This message is from: Jean Ernest <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Mary, This horse was kept outside in the corral with the two younger horses (Fenrir is 13), but wasn't as active. There might have been some other factors present, also. (He'd been rescued from a starving situation several years ago by Jerry Friz, then went from a good rehabbed fit condition to extremely overweight at his next owners before Gail got him, and slimmed him down a bit) I don't think water temperature is important AS LONG AS THEY DRINK IT! It becomes more important at these temperatures to have it a bit warmer to encourage them to drink enough to process the additional hay they are eating to keep warm. In the conditions in the Northwest and even in Montana that you had, the water temp probably didn't matter so much.
I don't plug in the water heater until the water in the tank starts to get a skim of ice and the horses will drink fine in temperatures above zero. But at these extreme temperatures the air is so dry that they are losing moisture with every breath and they are more reluctant to lick the salt blocks. (It is also important that people who are exercising a lot outside drink plenty of water and fluids for this reason) Warming the water a bit seems to encourage them to drink more. I was impressed with the way they slurped up that slightly warmed slightly sweet and salty water yesterday, and I will do that once a day until the cold spell breaks. BTW you should check out the "Arctic Cam" on the Fairbanks NewsMiner page this morning! Ice fog! and if you notice, there are a couple cars that have been abandoned in the parking lot for the duration! http://www.newschoice.com/newspapers/Fairbanks/Miner/default.asp (Click on ALASKA ONLINE in the upper left corner, then "Arctic Cam) Jean ini Fairbanks, alaska, -45F with icefog (Won't this ever end?) >I'm curious, was the Fjord with the impaction and indoor (stabled) or an outside horse? ************************************************************ Jean Ernest Fairbanks, Alaska [EMAIL PROTECTED]
