5 Ways To Hydrate Your Horse This Summer
Keeping your horse hydrated during the summer months is obviously essential from a welfare and health perspective. We are pleased to share five easy ways to see to the importance of hydration for horses in Summer. This goes beyond keeping your horse cool this summer, so we hope you’ll enjoy our 5 Ways To Hydrate Your Horse This Summer blogpost.
Horses, like humans, need to stay hydrated to maintain their overall health and well-being. Hydration is essential during the summer months when the weather is hot. Horses can sweat significantly when active or exposed to high temperatures to regulate their body temperature, losing fluids and a broader spectrum of electrolytes than you might think.
A dehydrated horse can manifest itself in several ways. Signs of dehydration include a decrease in performance, muscle cramps, impaired digestion, and even heat stroke and colic. Therefore, horse owners must take the necessary steps to ensure their equine friends stay adequately hydrated and keep their horses cool. To check hydration in your horse, the capillary refill time (press on your horse’s gums and, in a hydrated horse, the colour returns in 1-2 seconds) is better than the skin pinch test because the latter also depends on elastin and collagen which change with age.
1. Provide Fresh Water
The most obvious way to hydrate your horse during the summer is to provide ample fresh, clean water. Horses can drink up to 10 gallons of water daily, even more during hot weather or intense exercise. Keep your horse hydrated by ensuring your horse has access to a clean water source at all times. Check the water trough or bucket regularly, scrub it clean, and refill it with fresh water. With your horse drinking as much as it will do, there should be no need to mention that stagnant water provides an environment conducive to bacterial growth.
Remember that horses may be reluctant to drink warm water and prefer cool water, so consider using an insulated water bucket or putting drinking water in a shaded area to keep the water cooler. Monitoring your horse’s water intake throughout the day is essential to ensure they are staying hydrated. Add a dash of apple juice to entice your horse to drink plenty of water.
2. Use Electrolytes
Ensuring your horse has the necessary electrolyte requirements is vital in hot weather. You may have read that minerals in sweat are sodium, potassium and chlorine. In reality the sweat of your horse will contain every single electrolyte in its feed that was absorbed into its body, but obviously some in greater quantity than others. That means that your horse needs a proper broad spectrum replenishment and many horse owners use Aloeride as well as a good salt lick. The saying you can take a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink it, isn’t necessarily true – you can also encourage your horse to drink more water by adding salts to their diet.
Electrolyte imbalances are common in horses that sweat excessively, and they can lead to decreased thirst and further dehydration. Salt can be added to your horse’s feed or supplied as a salt lick in their stable or paddock. The take-home message is twofold: 1) horses that are fed sufficient of a broad electrolyte base will withstand depletion by sweating 2) horses that are fed a sufficient broad electrolyte base have a good osmotic reserve to limit the water loss.
3. Soak Hay
In addition to providing fresh water, consider soaking your horse’s hay in cold water or feeding haylage with water. Soaked hay is an excellent source of hydration for horses, as it contains a high water percentage, giving them extra water and increasing their hydration levels. Soaking the hay for a few hours before feeding it to your horse can help increase their water intake and keep them hydrated.
Another positive consequence of soaking hay is that it reduces the level of water-soluble carbohydrates which is great for decreasing insulin response in metabolically normal horses as well as in ponies with insulin dysregulation. You don’t soak for 9-16 hours (e.g. avoid mold and bacteria) and you always soak in more water than you think it needs. Katy Watts‘ study, conducted at Dairy One Forage lab by their staff, soaked 50 grams of hay in 4 liters of water: a significant amount of sugar was leached out in just 30 minutes.
4. Mist & Mash
Another option is providing your horse with a misting system or water spray. This can be particularly beneficial during hot summer days, as the mist or spray can help cool down your horse and encourage them to drink more water. Choose a gentle mist or spray setting that won’t startle or stress your horse. Adding cool water to your horse’s meals to turn them into sloppy mashes will help keep your horse hydrated during the hot summer months.
5. Make Horse Ice Lollies
The summer heat can be particularly tough on young or veteran horses, so ensure they have ample access to water and encourage them to drink by creating horse ice lollies! Thinly slice apples and pears, add a few blackberries and freeze in plastic containers. Fill the containers with water and pop them in the freezer. Remove the containers from the freezer, pop them in a bucket of water or shallow feed bowl, and watch your horse slosh and play, drinking additional water and having fun!
