Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

My experience with horses that like to paw is the very next thing they do is lay down in the water for a roll.  It happened to a woman riding ahead of us at the Cooley Ranch ride a couple years ago.  She was soaked, her saddle and packs were soaked but luckily for her horse she got up unhurt and laughing.

 

Please be extremely careful not to let your horse paw at any troughs, especially at old bath tub types.  Years ago in Pensacola, Florida I had a friend with a quarter horse that liked to splash water on himself when he was hot in the "pasture" (read sand lot).  The "trough" was an old bath tub and when he went to put his leg in he hit his knee on the edge resulting in a cut that went clear through to the joint capsule.  The horse healed, eventually, but the knee was twice its normal size and he was never sound again. It may seem like a good idea to recycle old bath tubs as troughs, but after seeing this accident first hand I'll never do it.  Also, beware of spigot handles in your pastures.  There was a lovely National Show Horse with a severe cut between his front leg and body as a result of trying to escape the attack of another horse by rearing up over the spigot (which was about 3 feet above ground) next to the trough.  When I first saw the wound I thought for sure the horse would have to be put down.

Sorry if I'm off subject, but I felt people should know.

Becky