmark, if you wanted to seriously pursue the horse industry—and this competition was for professionals only.
In this particular class, N.K. and I were the last two left in the jump-off, and it seemed we were going to end up with a tie, as the rails had been raised to the highest point possible on the standards. Then some genius had the idea to place beer crates under the standards to raise them higher. Impossible, today, to think that anyone would even dream of allowing such a thing, but perhaps the beer in the crates had all been consumed at the show, so no one cared. In the end Tonka and I cleared the triple bar at 6’ 4” (1.95 meters). It was the first and last time I would jump that high.
Things felt as though they were beginning to snowball in a very good way for me. One particular event that would have a profound effect on my life and career was reacquainting myself with Gunnar Andersen. I contacted him fairly soon after arriving at Frederiksdal. We agreed that Wednesday would suit us both, and so I made the half-hour drive, and found him as affable and approachable as I had remembered.
That first Wednesday turned into a weekly visit, and I truly felt from the beginning that he was taking a special interest, even putting me on his Grand Prix horses, which was heaven on earth. This man, the face of Danish dressage for forty years, seemed to have taken it upon himself to become my mentor.
Gunnar seemingly had no ego; he remained both humble and respectful all the years I knew him. It was never about money with Gunnar —he had no desire to become a businessman, he simply lived his passion, and he was particularly keen on producing hot-blooded Thoroughbreds. While European Warmbloods were making their mark on the competition scene, particularly in Germany, Gunnar remained faithful to his Thoroughbreds, and said that in order to bring home a ribbon, they had to be “twice as good to beat the Germans.” And many were. His list of Thoroughbreds that made the Danish Team was long: Atmospherics, Inferno, Souliman, and C’est Bon.
I lived for Wednesdays—I couldn’t get enough. One Wednesday was particularly memorable. There was a terrific snowstorm, and I crawled along the road in my Beetle. I nearly turned around three times, as the snow was above the hubcaps and the wipers were doing little to keep the flakes from freezing across the windshield. When I finally limped into the parking area, I got out of my car, trudged through the snow, and shoved open the massive barn door, blinking as my eyes adjusted from the blinding snow to the low light of the indoor. Before me was Gunnar, puffing away on the pipe in his mouth and performing the most exquisite piaffe I had ever seen. The gleaming white of Talisman’s coat, as bright as the snow that swirled around me outside, was filigreed by the morning light now streaming in...It was like watching a movie: horse and rider framed in the doorway, moving from piaffe into passage and back into piaffe—classically correct and utterly breathtaking. With his trademark droll humor, he glanced over at me and remarked nonchalantly, “Huh, didn’t think you’d make it.”
That this man would take me beneath his wing and give me the opportunity to ride all those horses...horses that he had trained and competed with renowned success. Gunnar was unbelievably generous with his knowledge, and never made a big deal out of handing me the reins of one of these international Grand Prix horses saying, as if offering a little kid a pony ride at a fair, “Here, you can try a ride on this one.”
These were halcyon days. I was receiving training I could have only dreamt about with Gunnar, establishing a steady business for myself, and developing a social life.
This excerpt from Life as a Dressage Trainer in Three Country is reprinted with permission from Trafalgar Square Books. To order a copy in print or audio, go to: TrafalgarBooks.com
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In this episode, Dr. Charlie Scoggin and Dr. Maria Schnobrich take you on an in-depth exploration of the commercial opening of the state-of-the-art in vitro fertilization (IVF) lab at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital. They spotlight the groundbreaking techniques shaping the future of equine reproduction, and in particular, they discuss the significance of Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). Listeners will gain a deeper understanding of the intricate process of ICSI fertilization and its role in overcoming various reproductive challenges in horses. This technology is enhancing success rates and opening new possibilities for horse owners and breeders.
By Juliet M. Getty, Ph.D.
Reasonable, gradual weight loss can be achieved by creating an environment that allows horses to eat and behave in sync with their normal instincts. Hormones such as insulin, cortisol, and leptin are in homeostasis, where the body achieves a state of equilibrium and performs as it should.
It starts with making the horse feel safe. The foundation of safety is knowing that there is always something to eat. Without this, the very underpinning of health becomes unhinged. Piling supplements and expensive feeds onto this insecure footing will make a trivial, insignificant, and short-term difference.
A steady, never-ending supply of appropriate hay/pasture will allow your horse to realize that he can eat effortlessly. In very little time, he will begin to self-regulate his forage intake and eat only what his body needs to maintain condition.
There are cases, however, where the horse not only doesn’t self-regulate, he actually gets heavier. Why is this? And if this is your horse, is there no hope? Do you simply have to go back to restricting hay? There are several reasons why this can occur and no, you do not and should not go back to restricting hay.
If you are expecting to simply give your horse all the hay he wants and he’ll start to miraculously lose weight, while his nutrient intake remains inadequate and there are significant stressors in his life, you will likely be disappointed. Free-choice forage feeding will, however, improve his behavior and digestive health, even without weight loss. But to have an impact on his weight, other practices need to be in place.
An excellent diet, stress reduction, the right environment, and patience are key ingredients to making weight loss a reality. Below are factors that can make this happen. I realize that for many of you, it is not feasible to implement all of them. My goal is to give you the ideal situation; your goal needs to be to come as close to the ideal as possible. Even making some of these changes will improve your horse’s health.
The hay and/or pasture need to be low in sugar and starch, as well as low in calories, because your horse will be eating a lot of it. Testing your hay is critically important. If Ethanol Soluble Carbohydrates (ESC) + Starch exceeds 11% on a dry matter basis, you’ll want to seriously consider soaking it.[i] If the hay supply changes frequently where your horse is boarded, consider buying your own hay; even a one month’s supply is worth testing.
Pasture grazing, of course, is ideal, but it can be tricky because its sugar and starch content varies so much. It, too, is worth testing periodically at the best and worst times of the day.[ii] The ideal is a pasture with a mix of healthful forage. Many horses can lose weight while pasture grazing in such conditions; it is the most natural, least stressful state for the horse, and provides the most nutritious whole food.
Where there’s body fat, there’s inflammation, leading to insulin and leptin resistance. A vicious cycle ensues because leptin resistance prevents the brain from telling the horse that he’s had enough to eat, and insulin resistance tells the horse to hold on to body fat. In both of these situations, body fat increases, further exacerbating inflammation.
To effectively reduce inflammation, boost the diet with antioxidants, anti-inflammatory herbs, key minerals, and the right balance of omega 3s to 6s, preferably from supplements that provide wholesome ingredients without the use of added preservatives. Please review articles[iii] in my website’s resources for specific ways to accomplish this.
Supplements can be added to a small amount of a carrier feed such as hay pellets, non-GMO beet pulp, or whole foods (avoid soy). But do not feed large amounts of any “grain” including those that contain cereal grains (oats, corn, barley, rice, etc.), molasses, or added vegetable oils; these do nothing except add unnecessary calories.
The horse’s digestive tract is designed for a continual flow of forage; without it, the horse will be in physical pain, mental discomfort, and prone toward a hormonal response that destroys health and promotes obesity.[iv] If he runs out of forage, even for a few minutes, your horse’s system will register this as an impending famine and his body will hoard fat.
The only way to fix your horse is to help him return to his natural state. However, the longer a horse lives as an overweight, stressed animal, the more inflammation he will have within his system, making it difficult it to bring that horse back to a normal weight, free of leptin or insulin resistance. Years of enduring forage restriction will definitely take its toll. But the solution is not to continue down this destructive path; the solution is to try to make things better.[v]
If your horse tolerates a grazing muzzle, it can allow him to spend some time out on pasture with his buddies. But a muzzle can defeat your purpose if it causes frustration and its attendant cascade of stress-induced hormonal reactions. So pay attention to your horse. Even if he accepts the muzzle, limit its use to no more than 3 hours per day. Muzzles are hardly ideal—they do not really allow sufficient forage consumption for healthy digestive functioning, but the benefits of exercise and companionship in the pasture can outweigh the downside of short term reduction in forage intake. Make certain that your horse can drink water and that water drains well.
Movement does more than burn calories; it keeps your horse whole, physically and psychologically. Confinement to a small paddock (even though it is outdoors), or worse, to a stall, for hours on end, reduces circulation, increases the horse’s sense of vulnerability, increases susceptibility to depression, creates inflammation throughout the body, decreases the metabolic rate, reduces immune function, and depresses digestive tract motility, to name only a few outcomes. All of these have the same impact on your horse’s weight – they can lead to obesity because of the hormonal and metabolic responses that tell the horse to hold on to body fat.
Horses require the protection of a herd. They are also social animals and need the interaction of close physical contact; merely seeing other horses over the fence is not enough.
Room to roam, along with freedom to choose whether to be out in the sunlight, or under a tree, or in a shed -- perceiving he has options for comfort and safety is a calming force for the horse.
Slow feeders come in a variety of styles and methods.[vi] Allow your horse to gradually become accustomed to eating from them by also providing loose hay. Feeders need to be kept full at all times, the hole size for netted styles should not be smaller than 1.5 inches, and, depending on design, they should be kept low or on the ground to simulate the horse’s natural eating stance. Provide many of them throughout his area to encourage grazing.
Give a horse all he can eat, and at first he will overeat, a lot! It can be difficult to watch. Be sure you’ve tested your hay and it is suitable. Then give him more than he could possibly eat so that there is some left over. If you don’t give him enough and he eats it all, you will not accomplish your goal. But if he has so much that he can’t finish it, and he can leave and return to find it still there, he will eventually reach the magic moment – he will walk away! Eventually, he will eat far less than he did at the beginning.
Many barn managers are not willing to do this because it seems like a waste of money. But in actuality, the horse will eat less once he self-regulates than he did when he was only getting a set ration of hay.
Give it enough time. Most horses start to self-regulate within a couple of weeks. Some take a couple of months. And those who are leptin resistant take even longer.
Forage contains large amounts of fiber, which is fermented in the horse’s hind gut (cecum and large colon), resulting in gas formation. This is normal and healthy, but it can make your horse look pregnant. This is not fat; it’s gas--otherwise known as a “hay belly.” Do not let it concern you. Your horse will adjust. If it gets excessive, however, it would be best to help out the microbial flora in the hind gut by administering a good prebiotic.[vii]
Overeating naturally leads to weight gain. But it is only temporary. Allow for movement, feed an anti-inflammatory diet, get rid of stress, and you will have a different horse.
“Eat less!” This continues to be spouted by many horse owners and equine professionals. In fact, equine research in this area has revolved around reducing forage, often with “positive” results. But it is exceedingly short-sighted! What they don’t tell you is how those same horses are doing a year later. Nor do they examine the inflammatory, metabolic, endocrine, physiologic, and even hypothalamic damage in the brain that results from forage restriction.[viii]
We know about the damage this causes to humans. Why do we use this method with horses? Excessively reducing calories will result in weight loss. But wait! Give it some time and the weight not only creeps back but even more weight is put on. Recently, the New York Times did a piece on the “Greatest Losers,”[ix] a reality TV show where overweight men and women underwent extreme dieting and exercise and were praised by all in their efforts as they showed off their newly trim selves. Six years later, they were back to where they started, or worse, due to a shift in normal metabolism.
It is no different for horses. Prolonged forage restriction ultimately resets the metabolic rate to a slower level. In addition, the body’s hormonal response changes, making it very difficult for the horse to successfully keep off the weight without sacrificing health and quality of life.
Why not simply allow your horse to be healthy? Weight loss the wrong way will ensure that your horse will get fat again. Being patient, reducing inflammation and stress, and creating a healthy environment will do the trick. Sure, take away calories from concentrated feeds – that’s fine. But never, never restrict forage.
This article originally appeared on Getty Equine Nutrition and is published here with permission.
Find more informative articles in our section on Health & Education.
Read more: My Horse is Gaining Weight on Free-Choice Forage! Why Isn't it Working?
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