Horse is struggling in the heat...is there anything I can feed him??

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Dizzydusty

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My cob is struggling in the heat and I am wondering if there is a suppliment that I can give him to help him cope better and give him his sparkle back?

He's a show cob, he's not fat, he's competition fit (we do much more than just show) and can easily do a flatwork lesson of an hour without flagging when the weather is cooler.

Saying that, the grazing we have at the moment is pretty non existent, so I leave him in 2 or 3 nights a week to get a rest and some hay, and he is getting a hard feed every night - a scoop of redigrass, half scoop of competition mix, selenevit e suppliment and a couple of scoots of TLC. If hes in he gets a breakfast too - a little competition mix and some redigrass.

Any ideas anyone? Would a blood tonic give him a bit more energy and make him more able to cope with the heat?

p.s In the spring I did give him the NAF blood supplement (energize or something similar its called) instead of the selenevit, but he hated the taste - he hits a flat spot in the spring every year, but it did seem to work. Don't want to buy this again as it was a hassle trying to get him to eat it.
 
Agree that you could consider electrolytes.
I feed mine sloppy speedibeet in the heat to help keep them hydrated.
Kx
 
Is clipping an option for you? My horse struggled last year in the heat but this year is another matter. Hes a lot more energetic this year.
 
Horses cope much better with the cold than the heat. The more you feed the more heat they produce and the more energy they use trying to stay cool. Try reversing your stable management and keep him in during the day and let him out at night. Changing his feed isn't going to help him but changing his management can.
 
Again elctrolytes, mine get a scoop everyday and extra if he's been sweaty i use replish by feedmark, free next day delivery and currently 15% off! :)
 
Blood salts work quite well on my mare that won't take electrolytes.

Could you hose him off every day - perhaps a lavander shampoo, and put a cotton fly rug on that is a bit damp too (ie, sweet itch hoody). I've been leaving the gate to my yard open, and ours bring themselves in all day at the moment. May be an idea..
 
Thanks everyone,

The weather took a change for the cooler over the weekend and hes already perked up. I did start giving electrolites on the hot days and did notice that he was taking much more out of his water bucket.

As it happens there was a good article in Julys Scottish Equiads about hydration and horses, worth a read.
 
I was going to mention the article in July Equi-Ads. I seem to remember the consensus was that electrolytes were not a good idea.
 
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