JULY 2022 THE RIDER /27 ^Between The Ears^ Horses and Hot Weather


here. Are you preparing the horse to compete in hot tem- peratures? If so then condi- tioning horses to work in those conditions must be down with caution and care. If you are not conditioning the horse to compete in heat, then it’s best to ride before 10am. The question of what temperature is too hot, de- pends on a few considera- tions. Did the temperature rise 10C in a short span of time? What is the relative humidity level? Is the horse dark or light in colour, healthy, overweight etc. Common sense should pre- vail.


To use or not to use


By Ellie Ross. The amount of misin-


formation about cooling horses, dogs etc., is abun- dant and continues to prove to be a hot topic. As one would expect, the very young, the old, the weak, the ill are all more suscepti- ble. Asthma, Cushings, Laminitis,


overweight


horses and colic prone horses also prove to be un- able to cope as well. So what would be the


best practices for dealing with horses and the heat? The best answers I could find was to turn to Scientist Dr. David Marlin , who is considered a leading expert on this topic and his re- search includes but is not limited to the following; • 25 years working on equine


thermoregulation


and 20 plus scientific papers on equine thermoregulation. • Working with endurance horses in the Gulf. • Advising the racing indus- try on the prevention and


management of heat stroke. • Working on the 1996 At- lanta, 2004 Athens, 2008 Beijing,


2020 Tokyo


Olympic Games and 2018 Tryon World Equestrian Games. • Author of the FEI Guide- lines for National Federa- tions on the management of horses in thermally chal- lenging conditions. The


question of


turnout -What is better? Keeping them inside or out- side? A brick barn with ade- quate or better ventilation may prove to be more com- fortable than turning horses out in the heat. Horses that are out, that have access to trees or open sided con- structed shelters, may be better off out but we need to take into consideration some other factors. If your horse is closer to, or at the bottom of the ‘totem pole’, then your horse may not have ac- cess to the much needed outdoor shelter. To ride or not to ride?


sheets on horses in heat is another common question and debate. Dr. Marlin studied this


using a black sphere. The re- sults were quite interesting and should be taken into consideration when making decisions about using sheets on horses in hot weather. A Cotton Sheet that


was white and dry resulted in a drop of 2-3 degrees cel- sius from the naked sphere (which was black), while the dry black cotton in- creased the temperature by 2-4°C. Cotton sheets that were


either black or white but wet, dropped the tempera- ture in the first twenty min- utes but after 60 minutes, the wet white sheet, proved to be more effective than the wet black sheet, resulting in 10°C cooler. The evapora- tion of water was the key el- ement


in reducing


temperature. Dr Marlin recom-


A few variables to consider mends that it is more effec-


tive to not use a sheet at all if you can wet down the horse(s) at least every cou- ple of hours. If a sheet must be used then it is recom- mended to wet the sheet at least every 60-90 minutes. When discussing wet


blankets, the amount of wet being referred to is - soaking wet.


Drinking - Is it danger-


ous to give ice cold water to hot horses to drink? Dr. Marlin states that It is not dangerous but it is not con- sidered comfortable to the horse as they show a prefer-


ence to ‘room temperature water. As a result, offering cold water could reduce the amount the horse consumes. Cold water stimulates more rapid gastric emptying and there does not appear to be any evidence that is danger- ous. An old myth that seems to continue to linger among the horse world is to limit the intake of water when the horse is hot. Horses do not drop dead or colic from drinking water when they are hot. It has been studied extensively and horses should be permitted to


drink. It should also be noted that untreated water should be offered at all times but horses should have sodium chloride added to the diet. Loose livestock salt free access is ideal but if adding salt to the diet, try to keep it consistent and not loading up due to an in- creased work load that day. Any horse that has been fed electrolytes should have un- limited access to water. What does heatstroke


in horses look like? • Lethargy • Panting • Flared Nostrils • Increased Rectal Tempera- ture • Decreased Appetite and Thirst • Dark Urine • Reduced Urination • Reduced Performance • Dark Mucous Membranes • Muscle Spasms • The Thumps (synchronous diaphragmatic flutter) • Abnormal Heart Rhythm • Slow recovery following exercise • Ataxia ( a horse that is un- steady on its feet)


What is the best way to


cool a horse down? Hosing them off and not scraping the water has been scientifi- cally proven to be the most effective method of cooling off horses. If a hose is not available,


then dumping


buckets of water over them is recommended. If you scrape the water off, you have significantly reduced the cooling benefits. By not scraping the water, the horse does not have to sweat as much to cool off, thus re- ducing the level of dehydra- tion.


What body tempera-


ture is a concern? A horse with a rectal temp of 41 will look hot, have veins pro- truding, have agitated be- havior, flared nostrils etc. One must give consideration to the combination of how high and how long the tem- perature stays there. 41.5-42 is concerning. It is ex- tremely important to note that -Rectal temp lags be- hind the total body temp. So if you take a horse’s temper- ature Immediately following their race etc., you are read- ing a temperature that is likely to rise in 5-10mins, since rectal lags.


temperature Rapid cooling - The


longer the body endures an elevated temperature, the more risk of permanent in- jury or death. Lots of horse folks out there are misin- formed thinking that rapid cooling is bad. If one were to weigh out the risks, the risk of death from prolonged elevated temperature is con- siderably higher. Actually, immediate cold water im- mersion is the standard of care. Ice water of 1-3°C is most effective. Alcohol to reduce high


body temperature- Dr. Mar- lin recommends this only be used in the absence the abil- ity to use water for cooling. Further affects of heat-


stroke can be seen in the days following so it is im- portant to continue to moni- tor the horse, even though the body temperature has re- turned to normal. It is time to let go of all


the myths surrounding this topic and take a leap of faith in the science that has been proven to work.


By Anne Gage for The Rider July 2022


Confident Horsemanship: Hypnosis for Horse Riders? How It Can Help You If anxiety affects any your per-


formance or enjoyment of riding, hypnosis can be the answer. Whether you’re suffering from


a lack of confidence generally, around specific activities like com- peting, trail riding or jumping, or feeling anxious after a fall or injury, you’ve probably already realised that positive thinking isn’t enough. This famous quote is attributed


to Sigmund Freud - “The human mind is like an iceberg; it floats with one-seventh of its bulk above water”. This is because what you see, think, feel and do is just the tip of what is going on in your mind. The rest is going on below the sur- face of your consciousness in your unconscious mind. Your unconscious stores the


memories and emotions - both good and bad - connected to your experi- ences. Your brain refers to these past experiences in every aspect of your day, without you even knowing about it. In one sense, this is helpful be-


cause it means that once you’ve learned how to do something, you don’t waste time or energy con- sciously remembering how to do it. You just do it without thinking. Rou-


Ride More, Worry Less And Enjoy Every Ride! Let’s get you feeling more confident today!


519-940-6050 • anne@confidenthorsemanship.com www.confidenthorsemanship.com


tine things like brushing your teeth or tying your shoe laces. Or how to post the trot. Our brain likes to keep things


simple for us. It also likes to keep us safe. So your unconscious mind sets off alarm bells anytime it thinks you might be putting yourself in danger. That’s great if you’re facing a bear in the woods. Not so great when you want to do well at a horse show or enjoy hacking out with your friends. It’s the night before the horse


show or that planned trail ride, and you can’t sleep because your mind is full of negative thoughts. All you can do is worry about what could possi- bly go wrong. Things like forgetting your course or test, falling off or some other nightmare situation. By doing this, you’re actually hypnotis-


ing yourself into a negative mindset and feeling anxious. Having a negative mindset and


feeling anxious means things are more likely to go wrong. In that state, you’re unable to think clearly, make good decisions or ride at your best. That cycle of negative thoughts creating negative experiences rein- forces to you (and your unconscious mind) that what you’re doing isn’t fun - it’s scary or even dangerous. Hypnosis isn’t magic. It’s


something we all do many times every day. Being engrossed in a movie or book. Driving to work (and not remembering most of the drive). Hypnosis bypass your conscious logical mind to work directly with your unconscious. When you have a session with


a hypnotist, it’s a collaboration. You are al- ways in control. And with the hypnotist’s guidance, you can release negative emotions and beliefs from passed events, reset your thought patterns, change negative language, and retrain your mind and body to respond to stress in a different way. Hypnosis can help riders to… • get back in the saddle with confidence after a bad fall or accident • resolve fears of riding on trails • Eliminate performance nerves • Improve focus at competitions • deal with bereavement after losing your horse • stop suffering with low confidence or panic attacks


Anne Gage Confident Horsemanship


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