Sweaty Horses?

Question

How many of yall rinse your horses off imediatly when you get threw riding?

I thought that you were always supposed to start with their legs so it wouldn't be such a shock to them. Also it will cause them to colic.

Answer 1

I walk around the last few minutes of my lesson to cool the horse off, most others I know don't. Then I get off, walk him up to the barn and put him in a crosstie to unsaddle and pick hooves. After that they get hosed down and/or actually bathed. I know people who don't walk them out and shove them right in a washrack and hose them down, and the horses are fine.

I start with the legs, then soak down their chest and sides so that they're all cool while I work on actually cleaning them.

Answer 2

Basically if you are cooling you horse down properly before you get off them (as in walking the 10 minutes or so at the end to a ride or lesson or training session) it is okay to give them a bath right after untacking. I always used a warm water 3 bucket bath ( 1 soap, 2 rinse) with the last bucket being cooler than the others especially in warm weather. At the track when a horse went out for a regular gallop after the 5-10 minute walk back from the track the horse would get a drink and go out for a bath. If they breezed the would come back to the barn an walk at least 10 minutes of walking and watering off before getting their bath and then proceed to walk about 30 minutes more continuing to water off during that period. When they race especially in extremely hot and humid weather when they come back to be unsaddled they are often hosed off right there on the track. Sometimes a sponge which has been sitting in a small bucket of ice water is squeezed on the top of their head. This is all done to help bring their body temperature down so they do not suffer from heat exhaustion. So yes I always gave my riding horse a bath as soon as I was done riding..but my horse also always got a proper cool down period when I was still on his back.

Answer 3

If your horse is sweaty - you need to let them cool down FIRST - about 20 minutes before putting them under the hose

If you hose them off too soon and cool them down too quickly, you can "tie them up" and cause some muscle soreness issues. Best thing to do with a sweaty horse is walk them until they are breathing normal (under 20 breaths per minute), then let them stand for another 15 minutes or so - brush their fur the opposite direction to help them cool while standing.

Then rinse your horse off with the hose starting at the chest, then the back, the rump, the neck, the sides, the legs. I usually start at the chest and run the hose all the way up the back, across the sides and down the legs to get them wet first then I spray more directly to clean the areas - that way the horse is covered in cool water while being rinsed in specific spots.

Answer 4

there's been a bunch of studies on that as well as giving a horse water after it has been worked. try and see if you can find the actual articles/studies on the Internet but hosing a horse down after hard work is not bad for them but actually a VERY good way of cooling them off and it won't cause colic but you should always start with their legs so you don't "shock" them with the cold water (it's like sticking your legs in the water b4 you jump in so you're kinda used to it).

Answer 5

Let them cool off a bit first - walk the last part of the exercise, unsaddle and stand a while. Then I hose or sponge depending on how sweaty he got, maybe just saddle marks and face. Use a scraper if needed.

Answer 6

I also start with the legs. Also another method is to walk them for 30 seconds, sponge them for 30 secs and continue alteranting walking and sponging for 30 secs until their body temperature is normalised

Answer 7

You should walk the horse first to let him cool down, before washing with cold water.
No one does this at a race track.

Answer 8

I hose them down when they have worked hard, but not immediately. I walk them awhile until they are cooled down first.