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RE: [RC] Drinking out of a Water tank - Mcgann, BarbaraThis possibility never occured to us, until we experienced it (not directly, maybe witnessed is a better word). On our way from Idaho to the Klickitat ride, there are a couple of rest stops that have horse facilities - an area to park your truck/trailer, an enclosed turnout area with lush grass. There is one on the westbound lanes and also one on the eastbound. I was driving along spacing out the way you do when driving long distances, and woke up and realized that I had just passed the exit for the rest area westbound. We went to the next exit, turned around and went back to the stop on the east side. When we unloaded, we noticed that the fence for the enclosed turnout was down, so the horses ended up tied to the trailer all night. The next day, we got underway again, (after first going back east 10 miles to the next exit so we could cross over and go west). The whole time, I am being kidded about what an idiot I was to miss the westbound rest area, and how inconvenient it was to go back and then not even be able to turn the horses out. At the ride, though, some friends pulled in and parked next to us. Before they even got the horse out of the trailer, we could all see that he was violently ill. Long story short - they HAD stopped at the westbound rest area, the fences were up, they turned the horse out in the grass. The vets all agreed that he was suffering some type of poisoning. The horse was treated and ended up OK. Undoubtedly, the highway crew thinking they're going to get the grass to grow better had treated it with weed-killer. In hindsight, we thought the grass in our rest area looked different, but not enough to alarm us. There were no signs indicating that it had been sprayed recently. Since then, despite the temptation, our horses eat the feed we bring from home except the day of the ride when we will let them graze along the trail. I suppose that, too, is a risk, but the chances are less that the desert and mountain trails have been sprayed. Barb McGann -----Original Message----- From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]On Behalf Of Karen Sent: Monday, June 21, 2004 12:50 PM To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [RC] Drinking out of a Water tank One place that I definitely don't let my horses drink from puddles from is the local fairgrounds. They regularly spray Roundup and other chemicals on the grounds including the parking areas and I don't trust that the water is going to be safe and clean. I have been on rides where farmers have told us not to let our horses drink because the fields were just recently sprayed and the runoff is toxic to livestock. (nice to know we're eating food produced in those fields, eh?) So, unless I know that the puddle is safe (away from where a human could have done something to it) I am very careful about where they drink. I won't even let them drink from puddles up and down my street because I know that Roundup is sprayed frequently to get the puncture vines and other weeds. I've also learned to be very careful about where I let my horses graze at during rides. I know of one horse that went to a clinic and it turned out to have fiddleneck poisoning. The horse ate it while grazing on grass at the ride. Karen in NV ============================================================ And remember, an arab's fourth gait is the spook! ~ Jeanie Miller ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================ ===========================================================REAL endurance is your water freezing IN the cantle bags! ~ Heidi Sowards ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ===========================================================
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