RE: [RC] water on the trail - Susan E. Garlinghouse, DVM
I suspect the answer is a little simpler than toxins or other
bad things in the water. If you’re working hard, most of the blood
supply is routing to muscles, skin, major organs; and relatively less so to the
digestive system. Add a large amount of anything to the stomach, including
a gallon or two of water, and generally, blood will get redirected to deal with
it. But it takes a few minutes, and isn’t necessarily an indication
of the horse being overridden, under conditioned, or any disease process.
Just needs a few minutes to get dealt with.
I do the same thing---if I’m thirsty, and pound down a
bottle of water all at once, I actually feel pretty icky for maybe ten minutes
or so. If the liquid is super-sweet, ice-cold or carbonated, don’t
get me too far from a bucket.<g> If I just take lots of little sips
of cool water, I’m fine, but that option isn’t available to a horse
traveling down the trail in between water stops.
Walk the horse for 5-10 minutes after tanking up, then work at a
moderate pace for ten minutes after that, and everything will probably be just
fine. If you’re bored, you can spend those few minutes thanking
your karma for having a horse that drinks so well on the trail, he needs a
minute to get it put away. Sure beats the alternative.
JMO.
Susan Garlinghouse, DVM
From:
ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Mike Sherrell Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2007 3:08 PM To: Ridecamp (E-mail) Subject: FW: [RC] Teaching rearing
I'm sure everything is in the water. I try to stay away from water
that has drained out of fields. I usually stick to water that I can see is
directly from canals coming down from the Coast Range or the Sierra foothills,
or water that looks like it being pumped from groundwater. In the rainy season
I will let him drink from puddles, although I think there is a significant
chance of contamination from spilled materials. I have been doing this for
quite a few years with no sick horses yet, knock on wood. One advantage to the
species' relatively short lifespan is a comparatively low incidence of cancer.
He would drink at least 5 gallons in the course of a dry Central
Valley summer's day, which would weigh 40 pounds. Couldn't carry it.
I do carry a shower cap, which compresses real small, that I use to
dip him water out of canals he can't approach himself.
We ride among irrigated fields
and he drinks 3, 4, 5 times in a 6 or 7 hour ride. Actually, he seems a little
more sluggish right after drinking.
What is in the water he is drinking? I'd be concerned about irrigation water
containing high nitrates as well as a variety of dissolved salts and
pesticides.
You'd probably do better to carry a folding bucket and some extra water bottles
containing good water and water him with that.
Lynn Kinsky, Santa Ynez, CA
http://www.silcom.com/~lkinsky/
