Certainly a person should know how to use a stethoscope and
become familiar with not only their horse’s heart sounds but also with
their gut sounds and certainly endurance riding is done successfully without a
HR monitor. A HR monitor is however, a very useful tool and I use one on my
horses for most serious conditioning rides and at all endurance rides. I
think the MAIN reason to use a HR monitor is that it can show a problem on the
horizon before the horse shows any other signs. Slower recoveries or a
rise in working heart rates along with inconsistent (bounding heart rates) are
all clues that something isn’t right with your horse. These clues
can show up well before your horse shows signs of lameness or any other
problem.
I have personal experience where horses were showing NO
SIGNS of trouble but their heart rates just weren’t “normal”
for them. In one case a horse was getting ready to tie up; she showed no
signs and had passed the vet check and was raring to go but her rates were high
for her so I held her in the check for extra time to observe her and she tied
up. I was right there with a vet and was able to get her immediate
attention. Without the monitor I would have been out on the trail when
she tied up and she would have had more serious consequences.
In another case, with a different horse, he again passed the
vet check but I noticed on the monitor his heart rate going up and down rather
than steadily decreasing. This was unusual for him so I watched, got out
my stethoscope and double checked the readings and then took him back to the
vet. They couldn’t find anything but I pulled him and two days
later he was gravely ill with a rhino type infection. Finishing the ride
might have stressed him to the point that I would have lost him.
I have other less dramatic examples of getting useful early
information from using the HR monitor but the point is made.
Sometimes the people on this list are very “all or
nothing” about the topics being discussed and I wanted to
suggest that there are many ways to monitor your horse’s health and
condition and you should use whatever you can afford and have access to at the
time.
My philosophy is to use every tool at my disposal to make
sure my horse stays healthy and happy. That includes being alert and
educated, using a stethoscope and using a HR monitor.
Kathleen Ferguson
AERC#717
To create
the mare God spoke to the South Wind:
'I will create from you a being which will be a happiness to the good and a
misfortune to the bad. Happiness shall be on its forehead, bounty on its back
and joy in the possessor.
