Ridecamp: [RC] Alpine Ride--Wisdom gained

I'm glad to hear that your horse recovered and I'm not writing to personally
agree or disagree on any point, but I would like to hear from some of our
vets or others-who-might-know on the pros and cons of withholding hay for
long journeys.

Becky Huffman, Cleburne, Texas
www.TheOriginalSeries.com
www.BlueArabianHorseCatalog.org

"Good and Ill have not changed since yesteryear; nor are they one thing
among Elves and Dwarves and another among Men. "
-Aragorn, son of Arathorn


----- Original Message ----- >
> Kay Johnston als2175@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > So many wonderful concerned folks e-mailed me after my post about my red
> horse's bowel obstruction experience at the NW Alpine Ride, I thought it
> more efficient to use Ride Camp to pass on  what I learned:  Remembering
> that Fall brings cooler weather, dry grass and decreased equine urge to
> drink, that 1 in 10 horses has colic  during their lifetimes, that 1 in
100
> requires surgery,  Fall is often the time when colic strikes more
> frequently.  (While at the vet hospital, several horses came in that
> weekend who required surgery for colic.)
>
> With that in mind, I will never feed hay in the trailer going to rides,
> often many miles away, again.  (Streeter has always eaten at least one bag
> of grass hay enroute.  We always stop every 3-4 hrs.to walk the horses and
> offer water/mash, but it apparently didn't work this time.  He had had a
> brief episode of colic not requiring treatment, first time ever, 1 1/2
> weeks before the ride, so I think that constipation was beginning then. .
>
> 2:  I will be adding around 30 cc loose salt daily to his mash from now
on,
> to encourage water intake.
>
> 3.  Streeter's pulses were 10-15 points higher than his usual low rate on
> the first  3 loops of the ride.  I thought we were perhaps going too fast,
> so I slowed way down on the last loop and let him eat grass every 100 or
so
> yards.  He was a little less enthusiastic about eating at the 3rd vet
check
> and his gut sounds were down a bit, but nothing to concern the vet. or me,
> for that matter.  I thought he seemed tired, which is why I slowed way
down
> the last loop.  He would have chosen to go on faster, but we do have the??
> bigger brain, I am told, than horses.
>
> 3rd thought:  I am bringing a stethescope with me on rides.  I am going to
> get very familiar with my horse's gut sounds, especially during exercise,
> so that I will know when something subtle is amiss.  These guys try so
hard
> for us that their attitude may not match their physical status.
>
> 4:  I am going to carefully moniter my horse's output--poop, that's
> right.  Obstructed/constipated poop cannot be mashed by your
> foot.  Hydrated poop is easily munched, not rocket science.  We all know
> what concentrated urine looks like, which he didn't have until the end of
> the ride.
>
> Bottom line:  You may disagree with the things I have written, but one
> thing I don't think anyone would question---the only true moniter of your
> horse's condition is you, the rider, and sometimes the signs of trouble
are
> so subtle that it's not our wonderful, experienced vets who pick it up, it
> is us riders..
>
> So these are my lessons learned, thankfully now with a horse who is eating
> and pooping with great regularity.
>
> Kay
> ***************************************




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