Cramping and tieing up are two different conditions; one is very
dangerous (and can easily be fatal), the other much less so.
Cramping is a result of fatigue, buildup of waste products in the
muscles, and electrolyte depletion. It normally happens late in the
ride, and although painful, it rarely causes any lasting ill effects.
Tieing up (or azotoria (sp?), or "Monday Morning Disease") is the
result of a rapid buildup of toxins in the muscles, causing
swelling and a loss of blood circulation in the muscle and death of
tissue. It normally happens early in a ride -- before the first vet
check -- and can be deadly. A rich diet and lack of exercise in the
day or two preceding the ride are major contributing factors. That's
why it got the name "Monday Morning Disease;" draft horses would
get it after having Sunday off.
In both cramps and tieing up the horse will not want to move, even at
a walk. Tied-up muscles will be hard and swollen; the horse may also
have heavy, lathered sweat. A sure sign is dark, wine or coffee
colored urine.
Cramps need not be a serious problem. Slowly walking the horse may
be all that is needed to bring relief.
Kahlil once cramped when we stopped to drink at 90 miles into a 100
mile ride. I walked out the cramp, and we went on not only to finish
but to get Best Condition! Another time, I pulled Ali Ben at 45
miles into a 50. The differences were: Kahlil and I had completed
over 5,000 miles together at the time of his cramping, and I knew the
remaining ten miles had no significant hills and were all easily
accessible to a horse trailer -- if he did cramp again I would have
no trouble getting a trailer to him. I also knew, because it was at
90 miles and Kahlil showed no swelling or sweating, that what he had
was a simple muscle cramp and not tieing up. In Ali Ben's case, he
hadn't shown any real signs of distress but was getting very tired,
and when I crossed a road (with a spotter) at 45 miles I knew the
remaining five miles were in deep woods with some tough climbs. If I
took him in there and he ran out of gas, I wouldn't be able to get a
trailer to him. So I told the spotter I was pulling and asked him to
get word back to camp to send my trailer.
At one time it was widely believed that a tied up horse should not be
moved at all. My opinion today is that it can actually be beneficial
to walk the horse -- SLOWLY -- when he is tied up, at least until you
get him to a vet. A tied up horse should always have veterinary
treatment just as soon as possible!
The best way to avoid tieing up is proper diet and warming up. A
horse should have less grain (or any concentrated feed) on days that
he does not exercise. Especially, the day before a ride. A short
workout the afternoon before the ride is also very helpful. The
morning of the ride, warm up slowly and thoroughly, starting at a
walk and increasing to at least a trot before the ride starts. This
is even more important if your horse fights you in the early miles;
even if you hold him back, his fighting may be enough strain to tie
him up. A thorough warmup will help prevent this.
Only once did Kalhil tie up on an endurance ride. I was in
California. I had been unable to get grass hay on the road, and had
fed alfalfa (which Kahlil was not used to). Kahlil was being kept
in a small paddock, and I was working in Auburn and unable to ride
him during the week before the ride. I had planned to get to the
ride early Friday and give him a workout, but had two flat tires on
the way and didn't arrive until after dark.
I did a thorough warmup, but it wasn't enough. There was a trot-by
check at about 7 miles. Coming up the hill to the check, Kahlil's
gait didn't feel right -- there were several of us together so I
called to the vets, "Look at my horse, he doesn't feel right." They
looked, and waved me on. About a hundred yards down the trail we
started uphill again; Kahlil put on the brakes and locked up. I
slowly walked him back to the vets (which took some doing, he didn't
want to walk), where he was successfully treated. He had all the
classic symptoms at this point -- hard, swollen muscles, heavy
lathered sweat, and dark wine-colored urine.
Kahlil was in the prime of his condition for this ride, he had just
won a major 100 mile ride, but the change in diet and lack of
exercise nailed him.
One point I want to make with this story is how suddenly a tie-up
occurs. One moment you're loping along happy as a clam, the next
moment -- disaster!
So, prevention is the best defense -- proper diet and warming up.
Next, be alert to the possibilities. If your horses gait suddenly
gets short and choppy, if he stops and doesn't want to start again,
if he's sweating more heavily than he should -- get off and check!
Catching it quickly and doing the right thing can save his life.
If at all possible, do not let a tied-up horse get down. It can be
almost impossible for him to rise again under his own power. If he
does get down, get as many people as you can to help get him up
again. Sometimes it takes ropes under the horse's body to actually
lift him to his feet.
If a vet is nearby, don't move the horse until the vet arrives, then
follow his advice. If there is no vet nearby, I recommend walking
the horse very slowly -- I think it helps to keep at least a little
circulation going. It may be difficult, the horse will not want to
move, and when he does it will be with obvious pain.
With proper diet and pacing, you can enjoy many rides and never
experience a tie-up. If it does happen, don't panic -- if you handle
it right the chances are good that your horse will make a full
recovery.
--Joe Long Rainbow Connection Arabians PC/LAN Manager home of Kahlil Khai Calhoun Community College AERC Hall of Fame horse jlong@hiwaay.net 11,475 miles completed