I live in hot and humid and I’m a firm believer in sponging. I have
noticed that my mare will get very sweaty when we start riding – whether it’s a
competition, conditioning or fast trail ride. I’ll sponge at the first water
we come to – and I always wipe it off with my hands, it’s not so hard that you
have to get off to do – and from that point on, she’s not nearly as sweaty
looking. It seems that once we get that initial sweat off, she has an easier
time evaporating as she sweats and her attitude certainly stays perkier than
those days where I forget to take my sponge and she has to just stay sweaty.
Rae
From:
ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
Of Paul Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2009 11:02 PM To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [RC] Sponging? Yes or NO?
When
I first started endurance riding, I was told about sponging. Later I read some
stuff and talked to some other riders about it and heard that maybe it doesn't
help as much as we think.
Here
is what I was told: In dry conditions, sponging helps cool the horse through
the evaporative effect..As the water evaporates, it takes the heat with
it. However in humid conditions, it can actually insulate the horse with
a layer of hot water that closes the sweat pores to keep the hot outside water
from coming in? Without removing the hot water, sponging actually hurts rather
than helps the horse cool off. If you add enough cool water, like with a hose,
or buckets, that washes away the hot water and provides a cooling effect.
So under humid conditions, if you just drop a sponge into a bucket, wipe it on
the horse and ride off, you may not be helping your cause.
This
is what some experienced riders told me. So I started sponging less and only
when I could get off and squeegee the hot water off my horse. We have never
noticed the lack of sponging hurting him. In fact he seemed to sweat the same
but it dried off quicker.
Have
there been any studies that examined internal body temps with our style of
sponging horses under humid conditions? Any other input?
Plus...It
really bugs me when riders come up to the water tanks and ignore the signs
about which tanks are for sponging and which are for drinking, and then drop
their nasty sponge in my horses face, and wring it out, in the tank, before they
wet their horse down.. Let's not do that in 2009..ok?
