Anuario Raza Polo Argentino Anuario2018 | Page 247

played at low speed; they go around in circles and the periods last longer, which makes it possible to correct defects. The first season which normally begins at the age of 3-and-a- half years or 4, trains the horse for the role it must perform in future. By the second season it has already become a polo-playing pony without the drawbacks of the first, and here muscular pain, bone deformities, etc. generally appear. As regards the training of horses while playing, this is done through exercising morning and evening: on a tether; walking or trotting for an hour-and-a-half a day; mounting the more heavy-going, but each animal must be treated according to its individual characteristics. Training is completed by playing practice matches. Basic feeding consists of 7 kg. of oats distributed into two rations and 3 kg. of dry alfalfa grass fed only at night. We consider that this ration, when play is intense, contains an excess of protein, which brings on liver problems, for which reason we are trying to work out how to balance it better. When the polo season comes to an end, it is very useful to let the horse loose on the farm so as to eliminate certain intoxications inherent to the concentrated rations, as well as to rid it of all its aches and pains caused by the exigencies of the game. Deworming is also indispensable to horses once or twice a year. The vet will see to this using a catheter to measure the correct dose. Molar eruption is common in equines, so that periodic revision is recommended to eliminate this because it produces sores that affect the good performance of the polo pony. 245