Summer is here and the temperature outside continues to rise. It has got into the 90s here a few times already this month which leads me to believe this summer is going to be blazing hot again. Last year was really rough on Jet because of his Anhidrosis. It’s hard for him to cool himself down when it’s hot out so I have to take extra care of him during the summer to make sure he doesn’t overheat.
Here’s what I’ve done in the past:
- Kept him in an inside barn with a fan on him all day. (This would be a good option if I was still leasing that farm but I’m not and I don’t have the option to run a fan on him now. This way also caused a lot of stress for me because I was constantly worried about a barn fire and them being trapped in their stalls.)
- Hosed him off 2-3 times during the day. (This is doable on the weekends but not during the week since I work outside my home.)
- Tried keeping him in a small paddock with lots of shade. (Works well for the other horses that will still sweat but the humidity still was too much for him.)
- Kept him in shade with a sprinkler set up on a timer. (This method seemed like a great idea but never seemed to work just right. Not to mention, I have no idea if he stood under the water since I wasn’t home during the day to watch.)
- Gave him One AC supplement. (Not sure if this really helped or not. I’m debating going ahead and starting him on it this year but so far he seems to still be sweating some.)
- Mixed his feed with Guiness Beer. (Read that this worked for other horses but I didn’t notice any difference with him and that beer is EXPENSIVE!)
So that’s my list of past tries and I’m having a hard time thinking of new ways to keep him cool. My hopes are that someone will read this post and have a good suggestion of something I can try that will keep him cool. So please share with your friends!
Question for you:
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Have you ever had a horse with Anhidrosis? What did you do to keep them cool in the heat?
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Can you think of something new I can try that I haven’t done yet?
2 Comments
Amy_Lou
June 3, 2012 at 1:39 pmOne of the editors of Horse & Rider magazine moved her horse to a different state because of his allergies or something like that, and he thrived in his new environment. Given how much we love our animals, it’s a difficult thought, but selling and/or giving him to someone in a year round cooler climate might be the best option for him.
What about misters in the barn? I think they’re fairly inexpensive to get at Home Depot or Lowe’s, and you could install them yourself and put them on a timer.
NC Cowgirl
June 3, 2012 at 5:54 pmI actually tried a mister last year and it was extremely frustrating. I didn’t have an easy way to set it up and when I would it would break so I gave up on trying that. I’m thinking about leaving out a sprinkler again on a timer.