# Probably a dumb question, but here goes anyway



## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

Of course it'll bother a horse the same way it does humans. Higher elevations mean less oxygen for all air breathing creatures.

There's no real way to prepare anyone for lower oxygen levels. Generally, they'll get used to it on their own.

How high are you talking? A group of us flew from MD to WY and rode in the Grand Tetons, which are 8,000 ft. above sea level. The ranch was at 6,000 ft. above sea level. 

The area in which we lived was barely above sea level, so riding/vacationing at that elevation caused some light headedness and a few headaches the first day or two. Other than that, everyone was fine.


----------



## ridesapaintedpony (Apr 14, 2009)

It basically was a general question. My friend lives near a mountain that is 2500 ft. and he wanted to ride up there but we wondered about the elevation. He had recently hiked up there and experienced shortness of breath and was wondering if it affected horses the same way.

Thank you.


----------



## payette (Jun 3, 2010)

For that elevation, I'd just reccomend taking it slow and easy. The climb might contribute to the shortness of breath factor as much as the change in elevation does.


----------



## payette (Jun 3, 2010)

Haha! love your signature!^^^


----------



## MN Tigerstripes (Feb 20, 2009)

Yes it affects them the same way. We took our horses to the MT mountains a couple of years ago and they struggled a bit with the elevation. Especially when we went up the mountains further in the course of a couple of trail rides. We just took it easy and paid attention to how the horses were handling it. If they needed a break, we dismounted (in a safe area) and relaxed for a bit. 

As for prep work. I don't know if this helped a lot, but we just tried to have them in as good as condition as possible. We also did a lot of riding in the lake. 

Another point? Elevation makes alcohol effect you MUCH more quickly. I'm talking if you can drink 5 beers and be "ok" you'll be drinking 3 and sh*tcanned. So if you are old enough to drink, and are camping keep that in mind.


----------



## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

Yeah MN, I hear ya about the alcohol/elevation connection. It made cheap drunks out of all of us! :lol:

The place where we stayed had free beer and wine, but if you wanted hard liquor you had to bring it with you. They provided the mixers, but not the booze.

I had a couple of vodka drinks that first night there, and got totally hammered.


----------



## MN Tigerstripes (Feb 20, 2009)

Yeah, after that first night we were ALOT more careful. Then we met the cowboys......


----------



## Delfina (Feb 12, 2010)

I moved from sea level (literally, we were on the water) to 5,000 feet above sea level. Not only should you watch your alcohol intake, but you'll need way more water than usual as well and even more if you go into a really dry climate. I ended up dehydrated with an IV twice before I finally adjusted. 

Sad part is after a couple months, the cheap drunk effect goes away but it is quite fun watching the folks who come to visit!


----------



## ridesapaintedpony (Apr 14, 2009)

MN Tigerstripes said:


> Yeah, after that first night we were ALOT more careful. Then we met the cowboys......


*snort*


Thanks everyone for answering the question.


----------



## trailhorserider (Oct 13, 2009)

We live at 6500 ft. elevation and regularly ride at 7500 ft, sometimes above. I don't know about horses coming from lower areas, but our horses that live here are just fine (and they were originally from lower areas). We never even think about the elevation being an issue. I don't know how long it takes to adjust though. 

When I moved up here I never noticed a change in elevation affecting me at all, but I guess I was about 25 yrs. old at the time. The only thing I notice now is that if we travel to lower areas, the air seems really stuffy and stinky to me!

I guess that wasn't much help, lol!


----------



## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

ridesapaintedpony said:


> It basically was a general question. My friend lives near a mountain that is 2500 ft. and he wanted to ride up there but we wondered about the elevation. He had recently hiked up there and experienced shortness of breath and was wondering if it affected horses the same way.


Around here 2500 ft is not a mountain, it's a mine 

Seriously, a 2500 foot change in elevation (I'm assuming your friend started near sea level, and hiked to a 2500 peak?) should not be enough to cause problems. I live at about 5000 ft, and regularly hike to 10,000 and above. It seems more likely that any shortness of breath is just from the hiking. 2500 ft is a pretty good elevation change for a day hike - I get to puffing a bit regardless of whether I start from home elevation, or a trailhead above 8000 ft.

Or it could, of course, be a symptom of some physical problem. Does the friend get short of breath when s/he puts out an equivalent effort on the level?


----------



## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

I agree with James. I live at 4400 and frequently take my horses above timberline at 11,000 with no problems. I have had a few tourist come to visit that got altitude sickness up at 11,000. But that is usually avoided by drinking lots of water and not so much pop. Too often tourist think they are still drinking fluids, because they have their regular diet coke. Not the same as drinking water.

This past week a couple hauled their horses out from Missouri and I have been guiding them around. We have been above 10,000 foot everyday and their horses have done just fine. We give the horses a chance to blow if they get huffin and puffin. But their Missouri horses have kept up with my local horses just fine.

Here we are watching some elk on Kabell Ridge above timber line at 11,300foot elevation.


----------



## MN Tigerstripes (Feb 20, 2009)

Hrm. I don't know then. We came from an elevation of about 1000 (central MN) to about 6-8000 for our base camp (SW corner of MT, right in the mountains). The horses had no real problems at camp, but there was a day we trailed cattle with the cowboys and went up the sides of the mountains (no idea what the elevation was). My horse was noticiable tired/winded even though he was very fit. It could be from not drinking enough water I guess as creeks weren't terribly abundant on the side of the mountain.


----------



## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

MN Tigerstripes said:


> The horses had no real problems at camp, but there was a day we trailed cattle with the cowboys and went up the sides of the mountains (no idea what the elevation was). My horse was noticiable tired/winded even though he was very fit.


My guess would be that it was more from the exertion of the climbing than the elevation change, especially if your horse had a couple of days to acclimate. At least it works that way for me: I can stride along (or run) fairly level stretches without much effort, even at high altitude, but come to a bit of steep climb, and it's like "Hey, who turned up the gravity?"


----------

