06/26/2024
With the heat waves torturing everyone and their pets, many horses are not keeping up with their fluid requirements. By consuming less than their required amount of fluids, horses become at risk of colic, poor organ function, and poor performance. Everyone has heard the phrase “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink,” but there are ways to encourage horses to drink more on their own.
A 1,000lb horse should consume 8–10 gallons of water per day to keep up with baseline fluid requirements. The amount of water increases with heat, travel, lactation, performance, and more. In those cases, just leaving buckets of plain water out for the horse may not be enough to prevent disaster.
-Ensure all water is fresh and clean.
-Regularly deep-clean troughs, buckets, and automatic waterers. Any water leftover in travel tanks should also be replaced before each new trip to ensure freshness. If feasible, keep water sources out of sunlight to prevent algae growth.
-Provide temperature-controlled water when possible.
-Horses prefer to consume water kept between 45°F and 65°F
-Bring water from home.
-Horses can taste the differences in water from new locations. When traveling, bring some water from home to provide a familiar taste to encourage drinking.
-Offer flavored water.
-Some horses will more readily drink flavored water. Some tried-and-true flavors are molasses, orange Gatorade, cherry Kool Aid, and senior feed soaked. If providing flavored water, ensure a plain bucket of water is always also available.
-Provide salt.
-Sodium helps stimulate thirst. Loose table salt can be offered free choice in a separate dish for horses. Many horses are unable to properly consume enough salt from a salt lick; therefore, providing loose salt is a better option. Up to 2 oz. can also be topdressed on the horse’s feed to encourage salt intake
-Offer electrolytes.
-Choose an electrolyte mix specifically formulated to mimic the composition of equine sweat. Unbalanced electrolytes can cause major issues with mineral imbalances and even delay exercise recovery. Ensure the electrolyte chosen does not contain sugar as the first ingredient, as it will be unlikely to provide high enough electrolyte levels.
-Use different-colored water buckets.
-In one study, horses were evaluated based on the amount of water they consumed from different colored water buckets. It was noted that horses preferred to drink water out of the turquoise bucket, no matter the location of the bucket. The next preferred colors were as follows: light blue, light green, green, yellow, and red. Horses much prefer blues, especially in light shades.
Study referenced: https://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0719-81322020000200049 #:~:text=It%20can%20be%20concluded%20that,green%2C%20yellow%2C%20and%20red.
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