Best of FHOTD: Heat Wave!
Jul 15 2010
Given the temps parts of the country have been experiencing lately, I thought it was a good time to repost this blog entry, from last summer!
So, here in the PNW, we are having the kind of weather we never have – namely temps in the 100s, humidity, etc. Since we never get this weather, almost no one has air conditioning at home and in general we’re just not prepared for it. My laptop finally breathed its last, probably due in no small part to getting almost too hot to touch, and I had to get another computer which I haven’t had time to set up yet and…blah, blah, whine, complain, anyway, back to normal soon.
Since I can’t think of anything else but the heat and how much I hate it, this is a good time to blog about how to help the horses deal in these kind of temps. Winter’s easy – you can add blankets for warmth and get them out of the wind and wet and stuff hay to them to keep their calories up, but what can you do when it’s miserably hot to help your horses come through the weather with flying colors?
The first is obvious: WATER! After all these years, I’m still amazed at how often I walk into someone’s barn – nice barns, even – show barns, barns that show on a national level – and on a hot day I can find an empty bucket or a horse turned out in a paddock or arena with no water source at all. It’s never okay. It’s not okay at all. If you use your arena or round pen for turnout, drag a muck bucket out there and fill it up. If you aren’t home to water several times a day, hang two or three buckets in your horse’s stall or use a muck bucket. Got a bucket tipper? Find a solution – there are various kinds of braces that will outwit a horse’s best efforts to throw his bucket and the water inside to the ground. Making sure there is plentiful, clean water in front of your horse 24/7 is the most important thing you can do to avoid a four-figure vet bill and possibly a dead horse. It is so easy that I’m continually stunned when people fail to do it. What, do you people like having $5,000 colic bills?
A cool shower feels as good to your horse on a hot day as it does to you! If you are home to do it, take the 15 minutes to walk outside and give your horse a cool shower with the hose. To scrape or not to scrape? In extreme heat, scrape – otherwise you just wind up with hot water sitting on the horse. Scrape it off for the best cooling. No time for a full bath? A soaked sponge behind the ears, between the front legs and between the butt cheeks will do a lot to cool a hot horse. This can be done to tacked horses mid-ride — we used to do it all the time to the polo ponies in-between chukkers on hot days.(Pic is my Crabby Old Bat mare enjoying a shower loose in the pasture! She is the second horse I’ve owned smart enough to come to the fence for baths on hot days and even turn herself around to make sure I get both sides.)
Electrolytes are a good addition to your horse’s water when the temps rise, and making sure that a horse always has a salt block accessible helps encourage drinking. Here is a good page that explains why electrolytes and salt are so important for your horse.
If your only shade is in the barn, it may be better to keep the horses in during the day and turn out overnight. If you are keeping your horses stalled, fans are a great idea but as with anything electrical in the barn, be absolutely certain cords are in great condition and that there is no way on earth a horse can reach the cord to chew on it. If they can, they will, and barnfulls of horses have been lost to fire in exactly this way.
I have seen various misting systems for sale and they sound like a good idea but I haven’t used one myself or been in a barn that had one. Have you? Do they work? Are you happy with a particular kind?
How can you tell if a horse is dehydrated? The old-fashioned pinch test is a good place to start. Pinch the skin on the horse’s neck. If it takes longer than a second to snap back, your horse may need more fluids. If a horse is refusing to drink enough on his own, try feeding a mash like hay pellets with enough water to turn them into an oatmeal-like consistency.
Another test for dehydration is capillary refill – press your finger into the horse’s gums above his teeth. The spot will turn white but in a normal, healthy horse, it goes back to pink within about three seconds. If your horse takes a lot longer, he may be suffering from dehydration.
Ever notice a horse who simply does not seem to sweat? This is called anhydrosis and can be a very dangerous condition in a hot climate. Basically – their built in a/c is broken. They can’t sweat to cool themselves so they are entirely dependent on you to cool them in extreme temps. Sometimes horses suffer from it temporarily and other times the condition is chronic. In either event, if your horse has this problem, it’s even more important to provide shade, regular cool baths and monitor for dehydration.
Horses, like humans, can get heatstroke and the symptoms are similar. Stumbling and breathing hard are two symptoms to watch for. Here’s a good page that discusses heatstroke and what to do if you suspect it. You really have to know your horse. The nature of the show season is that we’re all going to show in some pretty extreme heat. Some horses can hack it – some can’t. As the article notes, fitness is very important to help your horse manage competition in high temps, so that will help, but like humans, some horses are simply more heat sensitive. If you start to see signs of distress, it’s time to quit for the day, untack and get the cool bath going to cool your horse. I have seen horses go down – that’s a sign you weren’t paying attention. It should never go that far.
The horse isn’t the only one who has to worry in high temps. Back in my childhood days of the ever-wonderful black velvet hunt cap, which soaked up the sun like a sponge, I did pass out off of a horse once in the heat. If you’re riding, or teaching a rider, watch for signs that the heat is getting to be too much. Dizziness, nausea, and headache are some signs that it is time to get off and get a drink and a splash of cool water on your face. Set your water bottle where you can get to it and keep on drinking during your rides!
Trailering in high temps – remember, that’s an aluminum box your horse is in. Haul if you must but no, it’s not ok to park in the sun and go in and have a leisurely lunch with horses loaded. I just saw someone doing that the other day when it was over 100! Find some shade to park in and hang buckets for a drink and open your windows, or eat on the run.
Finally, always remember you are the one with the high IQ here. It’s up to you to make good choices for your horse, like riding in the early morning or late evening to avoid the worst temps, doing low-impact stuff like a trail ride with a swim in the river on that 100 degree day, and maybe even having to say, ok, it’s just too hot, I’m going to skip some classes and maybe I won’t win every year-end but my horse will love me!
Got other good tips for beating the heat? I’d love to hear them.
Also a side note today: I know of an absolutely wonderful barn manager in the Thoroughbred industry who is going to be out of a job soon through no fault of her own. This is someone who gets my seal of approval for spectacular care. Her horses look stunning and she is always on top of any problem.  Lots of broodmare/foal experience. If you have a position available, PNW perfect but west coast in general considered, e-mail me and I will hook you up!
148 comments to “Best of FHOTD: Heat Wave!”
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Shade. Shade Shade Shade.
Find it at the show grounds, create it in your own paddocks, provide it whenever you can. I’m always amazed at the beautiful rolling fields fenced in, with not a trace of shade anywhere. Or a tasteful tree against one end of the paddock– lovely shade for part of the day, but the other half of the day? Can you say Baked Cheval? I own two black horses, and the amount of stress they feel during a hot day is noticeably higher than that of the light silver dapple mare I also own. Our new paddock lacks shade during the morning and high noon hours– if it’s hot, that’s when the horses are put inside to get away from the sun.
Lacking shade, keep in mind that one three gallon bucket of water is adequate for a good sponge bath for a horse. They feel better, and when you resaddle to ride later, your horse isn’t covered in sticky sweat. Win Win situation.
Lastly, THINK about your environment. All the time. Is the sun now on your horse’s side of the trailer? Move him. Is it cooler outside the barn now? Move the horses outside. If you tie over here, will your horse get a better breeze? Do it. Evaluate all the time. It’s the single best way to be sure your horse gets through the heat without crisis.
One quick add on I just thought about– Barn Fans. Those great big ones that move a lot of air? CHECK your weather. I’ve worked in two barns in which I walked into a suffocating, stuffy, hot barn. Sure enough… the wind had switched around, and the barn fans were directly fighting the wind. Don’t forget that Momma Nature has her own fans going– face yoru fans the wrong way, and you are just fighting the natural cooling system, and making your barn even hotter than it should be.
Aye, I can remember two times I almost passed out in a barn. Once, on a vacation to Mississippi, I was riding and didn’t realize I was over heating and (being the Northwesterner I am) got to find myself seeing stars, black spots and having trouble breathing. The other time watching a PC demonstration and almost keeling over.
I love where I ride though, because there are two trees covering the arena, and then the rest of the property is a Cross Country covered almost entirely by trees.
Slightly OT, but any tips on keeping tack from sprouting mildew in this heat and humidity? I’ve got a fan going in the tack area of the barn and made several homemade dessicants from coffe cans containing the stuff used to dry flowers toped with a coffee filter, but no luck keeping the green stuff away. A humidifier is kind of out of the budget right now…I know running a space heater in that room would dry things out but to me, Heater and Barn don’t belong in the same sentence….BTW I live in the Midwest. TIA
Not a perfect solution, but certainly an improvement for me– saddle and bridle bags. The insulated ones.
Big dehumidifying systems are pricey, but you can get a portable 30-pint dehumidifier from Home Depot for around $150 – one of these keeps my entire 1500 square foot very dampish basement smelling sweet all summer, emptied every day. I’ve thought more than once about donating one to my Arabian’s barn; last summer her bridle got so moldy that I finally gave up and threw it away. It doesn’t take much of this to make the machine seem a pretty good investment.
Good idea Cassandra but you might have missed the part of “not in the budget” so maybe 150 is not quite do-able.
My suggestion is you need something dry to draw the moisture out. Try some wood shavings that are the real dusty type. Pine or Cedar should help. Large bags here in the PNW go for $8-12.
In addition to a de-humidifier, a light will help cut back on mold and mildew on tack. Just a 40 watt bulb left on 24/7 in the tack room will make a huge difference. Mold needs dark to grow. Take that away and you get less mold. My new tack room will be set up that a single light is on at all times, can’t be turned off unless you throw the breaker.
And after cleaning and before oiling your tack, mist it with a solution of 1 part white vinegar and 3 parts water. Vinegar kills the mold spores. It won’t prevent new ones or remove the stains left by mold growth but it will slow the growth of a new crop.
It’s a pain, but take your horse’s tack home with you. Keep it in the house, or the trunk of your car. Keep it CLEAN. Put a fan on it to dry it after cleaning, just be sure to keep it well-conditioned too. A spritz of Lysol sometimes helps.
A rubdown with household ammonia when you clean it has been suggested to me.
A lot of barns I know keep a cheap window air conditioner in the tack room, even if they have to cut a hole in the wall for it.
Listerine mouthwash. Kills and prevents mold growth. Apply full strength.
I was told to do this by a person makeing thier living repairing saddles. I have done it for years, works GREAT!!
All good ideas! Thank you! I will try the light bulb and Listerine first after I clean of the saddles. And yes, a dehumidifier may have to be wedged into the budget because ultimately Cassandra is right–this is my personal barn and it gets damp in the summer–the concrete parts of the floor sweat. Maybe I can get one cheaper at the end of the season. . .Cute pictures of all the horses staying cool!
It’s 100* here with the heat index around 108*… that’s HOT. Slight breeze which helps. Fortunately low humidity!
I get up early if I need to work my horses- like before the sun rises. That way by the time I’ve fed and they are done, it’s about 8AM and still cool enough to do things. We don’t have an arena, so we drive around the yard, which is shady. And a Vetrolin bath afterwards cools everyone out nicely.
In the evening after I water I’ll wet down the aisle in front of the stallion barn, as that’s the way the wind blows, so it cools the air. Plus I wet the area around the water tank under the shade trees in the mare fields. It seems to help.
Last night while I was watering my gelding, he came over with this “look” on his face, so I hosed him off. His QH buddy in the adjoining field seemed to want “watered”, too, so I hosed him off. Neither one moved- they loved it! Plus, while I hosed the QH my gelding snuck up behind me- he wasn’t quite done being squirted, thank you!
Now, the others- they think they’ll melt. HORRORS! She has a HOSE!
Gently pinching up the skin under the eye is a much more accurate test for dehydration.Try duct taping a sprinkler to a fenceline post to cool a group and keep dust down ( good for feet too ).Squirrels and wild birds are searching out water,keep them from drowning in your stock tanks by simply tossing a foam garden kneeling pad into the tank.We call these Squirrel Surfboards!
Or a nice sized stick or piece of wood works also. We call them Bird Boats.
Tried the wood, floaties and such….still squirrels were drowning in my stock tank regardless, and the horses would keep messing with whatever was in there. My solution which has probably saved countless squirrels because not one has drowned since (and we are squirrel central), is a rope ladder. Simply tie a bunch of knots in a length of thick rope, and throw it in the tank. I tie the other end to my fence, so the rope dangles in the tank. If a squirrel drops in, they have an easy way out as long as the rope is long enough to match the water level.
Here in Arizona where its routinely 100 plus during the summers I am always appalled by the number of horses I see who have absolutely no access to any shade whatsoever. Makes me sick….
On the other hand, right down the street lives an older quarter horse gelding who has a lovely shelter with a misting system he never uses. Doesnt matter how hot it is, he is standing in the sun all day right up against a 6 foot concrete wall. Go figure.
Probably baking his old bones — arthritic critters love the heat ;o)
I have slight osteoarthritis in my hands, and I like warm better than cold, though I’m melting in the heat now. We had a monsoon yesterday with that “airbrushed gray” cloud cover and lightning strikes. It rained somewhere close and this morning it’s beautiful — clear skies. That means we get to have more heat and it will “build up again” with chances of wildfires. Ah, summer.
Cheap Tip:
Go to the drip irrigation section of your local home improvement store and buy:
-a length of 1/2″ drip tubing
-some 1/2″ mounting brackets (number depends on length of tubing)
-an “L” connector
-a package of “misters” (get the highest gph available, don’t get bubblers or anything else)
-a female hose end-to-1/2″ drip tubing connector
-a thing to pinch off the end of the tubing (looks like a figure-8)
Using mounting brackets, mount a section of the 1/2″ tubing vertically from a few inches off the ground (preferably outside the pen so the horses can’t reach it), up the side of your barn or run-in approx. 8′ (you could even run it up a fence post and string it along a fenceline if that’s all you have). Cut the tubing at that point and install the “L” connector. Attach the remaining section of tubing into the other end of the “L” connector and use the mounting brackets to run that section horizontally across the roofline of your run-in or outside wall of your barn, at least 12′, but as long as you like. Install the misters incrementally along the horizontal section of the tubing, with the misters pointing straight out, or slightly down. You can buy a tubing punch or just use an ice pick to punch holes in the tubing to place the misters in. Then attach the female hose end-to-tubing connector to the bottom of the vertical section (where you started) and attach your hose to the connector. Turn your hose on for a minute to flush out any debris in the tubing. Then install the thing that pinches off the end of the tubing at the very end of the horizontal section. You put the end of the tubing through one side of the figure-8, then bend the tubing in half and put the end through the other hole, pinching off the end. Then turn your hose on again and check for leaks. You don’t want to turn on your hose full blast! Just enough to get the pressure right for the misters to work well.
Voila! Automatic horse (and all other farm critters & kids/adults) shower! For around $15 or so.
The hottest part of our day is 5pm, so I turn it on in the evening. If you wanted to get really fancy, you could put it on a timer. The horses have plenty of shade trees in our pasture, and some will leave the shade to come and stand under the mister. Some won’t get very close to it, but it sure as heck is much cooler even if your not standing right under it! Just having that cold water in the air is refreshing.
This was going to be my suggestion, but instead I will simply second your idea. We’ve made several for traveling to the shows for the summer, and we drape them over stalls, pop up tents, anywhere we need to and they make the hot shows bearable. They also help with passive hydration, the cool water on the skin helps keep some water in the body instead.
This is a really cheap way to stay cool for everybody.
Another way to instant mist is buy a ball valve in the plumbing supplies and a female hose connection. Put it together (it is really easy, ask plumbing guys how) attach hose and put valve on fence (make sure you can turn the valve on). Turn on valve 25% ish. Watch horses gather down wind.
I just turned mine on, its at a 3 pasture junction. I have 6 horses gathered down wind.
PS if you use the long nose fly masks watch your horse for the first hour. some try to rub it off and give themselves a bloody nose (and you a heart attack).
As long as the cops don’t follow you home to see what you’re growing in your AWESOME new setup…
My barn owner made her own “sprinkler” system for watering down the indoor arena: she mounted regular lawn sprinklers upside down on the rafters, rigged up hoses (zip-tying it alongside the rafters) and connecting the whole thing to a central hose she can hook up to the spigot when needed.
It works!
You basically covered everything in terms of horses, but these are some things I’ve discovered/been told as well:
- After tacking up, let them have as long a drink as they want before riding (well, within reason. Use your judgement). I’ve seen it make a HUGE difference in how hot and tired the horse is after a ride as compared to when they aren’t given a drink right before hand. Some of the smarter horses I’ve ridden will actually drink a little more than they normally would when presented with a water bucket if they have tack on and know they’re going to be working.
- If you’re working in the ring, keep a couple buckets of water handy and take frequent water breaks (for you and the horse!)
For the rider:
- Make sure you’re well hydrated BEFORE riding. I get headaches at the drop of a hat, and even the slightest bit of dehydration leaves me with my skull pounding. Believe me when I say that it takes even the most enjoyable activity and makes it downright unbearable, so you really don’t want it to happen.
- Have a full water bottle ready in the barn, and drink as much of it as you can stand when you get back, even if you feel fine.
- If you get headaches like me, and if like me, they just do not go away for hours no matter how much you drink, keep some aspirin/tylenol/your headache medication of choice on hand so you can get through the after-riding chores with minimum discomfort. BUT, be sure to pay extra attention to how much you’re drinking/how hot you are, or you could make the problem worse because you don’t have one of the symptoms reminding you any more.
Also, was going to add this but forgot: when giving your horse a drink before you ride (or during a ride) if he’s drinking an absolutely ridiculous amount, that could also be a sign that he’s dehydrated, and probably shouldn’t be worked.
Re rider hydration: It’s not just the loss of water that creates issues with headaches and “seeing spots” — it’s the electrolytes we lose.
Used to make “fakey Gatorade” and other drinks and discovered a very unpleasant sensitivity to potassium chloride, the salt in “salt substitute,” a primary ingredient in the recipes I was following. KCl is also one of the minerals included in “fortified water” bottled drinks.
I also objected to being FULL of water and still thirsty.
I figured that potassium in some OTHER form was needed to quench the thirst. That was step one in my “personal research” to find something that would let me ride in the heat.
I found that drinking an envelope of EmergenC — it dissolves like Alka-Seltzer in 4-6 oz of water — keeps me hydrated (actually quenches my thirst) without filling me up to the point I have to stop to use the bathroom all the time. If anyone is diabetic and has to watch sugar or carbs, I checked the three flavors of EmergenC in my “stash,” Super Orange, Cranberry, and Raspberry. Sugar and carbs grams ranges from 5 to 6. I’ve seen EmergenC in grocery stores, health food stores, WalMart.
Apple juice, which also can be diluted with water, contains potassium, too. I don’t find that it makes me thirsty because it’s sweet. (That was another objection I had to regular Gatorade — all the sugar).
I’ve tried soaking bandannas in water and wearing them around my neck or head (under a helmet). They work for awhile, but eventually need to be resoaked and if you’re trail riding that may not be convenient. I also bought a misting bottle with a hose and tiny valve that mists me and the horse. It sounds like a mosquito and the horse isn’t fond of the spray “coming from nowhere,” but it cools me off ;o)
I hate Gatorade. In my personal opinion, it is the most disgusting drink on the face of the planet. I don’t know what it is, but I just can’t drink the stuff without feeling like I’m going to puke.
I drink a lot of low-sugar/no-sugar fruit juices. Usually I’ll have a glass of juice, plus half a glass of water, and sometimes a banana before riding. That, plus half a bottle of water afterwords, generally will get me through a lesson and light chores (turning horses out, bringing them in) just fine, as long as it isn’t ridiculously hot (in which case, lessons are either cancelled, or we go on a short trail ride and let the horses play in the river, so I don’t have to worry about it so much.)
I’m not a fan of Gatorade either, or the other “hot drink” product, PowerAde. It all tastes “gucky” and I get the same feeling you do ;o)
The “make it yourself” drinks are actually pretty good other than the salt substitute issue I had. Wasn’t sure putting REAL salt in the mixture was any better, so opt for EmergenC. It comes in boxes with 30 or so envelopes, and at maybe 50 cents a serving is far more effective (and less disgusting) than the alternative. To me 60mg of sodium is almost not enough to bother with.
The most I’ve ever consumed of EmergenC in a day is maybe three envelopes.
Bananas are another good source of potassium. Forgot to mention them, though I have issues with bananas that reach the “brown speckle” stage. I almost prefer them green to too ripe.
)
I’m the same. Brown, speckly bananas? Blech. There are not many things that will make me gag, but brown or mushy bananas are definitely at the top of the list, followed closely by gatorade, and discovering a grain of rice from the night before in the butter on my toast. I can’t even stand to be in the kitchen when my mom makes banana bread. Seeing the mashed bananas is just too disgusting to bear.
Ha ha, I keep lime-lemon Gatorade on hand for that reason – it tastes revolting EXCEPT when I need it. So I know that if I take a sip and it’s delicious, I need to pour it down my throat before I keel over from hyponatremia.
EmergenC makes an electrolyte replacement product too – I like to use it because it doesn’t contain sugar like Gatorade does.
Emergen-C is awesome stuff…if I was putting together a barn first aid kit, a few packets would go in there.
I *HATE* Gatorade too!
I read an article somewhere. A study was done. Chocolate Milk actually worked better than Gatorade.
AHA: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/02/24/health/webmd/main1342839.shtml
(Too bad chocolate is the only food in the universe that makes me sick. Until about 10 years ago I was a big-time chocoholic. Now I throw up. Weh. Oh well, there’s always malt Ovaltine.)
Yes! Yet another reason to drink chocolate milk
I’m with Charm on this one. In northern Canada (where it does get hot, believe it or not), it’s a pain to clear trees out of the turnout and there are very VERY few stabled horses to be found. The end result of this laziness is tons of natural shade opportunities, even where the trees are scraggly.
Trees are cool and look naturally good. If I ever own a property where there are none, I’d put them in. In the short term, I’ll stick with the hose trick. Love it.
Oh the joys of Canadian weather. -40 in the winter, +40 in the summer. Gotta love it. -.-
We’ve had heat index temps around 103* here in Tennessee the past few weeks, with lots of humidity! Our horses are on 24/7 turnout with run in stalls and lots of trees for shade. I always keep plenty of fresh, clean water out for my guys, and never, never, never let them run out! We only ride after the sun goes down, and everyone gets a good cool hosing after we’re done. Sometimes, if I’m not too busy, I go out around noon or so and hose everyone down too, they love it, and they even fight over who gets in front of the water hose, LOL.
http://horsefilleddays.blogspot.com/
A couple comments from a vet…
- A 3 second capillary refill time is already WAY too long. It should be <2 seconds and the mucous membranes should be pink and MOIST, not tacky or muddy.
- Upper eyelid pinch is more reliable than neck. The skin should snap right back.
- Cool water can also be applied to the jugulars and other major blood vessels if in a rush.
- Water buckets must be clean. A horse does not drink as much algae and mosquito larvae contamination water and who can blame them?
- Don't wait until your horse is barely standing to call the vet if your horse isn't sweating. IV fluids are expensive.
“- Water buckets must be clean. A horse does not drink as much algae and mosquito larvae contamination water and who can blame them?”
YES!!! It makes me craaaaazy when water stinks or is obviously green. Who would drink that? Your horses won’t. Just dump them every few days, it’s not that tough.
I use baking soda and a scrub brush to get the slime out of buckets in the summer when it’s especially thick and stubborn. You can buy the big boxes in the supermarket (they weigh a couple pounds each) or a big bag at Wal-Mart/Target/wherever that is packaged for pools. A half-cup or so sprinkled around the empty trough/bucket before scrubbing makes a great abrasive that doesn’t scratch and rinses perfectly clean.
Apple cider vinegar works wonders as well. After dumping, just pour enough to cover the bottom of the trough and let it sit for about 15 or 20 minutes, then the algae scrubs away like it was never attached. It also helps to put a little in when you refill. Not only does it help keep the algae loosened up, but it’s great for numerous other things when given to the horse.
We used to use goldfish for algae control until we caught one of our horses eating them.
I also frequently used bleach in a spray bottle. The spray ensured that the bucket was completely covered in bleach without using large quantities of the stuff, and it would instantly remove algae and stains. Rinse, and hang the buckets. Only thing is to make sure you aren’t cleaning buckets in good clothes– bleach full strength will take the color right out of shirts!
Horses eating goldfish….eeeewwwwwww, what an image. Wonder if they did it on a dare?
There used to be a complete feed called Sea Power that contained fish meal, the protein source. Wonder if horses “like” the flavor of fish. Weird ;o)
Our three were moved to a new field at the beginning of the summer which hadn’t been used for a while and so we checked the water – there were the remains of a rabbit and bird of some sort. We emptied, scrubbed and rinsed but so many people on livery yards don’t check the water when they move fields – it always amazes me. Also within a couple of weeks the water was already going green again.
To help with keeping algae from growing in outside water troughs or bowls – apple cider vinegar. I put a splash in my dog and rabbit bowls but with the horses’ I use about a cup. Then weekly cleanout but this works on keeping it cleaner in between washing.
Another note – salt or mineral or selenium blocks are a must. Check your area on if you are selenium defficient because most of the PNW is.
Here in Northern Virginia it is not uncommon for barns to put the horses out at night and take them in during the day in the summer. My boy Pan goes out with his buddies at about 6:30 PM and back in at 7 AM, so they get their fresh air and grazing without so much heat. Every stall is supplied with a huge fan, as well, so not only are the horses able to stay relatively cool, but they don’t suffer the usual plagues of flies.
I’m in eastern PA, north of Philly, and that’s what the barn up the road from me has been doing. They did this last year as well. Big fans and the BO is always out there, checking to make sure they have water and that everyone is okay.
Just a quick note from Oz, where it gets damn hot in summer. Just be mindful when giving your horse a cool shower in the middle of the day that they don’t wind up suffering from sunburn. Water magnifies any sun light and when your horses coat is damp and laying flat you can inadvertently cause them to suffer sunburn. Usually sunburn will show as tender to touch, the muscles along the spine, rump, will drop and the skin and hair will peel.
And don’t forget on those very sunny days, zinc or sunburn cream on white noses goes a long way towards keeping your horse happy.
Another note from Oz (100 is a cool summers day for us, we get temps around 113 lol). Must must must scrape off a horse, it’s amazing the amount of kids at my stables who will argue with us that leaving a soaked horse is cooler, the water has to heat up on the horse before it evaporates, ouch! We have liquid electrolytes and after every lesson each schoolie gets unsaddled, hosed (hose put in mouth too, not jammed down throat, just between lips hose on gently, some horses turn their head away most guzzle it down), 20ml liquid electrolyte syringed into mouth and turned out. Some of the boarders also give their horses liquid electrolytes after being ridden as well. All horses get a large handfulof salt with dinner, all schoolies also get a handful of electrolytes with dinner and some of the boarders horses that have been worked hard (and kid subsequently yelled at). A few of us older kids/adults ride together at like 6am before it gets hot. You can buy these hose sprinkler mister things from the hardware store, they’re like a soft plastic tube/hose, the end it sealed, they’re about like 5/10m long, attach to the end of a hose and on one side of the tube it looks like someones gone crazy with a pin (tiny pin holes, makes water mist out along the hose). You can pretty much staple gun these to wood surfaces, above stables, on pasture fences etc. Horses love them.
Cotton rugs actually cool horses in summer, provided it’s not a super heavy one. It’s usually a strange concept to ppl, putting a rug on a horse when it’s so hot!?!? But a nice light cotton (or a mesh rug, or a cotton mesh rug) keeps the direct sun/heat off your horse but still allows a breeze to get through (for a horse turned out, wouldn’t be a problem in a barn).
If your horse has a pink nose (or even if it doesn’t), go to the saddlery and buy a flymask with a nosecover (also prevents sun damage to eyes) and make sure to keep the zinc up on their noses. Dark coloured flymasks are the best, they’re the easiest for your horse to see through.
We had a 118 day last summer, my horse was standing at the fence waiting for me and went running to the wash bay like ‘hose me, hose me!’, hot weather is the only time he’ll voluntarily come to me with a hose in my hand (he hates water).
At the end of every day at my stables we run around with buckets of molasses water to each and every horse.
Water on the jugular/neck and under belly, fastest way to cool a horse.
Gum test, if they’re pale (usually they’re quite pink), dehydrated.
best sunburn cream I’ve found is udder cream or nappy cream, nice and cheap and works really well. Also if you have a horse which suffers from bad sunburn and they have a field with lots of buttercups, try to move them and get a liver detox suppliment as the buttercups can trigger a horse to be extra photosensitive and get even worse burns – my sister’s cob got first/second degree burns from the sun despite suncream before we discovered this.
My guy with his big bald face will sunburn *under* the fly masks over his eyes and the thin *black* skin around his mouth will too. I have almost given up on sunscreen. At least the rest of him just sunbleaches.
I think the best thing to do is be adaptive. At my barn, the paddocks don’t have shade, so we keep them in during the day and they get turned out over night. When it is nice out, we can turn out right after lunch or when lessons are done. When it’s hotter we have to re-evaluate. If it’s breezy, then we’ll try to get them out ASAP because it’ll be cooler outside than in. If the air is still or the sun is really bright we’ll came back after dinner to turn out and hose everyone off before we go.
Everyone has one of those fancy UV blocking fly masks, and the horses with white muzzles have an extension.
Yeah, sometimes it’s a PITB to not know what you’re going to do every day, but we owe it to the horses to make them as comfortable as possible.
Water is the biggest no-brainer ever. The only time the horses don’t have access to fresh H2O is when they’re riding, and then we’ll give them a drink as soon as we get off.
If you are miserable, then your horse is miserable. Cut it back or even out. Go on a shady bareback trail ride in the morning instead of your jumping lesson at midday. If you really feel the need for that jumping lesson, then maybe you need to stop taking yourself so seriously.
Also, although it is my least favorite thing to do in the summer- clip! Some horses can shed out really well, and some need help. If you are putting your horse to work, consider getting them full body clipped. Not only will your horse be happier, but it’s also easier to hose sweat out of a short coat. Even if you ride consistently at home, but never show, your horse will love you for taking off their sweatshirt. However, your horse may be considerably more fresh after getting clipped (about as fresh as they are in the winter) for a ride or two. You can hose all you want, but your horse is still going to sweat if it’s hairy.
I am really interested to know about misting systems. How do they work? Who swears by them? Does anyone not like them? Do they promote the breeding of insects? Do they break often?
The trouble with misting systems (either water or fly spray) is the same as with misting systems for gardens. “Stuff” gets in the hose or the spray end and clogs things up. Barns in Palm Springs (where it can get to 120 degrees and I’ve been there when it’s like that, gak) have them for their horses. Businesses in Palm Springs have them outside their doors and they ARE a blessing.
I know a Friesian barn in Palm Springs that has a misting system that runs most of the year. A trainer who used to give clinics up here said the system requires constant checking, but the BOs are quite happy with it. I have no idea of the cost or how complicated they are to install.
I’m just about an hour away from you : ) Palm Springs is the closest place I have to shop! I have a misting system on my guys and it is worth putting a water filter to remove the calcium and lime from the water. Even still, I have to unscrew the mister heads and soak them in CLR and rinse them well before reinstalling them-usually once at the end of the season. It doesn’t take long and as long as the humidity is down, it can make it feel 20 degrees cooler.
I also keep troughs with at least 75 gallons of water available to my horses. One in each stall and they are dumped and scrubbed with bleach twice a week.
It sounds like they’re more trouble than they’re worth. Do they really work? I mean, how much better is it to have one, than not to have one?
I think anything like that probably depends on the horse. I had a mare who would beg to be sprayed, and stand for hours being sprayed if you were willing. She would have loved a mister. But I’ve had other horses who hated to even get rained on… they would act like a million flies were attacking. So horse number one would love a mister, but horse number two might hate it, and might prefer to stand out and bake in the sun if the only other option was to stand under a mister in the shelter.
Personally, I will hose my horses down for a treat, but generally if they have access to shade, water, forage, and aren’t working, I’m not too worried about problems. It’s when they can’t choose to be in shade, or when they are worked, that I worry about them. Same for being in a stall– I worry more then, because they can’t simply move to a cooler spot. If their stall is hot and airless, they are stuck there.
Here in Western Australia it gets jolly hot in summer – with temps over 40*C (104F) every summer.
I train my horses to drink (and LOVE) molasses water. After every workout i put a dollup of molasses in a bucket and disolve it in water, then offer this to the horse. Its a great treat for them and gets fluids in. The advantage is that if I have a horse who wont drink (colicy, dehydrated, sick, strange water at a show etc) this treat water can often convince them to have a little – and if they refuse it i KNOW that its time for the vet and IV fluids! It also means you can dissolve electrolytes into the molasses water and get a fussy horse to take it. (note: always offer clean water after electrolyte water).
To rug or not to rug? Seems a crazy question but its pretty common to have summer sheets on horses here even in extreme heat waves… I know people who remove rugs at a certain temperature, and those who put them on at a certain temperature (because oh dear the poor horse will get a faded coat in the sun…). Personally, I prefer to keep the rugs off them in the heat, and if my horse’s coat fades well its a good job i do a sport that doesnt judge based on coat colour! Of course, when you add insects and allergies into the mix it becomes a little more complicated! My sensitive warmblood comes out in hives when he is left unrugged!
Fly protection is another big issue in the heat – nothing worse than being hot AND bothered by flies! The fly masks are by far the best – they allow airflow around the face, they dont irritate the eyes, and they last a long time. My personal pick is http://www.flyveilsbydesign.com.au/ . Remember, horses can see out of DARK coloured flyveils much better than the latest fashion trend. I tend to go for BLACK for that reason. Fur lined is good for sensitive skin, but be warned you will become slave to the grass seeds!
And on a related note – sunburn… *I* like the shadecloth nose flap on the delux flymask for pink noses… however so does my pasture ornament who grabs baby WB by the nose flap and they dont last more than a couple of days… So its sunscreen/zinc etc for him. Cremellos, greys etc are best kept rugged unfortunately – they just arent suited to the extreme sun here!
If you use paddock boots – make sure they are 100% sheepskin… I dont find the legs overheat in these, but would be very hesitant about using them on a very hot day anyway…
NATURAL shade is the best. Stables, 3 walled shelters etc dont provide the same level of comfort as good old fashioned trees. They dont allow the same airflow, breeze etc due to their walls, and I find the horses will always choose to rest in the shade of trees than in a shelter. One of the biggest feature that attracted me to my agistment (stables) was the treelined paddocks, with happy cool horses able to choose whether they sunbathe or cool off in the shade.
If transporting horses, open up all air vents and leave the horses unrugged (and unbooted/bandaged if it is very hot!).
I love nothing more than taking my horses to the beach on a hot day, and am very lucky to have a horse exercise beach just 30min drive from my stables
– a picture to cool you all down (or make you all jealous!) 
(PS it is freeeezing here at the moment! I WISH it was hot!)
** raising hand ** Jealous here
I’m jealous too.
Naw looks like fun! Our stables is on a peninsula in Sydney so we have a beach either side! Across the road is the public beach but the horses are banned (may have something to do with the fact that when my instructors were kids they couldn’t stop while riding down the busy beach and ended up pretty much jumping over sunbakers!) but we have a beach and a bay right behind the stables which is pretty much exclusively for us. So good in summer, me and my best friend get a group of like 20 boarder kids and take them out (we’re like the leaders lol). We get in as deep as we can go (edge of the weeds which is like 80m out) and those on the ‘leader’ horses take turns leading the ‘followers’ out into the weed where the horses swim (it’s only short weeds but the horses swim over it), we all swap horses and have a great time, sometimes we’ll just go and stand in the water, it’s so nice, the horses LOVE it! Although downside of having the 17hh giant, while everyone else is up to their withers it’s barely up to his chest, only my feet dangle in the water most of the time and he doesn’t mind the weed so it doesn’t make him swim! It’s hilarious, all the horses have their own thing they do in the water, my giant TB, as soon as he gets in the water he ducks his head down and jogs along with his head fully submerged! My arab mare (all our arabs are complete water spaz’s), we call her the submarine at the beach (her sister does the same thing!), she sinks (so her heads like fully underwater) and runs along the bottom, springs of the bottom and comes up, grabs a breath and she’s back down again (me with a death grip in her mane and legs wrapped around her barrel of fatness). Me and my best friend always test drive the kids horses at the beach, it is so much fun. One of the kids ponies, in the water, rears up on his back legs, doggie paddles with his front legs and walks his back legs along the bottom.
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs221.snc1/6833_1140630473719_1166131115_30373722_8064708_n.jpg
Yeah I’m currently sitting on my lounge, with the fireplace on and the A/C on hot, in my flano long sleeved PJs, under a blanket, and my horse is currently wearing a stable doona, a cotton and a turnout doona
Recent riding conversation.
Riding partners: We’ll skip the creek, we just cleaned our saddles.
Me: I can’t skip it, my horse would never forgive me.
Riding partners: Your horse’s head is under water!
Me: Yes, he likes to blow bubbles.
A Horse Exercise Beach. Wow. I did a little googling on beaches in Southern California that allow horses and found one north of Santa Barbara. It sounds like you have to park your trailer and hike in a mile or so. Has anyone ever done this with their own horses, that is, taken them to a beach in So. California, or even Central California? I would love to hear critiques of different places, like how accessible it was, how safe, how crowded, etc… …oh, and also, how much, if any, motorized traffic there was and if it caused a problem.
Thought I’d also show you another way of allowing horses to cool themselves off – provide a dam/waterhole/lake for them (of course the footing needs to be safe, no sticky/slippery clay or pointy rocks etc). This is my (at the time) 2year old WB gelding enjoying a good wollow in the lake:
Cute, cute, CUTE!
We experienced a very uncomfortable heat wave in southern Ontario last week, and we kept things simple where I keep my mare. We reversed the turnout to keep the horses out of the hot daytime sun and sponged them all with cool water. Had to be careful about how much we hosed them as the farm is on a well and during such intense heat the water has to be preserved (always fun!). Sponging works quite well, though, as you can be sure you soak the horses right to the skin. The horses have automatic waterers and water buckets in their stalls and large clean troughs outside. Horses did get a bit sweaty and uncomfortable during the day, but a lot better than another local barn that lost two horses to heatstroke that same week.
Here in NJ we have been having temps in the 100′s and lots of humidity. Luckily theres been a bit of a breeze. To deal with sunburn on the nose the one year we cut up an old fly sheet. Took 3 layers and sowed them to the nose band of their halters. Tried the suntan lotion spf 50 and zinc oxide but it kept comming off in the water tubs. This made the water tubs have a film on them and the sunscreen to come off. The “nose masks” did a much better job of protecting them from sunscreen. Also let your water tubs overflow making the area around them wet but not overly muddy. Standind in the water helps to cool them off. I also keep my 26yr old and his buddy inside during the day with their fans. The fields have plenty of shade from every angle so the others go out. Take extra precaution with older horses the heat sometimes affects them more than a younger horse.
Has anyone ever tried to put something like a kiddy pool or small low water tub in their fields so their horse could stand in it? I have a 4 yr old TB mare who likes to lift her leg up and put her feet in the drinking tub and splash around. I gave her a taller water tub that she can’t do that with but she seems to like to play in the water.
Just got back from Regionals where it was over 100 degrees and so thick that you couldn’t breathe. I like to trailer in the wee hours of the morning, get the horses off ASAP upon arrival, fill water buckets immediately, and hang fans quickly. Clean water buckets are a must. Ours get dumped once or twice a day and bleached and scrubbed at least once a week. We also feed electrolytes as opposed to putting them in the water, for fear of turning the horses off to the water.
When it was really really hot here in the old Virginny I used to take one of those Icecream buckets and freeze some water and/or a little fruit juice for my old lady. She would stand and lick and lick and lick on it then suck all the water/juice up till her feeder was dry. Might be good for pick horses to sneak some electrolytes or gatoraid in it….Maybe even freeze a bran mash, I never got that creative she was happy with her “popsicle”. Oh yes, it does take just about overnight for that bucket to freeze, but then its good an solid just in time for the hottest part of the day
The frozen water trick is a good one. You can use it for dogs, cats and rabbits, too. Freeze water in a plastic pop bottle. You can put the cap on if you just want to give them a “cold water bottle” to lean against. Or, uncap it so they can drink the ice water as it melts.
I just wrote a piece about how horses and people were dealing with the heat wave for Blue Star Equiculture’s July 2010 Newsletter, which includes a historical perspective.
(LOTS OF PICTURES)
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Horse History: Keeping Cool in the Summer Heat
(Peggy enjoys being hosed down during the heatwave. Blue Star volunteers worked to keep the Herd cool this past week.)
This past week set temperature records across the Northeast, with triple digit figures registered in Massachusetts, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC.
At Blue Star Equiculture, our herd keeps cool by standing under the pine trees in Paradise Pasture along Rt. 181, waiting for semis to come around the bend and push a cool breeze onto them. They also enjoy a cold hosing when it’s hot, and so our volunteers were busy all week with the hose, spraying down the Herd. Peggy, in particular, LOVES the hose, pushing aside the big guys just to get a chance in the shower. (Gambler, the golden pony, is afraid of the hose.) Other members of the Herd, such as Bud and Zookie, prefer to stay inside the barn during the day. Justin and Kelly go swimming from time to time in the Swift River.
In the cities, carriage horses got many days off this week. In New York City, horses must return to their barns once the temperature reaches 90. In Philadelphia, the limit is 92 and in Charleston, South Carolina, the limit is 98. The carriage horses in New York have an automatic misting system in their stable, plus lots of windows, fans and ventilation to keep cool. In Philadelphia, Bud’s, Tom’s and Mike’s old friends were getting hosed down by their drivers throughout the day, and sprinklers were set up in their turnout yards for the horses to run through. You can see a video of one of the carriage horses at 76 Carriage Company running in the yard when it was 100+ degrees in Philly on Tuesday here (http://static.ak.fbcdn.net/rsrc.php/z4OG5/hash/7qkbs3nb.swf?v=1310737338540&ev=0), and the “keeping cool” efforts of the company were featured in the Philadelphia Inquirer (http://www.philly.com/philly/gallery/20100707_Record-breaking_temperatures_in_Philly.html).
(Mulligan, a carriage horse in New York for more than 10 years enjoys a drink in April from a continuously replenished water trough at 59th and 6th Avenue. Almost every ride in Central Park passes the trough, so horses get plenty to drink (and Mulligan also has buckets under his carriage for additional water and a snack). Horses sweat (like people do) to keep cool, and Mother Nature’s cooling system is surprisingly efficient, so long as horses get sufficient water, and have electrolytes replaced. Electrolytes are often added to feed or to water buckets in the stables, or are gotten through salt blocks hung in stalls.)
But what did working horses do in the past, before city temperature regulations?
Most cities by the late 19th century had ample watering troughs, supplying free, clean drinking water for working horses. The Philadelphia Fountain Society, founded by Dr. Wilson Cary Swann, erected fountains across the city for the horses, two of which are still in use today. Similar watering troughs can be seen right here in Massachusetts, in Bondsville (1912), Monson, and Ludlow, among others.
Cold showers were available curbside for the horses, as this 1911 photo from New York City attests.
The SPCA in New York had a plan to give away free straw sombreros to shield working horses’ eyes from the sun: “The hats will be specially prepared by a horse outfitter in Union Square, following a pattern designed by [S superintendent] Hankinson,” wrote the New York Times in June 1902.
“The hat, known as the horse sombrero, will be made of coarsely woven straw, about sixteen inches in diameter. The hat has an extraordinary flat brim, and, with the exception of the large holes for the horse’s ears, has the appearance of an ordinary hat.”
The SPCA got the idea from the street horses in Paris, all of whom wore sombreros in the summer.
Parisian horses, at least if they were some of the dozens of horses who worked for the department store, Dufayel, even got private pools in their stable.
(The luxurious interior of the Salle Dufayel’s horse stables, 1902. The Percherons who made deliveries lived upstairs.)
Similar horse baths existed in many towns and villages across France. Most of these baths in town squares have been filled in, but at least one town has restored their ca. 1800 horse bath, which they still use during their horse fair in the summer. Horses descend a ramp into a pool of water about 6 feet deep. They can exit again by ascending a ramp on the opposite side. Farmers and coachmen arriving in town could easily lead their working horses through the water for instant relief from the heat. Almost every large farm had a private “lavoir a chevaux” for this exact same purpose.
Farmstead lavoir-a-cheval in Maule, today in disuse. Early 19th century.
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The complete newsletter can be found here:
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Fantastic stuff! Thanks for posting these great photos.
Augh!! There’s no link!!!
That is FASCINATING.
I want a lavoir-a-cheval at my dream barn! I was going to call it a Horse Swimming Pool but I might have to get snooty with my fancy barn.
In the meantime, has anyone every put a kid’s wading pool in the paddock for their horses? One of mine loves to splash with both feet in her water tub (good benefit: I have to constantly clean her tub so it never gets gunky), and in this weather I was trying to figure out a cheap version for some water entertainment.
Set a sprinkler up in her paddock!
I think I will do that, but I have to be there when it’s on and just do it for a few minutes because my horses are currently boarded and the Barn Owner won’t look kindly on me using too much water. That’s why I was thinking of something like a wading pool to splash in.
Please repost your link!! I want to send it to some people – I LOVE this sort of stuff. One of my magazines had a story about pit ponies in the mine & I wish I could read more. LOVE reading about history & horses. Awesome job!!
I had an outdoor-safe mist fan for my old mare. I’d set it up outside the fence and move it to a different shady spot every few days so no one area got too muddy.
She absolutely loved it, and would stand in front of it banging on the fence if I didn’t get out and turn it on early enough in the morning to suit her. We called her the “Dowager Empress.”
Bring water (10-20 gallons per horse) and a bucket from home when hauling horses. Even very thirsty horses will reject water that different. (PS for safety concerns don’t let your horse drink out of a communal water trough at a show. They can pick up all sorts of things from it.)
If the horse won’t let you hose him, try hosing the ground, in hot and dry areas it provides instant evap. cooling. What also works is letting your water tanks in the pasture overflow. Some horses seek out mud to roll in for cooling effects
If the sum of the temperature in degrees Fahrenheit plus the percent of humidity totals less than 120, ride with adequate cool-down. If the sum is greater than 150, particularly if humidity contributes to more than half of this number, no riding for you.
And shade is a funny thing: all my horses have it, only 2 or 3 use it. Everyone else is out in the sun.
One thing I see a lot of are horses who are hosed down and put into stalls on warm days with no air circulation. Air conditioning works on the principle of removing humidity. So if you hose your horse off and don’t allow them to dry in a cool breeze before putting them into a warm barn/stall, they will sweat even more. You don’t notice it at first
because they are already wet, but once they dry, they start sweating even more because of the humidity and body heat in the stall and lack of air movement. It’s like living in the Midwest on a hot humid day – inside a box. If you hose your horse off, make sure they’re dry and body temp is back to normal before stalling them (with a fan).
Fans are a horses best friend on hot days.
Since Harry was “blessed” with no hair, he had a difficult time keeping cool. When we lived in the Willamette Valley, it was pretty easy. Then Harry and I moved to La Grande where it routinely can be 100 degrees or more.
The mist systems are awesome!!! Harry’s stall opened up to the arena, and on one end of the arena, I had a 20 foot system installed over and down both sides of one 12 x 12 door..upwind of course. It created a nice tunnel of cool for him. There were a few days during his 5 years here, that the heat was unbearable and we wrapped cool wet towels around his neck and changed them as they warmed. The mister and a fan was greatly appreciated as was changing the water in his waterer several times a day to keep it cooler..but not cold.
If he chose to go outside on days that were not super hot..then I usually made sure there was irrigation water going and he would graze under the sprinkler. Here is a picture of him enjoying his wetness!
Suzi
WOW! I remember reading an article in EQUUS some time ago about a horse like that: born with lovely soft gray hair, then it fell out. To their knowledge it was extraordinarily rare in horses.
Harry is muy special! Pretty, too.
My husband says Harry is pretty. Was he born like that, or did it come on later?
Thanks…he was a sweetie pie. We lost Harry two years ago now..he was 18 years old when he passed..so he did well. He was born with patches of hair missing, then I bought him when he was 5 months old and at that time he had this weird sparse course hair..sort of like pig hair. By the time the following spring came around..that all fell out and he was left with a little mane and tail and the occsional weird whisker hair here and there.
Being a Percheron, he also had EPSM and that is ultimately what caused his death…the long term effects of the muscle disease.
Usually hairless horses don’t live very long..they told me that he would not live a year, so I think we did pretty good. There was an article about him years and years ago in Western Horseman. He really was a very special horse and sure taught me alot! Not only about keeping a horse warm or cool..but about the responsibility that you take on when you buy a horse…sometimes it’s alot more than you planned on!..But, oh so worth it.
Suzi
Wet down the shavings in the trailer…. not just a sprinkle, but soak em down pretty good. Open the windows, too. The evaporation really helps cool the hot trailer. Works well in the barn with adequate ventilation. Remember, the evaporated water has to have somewhere to go or it just gets muggier.
So true, it has been incredibly hot here in the midwest recently (upwards of 100 degrees), and my horse definitely appreciates a cool shower once in awhile! Thankfully he is boarded at a place where I can trust he has constant access to clean water in his stall (I have NEVER seen a horse at the barn without clean drinking water. EVER. The water is so closely monitored that someone knows immediately if a horse isnt drinking). There are also fans placed outside the stalls, well out of reach, to keep the air flowing. Even so, it is difficult to keep the horses cool during a workout.
Off topic, but I noticed that whenever I try to look at older entries on the blogspot page, I get redirected here. Is there someway I can read those older entries? I just love browsing and looking at all the fuglies (: I’m sure someone must’ve asked that before, so I apologize for any redundancy!
Its been hot here 35 c, and I have a show in Italy next week where its even hotter. You bet I will load the kids up at 6 am to beat the heat and traffic. I will be at the show way too early , but who cares. One of my horses is a lazy drinker, I will start soaking his chopped feed in water a few days before , to get him hydrated, and they will have 2 large buckets of water, one with apple juice mixed in with the water, and one natural. I keep a tent in the trailer for the horses so I can provide shade wherever I am, it was inexpensive , and I know ,whatever happens I am prepared. I also keep a jug of water in ice in the car and stop every hour in hot weather to give them a drink.
I did get my new camera for the trailer : ), very excited about being able to watch the kids from my dash.
Great posts! A couple of minor points to add:
cooling off — don’t walk your horse cool in the saddle. Get off the minute your training session is done, get that saddle off, and begin cooling the horse with water right away, then hand walk
grooming — sometimes it’s just too hot to do it. Grooming bothers them and heats them up when it’s already hot. Brush only a little if it’s very hot.
If grooming bothers the horse when it’s hot, try using a soppy sponge to “groom” them and cool them off. I’ve done this with my horse who LOVES grooming as a rule (but it’s too hot for ME to groom him ;o), and I get wet, too, with the drippy sponge. Win-win ;o)
My QH mare was PICKY about her water, to the point I had to carry water wherever we went.
No amount of Kool Aid would work, and even if she got THIRSTY, she’d take no more than a slurp of non-well water.
I always kept electrolytes on hand… the only health issues I ever had with her was mild colic directly caused by self-imposed dehydration. Whenever she’d get that “sucked up” look, even though she’d have FULL buckets of clean, fresh water, I knew I was going to be in for it if I didn’t get her some “home” water – even if it was hot and stale from sitting in a container in the trailer all damn day – and electrolyte powder ASAP.
It had to be hard, well water. City water, NO WAY!! Creek water? Not unless it was from her own pasture! Well water from a different part of the state? EWWWW!!!!!!
There is a med for anhidrosis, but I believe it varies in effectiveness. I think Smart-Pak, among others, carries it. Sometimes, if a horse is sent to a colder climate for a while, its metabolism or whatever will “reset.” A friend’s horse developed anhidrosis when she moved to Texas. She had to ride early, soak his coat with water BEFORE she rode, etc. When she moved back to California, he readjusted and started sweating again. A friend in NC manages to keep her anhidrotic horse going fine on the meds. She monitors her carefully and doesn’t over stress her, but so far the meds have enabled her to work almost completely normally.
For fly relief I feed a teaspoon or two of granulated garlic in my guy’s goody bucket. Makes him “taste bad” to the flies. They land but they don’t bite. He’s been on this regimen for 12 years and so far no ill effects. Granulated garlic is also salty (it’s not garlic SALT, however. I buy granulated garlic in bulk at WinCo, under $3 a pound) which encourages drinking.
My horse also had a squamous cell carcinoma removed from his inner eyelid about seven years ago, so he wears a fly mask during the day. He actually wears one almost year round because the masks protect against dust, too.
We just installed sprinklers to the side of the barn in which we can set a timer and let the horses get cooled off as they please. So far, so good!
http://www.mountainviewrescue.com/sprinklerpage.htm
Great tips!
And here’s some sad proof of just what you are talking about. Five horses were found dead in their pasture in Northern California. Reason? Simple dehydration from a lack of water provided.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/07/15/state/n182230D14.DTL&type=health
Remember, it’s important to check your horse’s water buckets throughout the day on hot days! I know my mare alone will go through an entire muck bucket of water in a day easily when it gets hot.
Also, if you have more than one horse sharing a pasture/paddock, it’s a good idea to put out more than one bucket and spread them out if you can to avoid a dominant horse hogging all the water.
I used to live in Stockton which is not far from Tracy and you are right. Water needs frequent checking. Which brings me to another thing: Some horses like to poop in their water. I had a rescue for 18 months and I don’t know if he was just a slob or “directionally challenged” or objected to water that “stood around” and got stale or warm, but until I blocked his access to the water trough (by putting another trough upside down in front of where he stood), he would poop almost daily in the 70-gallon trough.
I tried to give him a large muck bucket full of water, but he’d stand in that.
He was a card, that guy.
I was at Canterbury Downs on a hot day and saw a horse break down from the heat…and that was with all the precautions they took. Times were *noticeably* down and I didn’t see much use of the whip…the jockeys were being very sensible. All the horses were hosed down the minute they were unsaddled, on the track itself.
But this does leave me wondering if there should be a temperature limit for racing?
There are a certain percentage of horses that (just like humans) are going to have a heart attack from exertion. Just like the way every year, some high school athletes fall over dead, it is a tragedy but I honestly don’t believe it’s preventable.
Now, leg breaks…much more preventable. Stop riding yearlings, for one.
It wasn’t a heart attack, it was heat stroke/tying up. Sorry for the lack of clarification. I don’t know whether it made it…it was ambulanced from the track because it couldn’t walk. Poor thing.
It was very hot, and I did really like the fact that they were hosing the horses down with cold water right away.
http://www.buckskinconnection.com/forsale.htm
This just happened yesterday here in N. Cal. – 5 horses found dead from dehydration. Apparently their water trough was empty for several days.
http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_15525924
Side note about the electical cords…
not fun… watch out for cords!
We had an oops this past winter, we thought we had the electical cord running to the water heater pulled far enough away from the fence so that no one could reach it… Unfourtunatley our big goofy gelding WAS tall enough to reach over and grab the cord, he bit it and caused the water heater to short out (terms???) Unfourtunatly everyone got a shock from the waterer before we realised there was a problem. After that none of the horse would drink from the studid thing even after it was fixed and we ended up hauling water to them in the winter
(running power to the water underground is on a very long to do list… maybe it should be closer to the top lol!)
UNfortunately? You mean Fortunately.
I’ve heard of stables losing horses that way.
oops…
I ment Unfortunately he was able to reach it when we thought it was out of reach and safe.
Off topic:
I almost fell out of my chair when I saw these pictures of a “therapy” session posted on the website of a certified NARHA instructor! WTH!!! That little girl is going to get kicked in the head!!
http://www.bigbearfarm.com/sitebuilder/images/group_1_Aug_07-336×111.jpg
http://www.bigbearfarm.com/sitebuilder/images/group_2_Aug_07-344×102.jpg
Here’s the website: http://www.bigbearfarm.com/
Strangely, they seem to have nice quality horses and facilities, but the religious stuff is so totally out there, and they seem to have ADD on what exactly there focus is…no crime there though.
SAFETY FIRST!!!
Dang it! I wish there was an “edit” button!
Here’s another picture verifying their top-notch parenting skills! WOW! You felt the need to take a brand new baby out into a frigid winter storm (look how Dad is scrunched into his coat)….WHY?
http://www.bigbearfarm.com/images/webeeeMarch_1_2009_snow6.jpg
Why, this is the step before you throw the baby into the lion’s den. Where the Lord will save it. Or not.
I wouldn’t call CPS over that picture.
The picture is on the shoulder of a road, which implies that they were on a drive and just stopped long enough to take a picture. The amount of snow coming down, the amount of snow on their clothes and on the ground and the fact that they’re without hats or gloves suggests that it’s a heavy snowfall, the type with huge, fluffy, wet flakes, but at warm temperatures (30F or so), and they weren’t standing there long. They’re from Georgia, and the sign is for FDR’s Little White House, which is also in Georgia. So I suspect that it was an ‘OMG I can’t believe it’s snowing, it’s so pretty, we should get a pic!’ moment that didn’t involve serious exposure of the newborn.
Now, the little girl running behind a horse hanging on to its tail… Yeah, belief in God won’t protect you from Darwin awards.
I wouldn’t call CPS…but would chalk it up to proof of their very poor judgement skills (along with the other photos).
What is shocking to me is the fact that they felt it necessary to wear big winter coats, but didn’t think that it might be necessary for the baby to have a blanket!
*Facepalm*
I took my very first ever riding lesson there oh about 25 years ago. Let’s just say that place has more stories than well, um, the Bible. O.O
The temps have been hovering around 110 in the middle of the day where I am. Here is a mister built from everyday materials from the local hardware store. It shoots out a pretty fine mist, so it keeps my horses from getting dripping wet with water that’ll just heat up on them, but it really knocks down the temperature by at least 10 degrees under and near it, it’s wooonnnderful. I sometimes think I stand in it more than the horses do! Here are my two youngest modeling it. The gray Lipizzan (aged 2 at the time) just adores it, constantly making faces and reaching up and puts his face right next to the squirters; the bay is a little more apprehensive (and is also afraid of butterflies, so you can’t blame her). The only problem is, they get all damp and then roll in the sand, I haven’t had a clean horse since summer started!
I have a job available for this girl of yours, although it is in Canada (alberta) and she wouldn’t be managing the barn (not giving her my job, sorry LOL), I just need one more groom as my other girl had to quit for health reasons. I doubt she’ll want to come this far, but the money is about the same as it is anywhere else and you can live on track here for $150/m. If she’s really intent on managing a barn there is another guy here that could use her as well.
Here near Chicago, the weather has been absolutely MISERABLE for about 3 weeks. We have driving ponies, and they pretty much haven’t been driven. It’s hard enough to get through riding, let alone making ponies pull a cart and a person!! Looks like they’ll get the summer off as well as the winter this year.
For what it’s worth I would like to add my $.02 about dealing with heat—…
1) DRINK ROOM TEMP WATER. Don’t know about you, but if I’m hot and drink cold water I can barely stand up straight I hurt so bad. I have stomach/intestine issues anyway, so maybe this is something unique to me, but it’s along the same principal as not giving your hot horse cold water. It hurts like hell. Room temp water is not the most satisfying, but if you’re mid-ride and over heating, I find this works better (for me) than a big cold drink, because I just have to stop riding all together and sit down.
2) ALCOHOL BATHE YOUR HOT HORSE. I noticed the post mentioned anyhydrosis. Did you know a 50/50 mix of isopropyl rubbing alcohol and water will cool a horse much faster than water alone? The alcohol dries cool when it’s left out in the air. It will help vaporize the water and cool the horse. We used to do this multiple times a day for a horse with anhydrosis – he also had 2 fans pointing in to his stall and stayed inside during the days.
3) WET YOUR SCALP. Maybe not so much if you’re wearing a helmet.. this gets GROSS… but if you’re done riding, or if you’re one of those people who doesn’t wear a helmet when riding/driving… wetting your hair down will help keep you cool. Same thing with wetting a horse’s poll, his chest, or under his tail. I’ve found it helps me make it through hot days if I do this frequently.
http://www.kshai1715.wordpress.com
DRINK ROOM TEMP WATER. Yeah I know where you’re coming from, if I say get any sort of cold drink that is ‘super cold’ wether it be water, soda or juice I really can’t drink it properly. It takes me ages as I have to do is very slowly otherwise I can’t seem to drink it right as I find it hard.
You guys rock with all your good advice! Thanks.
My vet has me put electrolytes in our horses lunches (they get lunch every day) on either very hot or very cold or very rainy days. She said this prevents so much. Of course clean , fresh water in abundance (this is not the day to run the bucket down a bit to clean it!!) and we do the showers you spoke of.
Good luck to all in this heat. My ranch is 110 in the sun today.
Hey Fugs, I sent a message to your e-mail about the skinny old Ay-rab mare. I’d appreciate it if you could put it up as a post for the weekend, she doesn’t have much time left. Instead of paying their rent so my friend can purchase pellets, these dirt-bags are spending their money on booze and drugs. Please give an old girl the retirement she deserves!
And to clarify, it’s not the owner that’s bad, it’s their roommates. They couldn’t afford jack squat before, and now that they moved in it is little different. Sheree is going without. She has been wormed, I believe, and I am speaking with the owner tonight to try and get her to let Sheree go. She has had her since birth; she owned her mother and the horses were always well taken care of. Hard times and illness have fallen on them and had the best intentions, but very shallow pockets, and we all know that oldies require expensive groceries and services to keep them at their best.
I live in Southern California, and it’s been upwards of 110*F lately. My mare is a perlino, so keeping her cool, fly-free, and sunburn-free is a challenge. So here’s what I do:
1. I work her early in the morning, normally around 6am, so we can avoid the heat. I also water down the round pen to keep it a little cooler on top of keeping down the dust.
2. I use a shampoo with a UV protectant included on top of using a waterproof sunscreen. I’ve discovered that the spray kind (like Coppertone Sport SPF 70+) is great for getting a nice, even coat over the pink parts (which all of her is pink). I even use it on myself!
3. I bathe her, scrape her off, and let her finish drying in the shade. She dries fairly quickly, and the breeze that’s normally rolling through in the morning keeps her nice and cool.
4. I fly spray her after she’s hosed off and scraped, and once more after she’s completely dry.
5. I keep a fly mask on her that’s has UV protection, and I clean it every other day to keep dirt, hair, and oil from irritating her skin. I give her face a once-over with a damp cloth or a baby wipe (Huggies for sensitive skin) to remove any dirt or eye boogers before I apply sunscreen around her eyes, nose, lips, and chin.
6. I use a roll-on fly spray (Endure) on the fluffy parts of the fly mask to deter those nasty buggers from trying to crawl underneath.
7. Any nicks, scrapes, cuts, etc. are immediately cleaned and protected with a coat of Tri-Care ointment.
8. FRESH WATER! She has fresh water available to her at all times, and it’s refilled as often as she needs (typically twice a day). If there’s any nastiest in it, it’s immediately dumped and cleaned.
9. Frozen carrots, grapes, or a horsey Gatorade popsicle makes for a yummy treat and a great way to keep them cool. In fact, mixing all three makes a great snack AND toy!
10. She has access to a natural salt lick at all times. For those of you who don’t know what that is, this is what it looks like:
These things are awesome, and my mare LOVES it. She had a horrible habit of not taking in enough salt or minerals, which leads to not drinking properly and colic, until I bought one of these. Now it’s not a problem.
What kind of shampoo are you using? My guy has a few pink patches that get sunburned often, UV shampoo sounds great… The worst, his man parts are pink, and always peeling and gross… not sure what to do about that. Regular sunscreen, attack when it drops? Anyone have a solution to that?
I use Cowboy Magic on her, but if you’re having issues with him getting burnt often, you may want to look into using a combo of a UV fly sheet and mask on top of using sun screen. My mare is ALL pink, so I feel for you!
I doubt he’s getting sunburned on his penis unless he keeps it out ALL of the time…Do you use a sheath cleaner with tee tree oil? That may be a problem if you do, so I’d look into using Ivory soup or a betadine scrub. If it continues to be a problem, I’d consult the vet to see what he/she recommends you do. Good luck!
I’ll check out that shampoo, they make good stuff. He’s mostly black skinned, just has a few places scattered around that tend to get a little burned, as well as a speckled nose, which I use lotion sunscreen on. He drops a LOT, but hopefully you’re right in that it’s not sunburn! I usually use ivory soap, but funny enough, I was just looking into some with tea tree. My vet comes next month, I’ll ask her then. Thank you!
I forgot to add this before, but another great (but slightly weird) way of keeping down larva from growing in your horse’s water is to use mosquito fish.
http://www.sdcounty.ca.gov/deh/pests/pdf/chd_wnv_mosquito_fish.pdf
Here in the land of Elvis, it’s been just miserable with high 90′s and high humidity. My mare is on electrolytes and we’ve got a covered ring etc. But was wondering if anyone had tried the cool medics cooling cap? It is supposed to fit under your helmet. I am intrigued by the idea, and they are not expensive but wanted to see if anyone had tried them before I ordered one. Thanks!
Here is the website: https://www.coolmedics.com/products.php?product=Adult-Cooling-Cap-%252d-1310
They will work if you have a well ventilated helmet with enough room to not squish the cap down on your head. They do need air circulation to work well. I swear by the Cool Medics vests though. Follow the directions and they will keep your core cool for hours.
The horses are in Creston, CA and it has been 104-108 lately. I like to eat the cool pops or frozen juice bars (you can share those with your horse too). Setting up a misting system in the run in for the older mares (15 and 20 years old). Using a rain-bird in the round pen twice a day to keep down dust and cool the general area. You can also spray water up into the trees for extra cooling as it drips off the leaves. Large water troughs constantly checked. All horses are in a large paddock (or pastures with trees). The paddock only has trees on one side so it has the run in with mister. Try to get the horses worked before 8:30 am.
Hey fugs, tried to send an email but my account was messing up.
figure this might make a good topic.
34 horses seized by NBSPCA.
http://dailygleaner.canadaeast.com/rss/article/1135961
Gist of it is, there was 34 horses, NOT including foals seized from a farm in northern NB. Mostly Paints, but a few solids too. 3 stallions on property,2 mature, 1 yearling. Mares are incredibly emanciated, babies are skinny, one has deformed legs, couple have to be bottle fed because the mares can’t make enough milk.Many are unhandled, and had to be run onto a stock trailer just to get them off property.There was no pasture grazing left, and very little water available
Rumored to have been 2-3 dead horses on property
Most are being kept at the provincial veternairy barns in Frederiction, but those who were deemed healthy enough have been fostered out to surrounding stables. The NBPSCA is asking for hay and feed donations, and are not releasing information pending investigation.
I only know alot of the info because we took up a load of donated hay to the barns, and got to walk through on the way to the offices. Horrific. You never think that stuff like that would happen in your area but then you’re proved wrong.
Dying to know which breeder-gone-bad THIS one was. Any ideas?
Hey, someone here on the blog was looking for a packer to learn to jump on:
http://www.safehorses.org/horses/harrison.html
I saw this posted somewhere a few weeks ago & sent it around to horse friends, some of who printed & posted it at the barn.
http://atguelph.uoguelph.ca/2010/06/when-the-rider-is-hot-the-horse-is-hotter/
Has a lot of good physiology info – horses “sweat 15 to 20 litres per hour in cool, dry conditions and up to 30 litres per hour in hot, humid conditions” and it mentions, like you all do here, to scrape after soaking (sounds like I am talking about a stew pot or something)
Our dark horses & dogs always had a harder time in the heat. poor kids.
OH, and if you see some jack ass leave their pet in the car, get a baseball bat, get the pet out, then use it on the owner!!! and call the police.
Oh, heat stroke is the worst. Ever since I got it a couple summers ago I haven’t been able to stand anything over 80 degrees. My horses and I tend to play in the hose on those hot days, or go swimming in the lake! And one thing I never thought about until I owned my own horse was to check the automatic waterer to make sure it’s working and the bowl is clean and not green and fuzzy.
Completely off topic. But have you seen this ad, yet?
http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/grd/1829350460.html
This guy actually thinks he can get a good price for a small, aged Mustang cryptorchid. Because everyone is tripping over each other in their mad dash to own a timid 12 year old 14 hand Mustang STALLION with a major medical issue that must have an experienced handler and was broke, but “need’s work”. I guess at least he’s honest and up front about it.
ANOTHER case of a ‘loving owner’ who is starving her horses. Maybe she thinks they all want to be fashion models?
http://www.fox4now.com/global/story.asp?s=12821810
In the video:
“They’ve been eating every day. Some of the ones who are skinny right now have babies by their sides…. In the summer they tend to get more ribby”
This woman has 34 horses…
She calls them her ‘kids’, and says “I don’t think they’ve been neglected…”
She was in trouble in 2007 for the same thing, and got off scot-free.
Now she’s trying to give them away….
If you live in a humid area and it’s hot and humid…if you spray your horse down, please! please! PLEASE! Scrape your horses off. That excess water will boil your horse when it’s so hot and humid. Especially if there is no breeze. People might think that water couldn’t do any harm on a hot day but it does. It heats up and just sits on the skin and puts the horse in a worse position than it was in before being hosed down.
Sorry if someone already posted about this, I didn’t read the comments first.
I have a trick for horses with anhydrosis. You can sweat FOR them. After tacking up, sponge a whole lot of water onto the chest, legs, rump, neck, etc. Take the bucket with you to the ring and reapply whenever the water starts to dry up. I owned one. You have to be really careful with those horses when you ride. Watch for signs of overheating (such as heavy panting) like a hawk.
how does one forward you some info without posting it here?
Emptying and scrubbing water tanks every couple of days is good for keeping the mosquito population in check. A long handled dish brush & bleach from dollar store are an inexpensive way to keep up with the slimey stuff.
Haven’t read the posts yet but locally, 5 horses dead because of lack of water. Food present but no shade or water in 100+ temps. 2 may survive, given IV fluids. Terrible shame.
I live in 70 degree weather and just came back from 100+, visiting the Central Valley,CA. I forgot what that feels like. WOW
You know, my father was never a horse guy. He grew up in the city and didn’t even like them much. My parents bought a horse for my brother and I (a 26 year old been there done that horse that used to do eventing I think) and my father rode him all of 6 times in the 12 years we owned that horse.
There was one time, only one that I ever saw my dad get passionate about it. We were living in Az, and had the horse boarded while we were fixing the fencing. As is usual in some parts of Az, the temp that summer was 120 or so. We went to visit our horse and the flymask was gone, and he had no water. My father, the usually calm laid back man that went with the flow blew up. He knew nothing about horses but he was livid. We took our horse home that day, and sued the BO for the rest of the month he’d paid for already. Everyone in Az used barbed wire, and I know now that’s bad, but in that 120 degree heat, with the horse standing under a sprinkler in the shade of the house, my father was in the sun putting up a fence to hold the horse temporarily, making sure there were trees for him and setting up a misting system. I remember standing with water for my dad, watching him work for hours in the heat, cutting up his hands, all for a horse he didn’t want to buy in the first place, and did nothing more than pay for the feed and water for.
Wow, good man.
Fugs – don’t know if you read all the comments to your entries, however I wanted to let you know I’m a non-horse owner of about 5 years. I won’t see owning them again for many more. I visit no other horse sites but this and I LOVE this blog. You really are a great, motivated writer!
I read everything
And thank you!
I make up huge ice cubes ahead of time. I use various rubber maid containers. I even cut the 3liter soda bottles in hald and fill them. just run under hot water to pop out the ice cubes when they are ready. And you can use these in your horses water(mine like to play with them). It keeps the water cooler for a little while. If nice if you have a freezer that isnt being used. If your riding in a ring you can hang a bucket high enough to reach when your mounted with a sponge atttached to a string and the handle of the bucket(just in case it gets dropped.) This way you can cool off your horse during riding.
I also live in an area where A/C is not required. In the occasional heat wave, I put blocks of ice in my gold fish aquarium in the morning. Even the tiniest pets need relief in a heat wave.
I live in the lovely state of Lousiana, where it’s frequently 103 and 80% humidity. My horses deal with it. It’s usually plenty wet, so if they want to roll in a mud puddle they can (they’re pastured 24/7), and there are plenty of trees and some woods for them to seek shelter from the sun under.
They always have water, and sometimes I put large chunks of ice in it. Also have free choice salt and mineral blocks.
I work at a summer camp as a wrangler, on monday we have 3 trail rides, and on t/w/t it varies from 3 to 6. We always have cold water bottles at the barn, and propel packets if we wish to flavor our water.
The horses are tacked up at 6:30am and untacked sometime between 2 and 5pm. They stand tied in a run-in shed with 3 large stalls when they’re not riding kids around on trails. They usually get watered once a day, sometimes more. They deal with the heat very well. Really, I’ve never even seen one breathing heavily. :p Lol, but I get all wet with sweat. Blech.
Hey everyone, I’ve been reading Fugly for years but haven’t commented more than once or twice!
So I’m going to be trailering my two horses from San Diego to Fresno soon, about a 7 hour drive without traffic. Heat in Los Angeles gets in to the 90′s and we might sit in traffic for hours, and once we get in to the central valley, it’ll be over 100 degrees.
What are tips to keep my horses cool? I have a 2H straightload that’s painted red/black (black roof eek). I’m going to open the top doors in the rear, along with the windows of course. My Arab will drink water, but my QH often refuses, he won’t even eat much hay as he’s only been trailered long distance once in his life. Someone mentioned wetting the shavings, but I’m worried that’ll make them slippery and a horrible mess to clean up. Any other suggestions?
Whenever you stop, take a cool, wet sponge to the horses – neck, chest, behind the ears, and between the butt cheeks. You can do that without unloading and it really helps to cool them down!
My grey mare liked to go to one trough and toss her head around in it, then she would paw the water until it was almost empty and she had drenched her front end. There was also a pond where she could have do this, but she preferred one particular trough in full sun for this activity – I think because the water was warmer. It was like her bathing trough. She had lots of water sources available and definitely loved her baths whether self administered or by me.
Here in our area of California we are lucky to have irrigation water. We have sprinklers running all day long and it doesn’t take the horses long to figure out that that is the best way to cool down.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yur8AOL8rMg
Also works for cleaning teeth
And while people might still be reading this…
A woman in DC is being charged with neglect after her dog died. She left it in a car for over an hour in the worst of the heatwave.
Do NOT leave pets in cars. And make sure barn dogs and barn cats also have plenty of water and access to shade. Dogs might benefit from being hosed off or having a bucket of water thrown over them too…if you have a dog that spends most of its time outside consider getting it a kiddy wading pool to cool off in.
Another dog was out loose in the 100+ heat and jumped into the Potomac to escape the park police who were trying to catch it…and was tying up so badly it couldn’t swim. Fortunately, one of the cops went in after it and it’s making a good recovery at the shelter.
(I don’t normally advocate going in water after dogs…they’re usually better able to get out than you are…but kudos to that guy for realizing how much distress it was in and that on this one occasion it was needed).
I have screamed about this topic, tweeted it, etc.
I CANNOT BELIEVE PEOPLE ARE STILL THIS STUPID AND THIS KEEPS HAPPENING!
I don’t know what else to do – so frustrating!
The horses at the barn that I board at are in a well ventilated barn with fans. They get out really early in the morning, a little bit in the day, and at night. But other then that they stay inside in the nice cool air =) I don’t ride even in the mornings because of the heat. I either ride in the indoor or at 8:30 to 9:00 at night in the bigger outdoor =) The spotlights cover the entire arena, and it’s soo beautiful and fun to ride at night. Everyone of the boarders usually comes at night, and the BO rides at night too.
Hey Cathy, I just dropped you an email to resqtb. Please read.