07/01/2024
Seriously, how about this Texas heat y’all! Dang is it hot out there with several days reaching over 100*F this week alone. So real talk- how can we help our horses not only survive, but thrive in the dead of summer in the South?
#1 Hydration: On average, horses need at least 5 gallons of water per day for body maintenance. This can easily double or triple when they're working hard in hot weather. Bring water from home when traveling, as some horses are picky about unfamiliar-tasting water, or acclimate your horse to water with a scoop of Equine Senior or Omelene 200 in it. This is usually enough to mask different tasting water while on the road. Electrolytes are also a must! I like the powder you can pick up at the feed store to top dress my horses grain. I have also found that the “Horse Lic” buckets make my horses consume much more water each day. (I have no ties with this company- just a product I use here at the place.)
#2 Heat exhaustion: Body temperatures can quickly rise above 104 degrees Fahrenheit when exercising in heat and humidity, particularly if sweat isn't evaporating. Other risk factors for overheating include obesity or poor fitness, heavy muscling or a dark coat. For an overheated horse, find shade, if possible, and repeatedly douse him with TEPID water, using a scraper to remove it immediately. Continue until his temperature drops to 101 degrees Fahrenheit or lower. Again, to emphasize…. DO NOT USE ICE WATER!
#3 Sun protection: Horses with pink around their muzzles or eyes suffer from sunburn (JUST LIKE ME… the ginga ninja!) Human sunscreen that does not contain para-aminobenzoic acid is generally safe for use on horses on small areas of the body. Long-term ultraviolet (UV) ray exposure can predispose horses with pink skin around their eyes to cancer, so get UV-blocking flymasks for these animals. These legit work!
#4 Trailering safety: During travel, horses shift their weight with trailer motion. The energy they expend is almost equal to walking, so an eight-hour trailer ride is as much work as an eight-hour trail ride. Don't expect your horse to arrive at your destination fresh and ready to go; arrive the night before or allow a few hours for recuperation. It is critical to open all vents and windows (with appropriate bars in place), and never park your trailer in the sun for an extended period with horses inside. Another pro tip is to put shavings under your mats to help insulate the horse from heat coming from the road. Occasionally we’ll even put some ice on top of the shavings or in the mangers. It kind of acts like a swamp cooler. We also like to drive at night in the summer as well to make it less stress on our rodeo horses.
#5 A Veterinary Hospital in Turkey actually did a scientific experiment to see if horses prefer certain colored buckets. The study aimed to investigate the preference of horses in terms of different colored buckets. They used red, light green, yellow, green, light blue and turquoise buckets and measured how much water was consumed from each bucket. Their study concluded that significantly more water was consumed from the turquoise bucket and it was also observed that the light toned colors (turquoise and light blue) were preferred to dark ones (green, red and yellow). In light of these results, the researchers suggested the use of turquoise or light blue buckets might encourage horses to drink.
With that- I hope everyone has a fun and successful summer with your horses. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions you have about heat stress.
Alyssa Doering
Equine Surgeon at Cutting Edge Equine
