# Horses Drinking Water After Hard Work?



## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

What I have read recently is give the horse as much water, cold or not, as he wants. He will not colic.


----------



## With Grace (Oct 20, 2011)

How interesting, I too have heard that if they are warm and sweaty, to wait until they cool to give water. Will be interested to hear what others say.


----------



## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

I've also heard that but my Dad has always told me that it was a load of horse poo. There is actually a much bigger risk for colic if you _withhold_ water from an already dehydrated horse...that can cause an impaction if they eat much of anything before they drink an adequate amount of water.

I've used horses for hard work pretty much my entire life. I spend each summer on a horse for the majority of the day in 100+ heat...and it is very seldom spent at a walk. I give my horses as much water as they want at every opportunity because we may be out working for 8+ hours. Not exactly healthy to refuse a horse the chance to drink until he's cooled out, which in our temps, might not happen until midnight or later.

I've never had a horse colic from too much water of any temp, regardless of how hot they were.


----------



## goingnowhere1 (Jan 22, 2012)

At my barn, it's physically impossible to give horse cold water unless you have a bucket and want to prepare it special. They have (room temperature) water in their stall or in the pasture so they can get grass, hay, and water whenever they need it.


----------



## Brighteyes (Mar 8, 2009)

Absolute shenanigans! If a horse wants to drink, it's because he needs it. Never deny a horse water. I've offered my horse water after galloping the last couple miles of a 35 mile day. She's drunk a whole bucket immediately after. No colic. It's dangerous to withhold water from a thirsty horse, and all the endurance riders I know say the same. Drinking will cool a horse from the inside out and helps their respiration return to normal faster as well.


----------



## DancingArabian (Jul 15, 2011)

After a horse race, the horses are hand walked until they cool down and are offered water every few minutes during the hand walking. I figure if something is safe enough for a million dollar racehorse it should be okay for my horse.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Copperhead (Jun 27, 2012)

If I'm training or just simply riding, theres really not a chance to stop for a drink. They are cooled off before I get off them though so by the time they are kicked out to pasture or put back in their stall, they are ok for water whether the myth is true or not. I let them drink on trail rides though, and if I'm in the arena with the huge water barrel, I stop to offer a sip.

I used to work as a polo groom though and many people would hose down SWELTERING HOT horses that were still heaving for breath and dripping sweat, fresh off the polo field. I always heard this was a good way to tie a horse up, but out of all the horses I saw in multiple polo matches and practices, none of them did. Is it also a myth to wait to hose the horse off until its cool? Again, I never saw any of them react badly to it. The first time I saw it I almost fell over, but I'm guessing I've seen at least 200 horses who were hosed off while still HOT with no bad reaction.

I'm too chicken to do it to my horse for fear of a bad reaction.


----------



## DancingArabian (Jul 15, 2011)

Copperhead said:


> If I'm training or just simply riding, theres really not a chance to stop for a drink. They are cooled off before I get off them though so by the time they are kicked out to pasture or put back in their stall, they are ok for water whether the myth is true or not. I let them drink on trail rides though, and if I'm in the arena with the huge water barrel, I stop to offer a sip.
> 
> I used to work as a polo groom though and many people would hose down SWELTERING HOT horses that were still heaving for breath and dripping sweat, fresh off the polo field. I always heard this was a good way to tie a horse up, but out of all the horses I saw in multiple polo matches and practices, none of them did. Is it also a myth to wait to hose the horse off until its cool? Again, I never saw any of them react badly to it. The first time I saw it I almost fell over, but I'm guessing I've seen at least 200 horses who were hosed off while still HOT with no bad reaction.
> 
> I'm too chicken to do it to my horse for fear of a bad reaction.



I work at the racetrack (steeplechase) every Spring and Fall, so that is what I'm basing this off of.

After the races, the horses are untacked (right on the field) and walked back to the stalls. If the temperatures are high, they are hosed off right on the track (it's all grass) before walking to the stall area. They're handwalked for about 30-45 minutes -they're HEAVING - every few minutes (less than that really, there's buckets of water every 10 feet) the handler deliberately stops and offers the horse water. If the horse motions towards the water bucket, they're allowed to drink. Mind you, they're still heaving from the race. They're hosed off at least once during this handwalking session, sometimes more than once if the temps are high.

I don't even know how many horses I've seen at the track. 6-12 horses per race, 7 races per day. 42-84 horses per day. I've never seen one tie up from being cold hosed while still heaving from a race. I've never seen one have any issues taking in water.

As for eating, I won't let a horse eat until he's cooled down, but I don't know if that's superstition or not.


----------



## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

See? Told ya Almond Joy. Listen to the old gal, she knows her poop:wink:!


----------



## With Grace (Oct 20, 2011)

DancingArabian said:


> I work at the racetrack (steeplechase) every Spring and Fall, so that is what I'm basing this off of.
> 
> After the races, the horses are untacked (right on the field) and walked back to the stalls. If the temperatures are high, they are hosed off right on the track (it's all grass) before walking to the stall area. They're handwalked for about 30-45 minutes -they're HEAVING - every few minutes (less than that really, there's buckets of water every 10 feet) the handler deliberately stops and offers the horse water. If the horse motions towards the water bucket, they're allowed to drink. Mind you, they're still heaving from the race. They're hosed off at least once during this handwalking session, sometimes more than once if the temps are high.
> 
> ...


wow this sounds intense, but super interesting!


----------



## Copperhead (Jun 27, 2012)

We had a polo horse who had a genetic disorder or something...he couldn't sweat. Thats right! A heavily used polo horse, in the state of Georgia, who couldn't sweat. He would be hosed off the very second he came off the field and the hose was kept on him for a while. Then he'd be hosed off some more after a bit. Poor fella. 

Kind of off topic but I thought I'd share! :lol:

Looks like there are a lot of myths that are being debunked lately with the cooling of a horse!


----------



## Sharpie (May 24, 2009)

If I wanted to withhold water from my overheated sweaty horse, he'd have to wait until November to get a drink considering he's sweaty just standing in the barn the past few days (it's been >100F). I've yet to see anyone who uses their horses hard riding fences, endurance, or all day trail riding keep their horses from water. I figure it's just like me- maybe I shouldn't down an icy bucketful all at once after a run, but reasonable amounts while I am hot and while I cool down prevent dehydration and all the issues that WILL cause.


----------



## Brighteyes (Mar 8, 2009)

It's perfectly fine to wash off a horse right after exercise. Guess how endurance riders cool their horses right after getting in? We strip the tack and dump cold water on them immediately! Right inside the finish line. Ice water, sometimes. 

It does _not_ cause tying up. Tying up is a lot more complex than that. :wink: You can make a horse sore easily after exercise and the cold water will make the already tired muscle tighten, but causing legit azoturia is actually pretty hard.


----------



## Allison Finch (Oct 21, 2009)

Event riders are masters of cooling off a hot heaving horse. They have a very small time window to get the horse's vitals down of the horse is eliminated. We use ICE and water inside and out. 

If you don't give water during the cooling process, it will be very difficult to get the core temperature down.


----------



## DancingArabian (Jul 15, 2011)

With Grace said:


> wow this sounds intense, but super interesting!


The $200 per day is also awesome!

Steeplechase horses are no joke. They're galloping up to three miles with as many as 22 jumps.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

After any workout, when I go to turn Sky out he gulps down a LOT of water. He needs it, and he has never ever coliced *knock on wood*


----------

