Here are some rules that will help you make sure your horse stays healthy and happy in all conditions
1. A horse should have a constant access to a clean supply of fresh water at all times.
An adult horse’s body is about 65/70% water and a lack of water can lead to dehydration. This means your horse could lead to compaction colic, all their cells will not work as well and their performance will change as they will not be hydrated.
2. Do not give a very hot horse a large drink straight after work.
A horse needs to cool down as if you let the horse take a large drink when he is hot his system will not be able to take it in and it can dead to metabolic problems. Slowly let them take small sips.
3. Ensure all water containers are kept very clean.
You don’t want to discourage a horse from drinking, as we said above their body is made up of 65/70% water. So horse are notoriously fussy and is the water is stale and ‘sour’ they will not drink the water.
4. If your are using buckets to water your horse, you must change the water at least twice a day.
When water is left to stand it has a chemical reaction with produces ammonia, which will discourage a horse from drinking the water.
5. Drinking containers should be large enough for a horse to get his muzzle in comfortably.
Horses need to be able to get the muzzle and his whiskers in the container, so that he feels safe to drink so that he doesn’t get dehydrated.
6. If traveling to a competition it is sensible to take your own water.
It is always a great idea to have some with you to use at a competition or training sessions. But water does taste differently in different areas of the country and some horses will not drink water in other places. As we said above this can lead to dehydration and colic.
7. Try and be aware of how much water your horse is drinking per day.
If you can use containers of bucks as some point. This will also if you have automatic waters with monitors on help you get an idea of what your horse drinks in a day. This will change at different times of year, depending on the weather. But, if you can get an idea of what is normal this will allow you to get a better feeling when your horse is under the weather.
If you have enjoyed reading this please feel free to follow the blog and like our Facebook page Sam Goss Coaching where you can sign up with your email address and we can keep you up to date with what we are covering.
Thank you.