Newsletter – July 26



The sun just keeps on shining, and the fields are all yellow and brown. Don’t get us wrong, we’re not complaining about working in the sunshine. Blue skies and lots of sun is good for the soul but it’s not so great for having to manage our equine friends. Lots of people are already having to dip into winter hay supplies to supplement the lack of grass and this weather has already ensured that hay will be in short supply next year. We’re sure your farriers and barefoot trimmers are commenting on how rock hard your horses feet are. The battle between keeping your horses cool but also preventing them from being eaten alive by flies is an ongoing, and potentially unwinnable challenge.

So what can we do to help our horses in this hot weather? Here are a few tips to help you on your way. Not all of them might work for you, we all have different set ups but a little change here and there might make a big difference to your horse.

Regular poo picking – horses don’t like to eat ‘stale’ ground. Picking up the poo as regularly as possible helps minimize this and maximize the potential grazing. Worm larvae don’t cope well with very dry conditions so this is an excellent time to get on top of pasture burdens and minimizes the need for the use of anthelmintics (Wormers)

In really hot weather being turned out is often better than being kept in, especially if you have low ceilings or poor ventilation in the stable. A gentle breeze is vital for sweat evaporation which cools your horse. If there’s no breeze or airflow in your stables horses can easily overheat.

Regular baths are a great way to cool your horse down. Don’t scrape off the water. Heat transfers directly to the water drawing heat away from the horse, even more heat is lost as the water evaporates.

Regular application of hoof oils helps to keep the horn of hooves hydrated and supple which in turn makes them much less likely to crack. Speak to your farrier directly about how they would best like you to look after your horse’s feet.

Make sure that you are giving your horses fresh buckets of water each day, consider pouring the old water out onto the pasture rather than just down the drain.

If soaking hay for EMS patients then it is worth doing at least one water change during that soaking process to prevent the hay becoming sour, smelly and unappetizing – again consider pouring the used water out onto the paddocks of those horses who aren’t under EMS management.

Offering a high fibre, low starch/ sugar feed such as sugarbeet or speedibeet before turnout can help satisfy hunger needs and reduce the need for hay supplementation.

Apply a suncream such as Filtabac to any pink areas a couple of times a day. Horses get sunburn just like us!

Ensure you have clean salt licks available. Sweating horses lose electrolytes and minerals through their sweat but they are pretty good at self regulating what they need to replace.

Protect as much of your grazing as you can. Creating a ‘sacrifice’ field now and supplementing with hay might be a better option than finding you get to autumn and ALL of your grazing has been turned to dust – and then mud – and you’re STILL having to supplement with hay. If you time it well and the weather Gods are kind you might also be able to move horses out of this area and re-seed whilst there is still growing season left.

Giving your horses a choice – obviously this one only works in very specific set ups but, leaving the gate from the yard to the field open and allowing your horses the choice of when they come in or go out can work really well. The results of when you find them in and out can be quite surprising. Obviously not everyone can try this one.

Water ‘misters’ like they use at the Olympics, can be quite easy to make yourself using old hose and a wooden framework to attach it to. We’re not suggesting you leave these running all day but turning them on as a treat can be a great way of cooling your horses (and you!) down.

Be sensible about if and when you ride. Early morning or late evening are best and remember just how hard the ground is right now. We ALWAYS see more lameness when the ground gets hard. Building your horse’s resilience to working on hard ground should be done slowly to prevent injury. On the REALLY hot days taking a ‘rest’ day isn’t going to mean the difference between success and failure if you do go out competing.

ALWAYS take your own water when you go to competitions. Don’t rely on other people’s biosecurity to keep your horses safe from disease.



Hopefully at least a few of these tips might help you. Drier summers and wetter, stormier winters are predicted going forwards so adapting and making changes now means you’re more likely to ‘weather’ the conditions (excuse the pun). As always, if there is any aspect of your horse’s health that your worried about, especially with regards to coping in the hot weather, give us a call on 01626 819597 or e mail us at admin@torequinevets.co.uk