RE: straw causing impaction
This message is from: Frederick J. (Fred) Pack [EMAIL PROTECTED] Hello to all, I was interested in the comments regarding heated (warmer) water in the winter. We use Nelson automatic waterers that are electrically heated. The 200 watt heater kicks in to keep the water around 50o F. or 10o C. It is extremely important that they all be well grounded. Electrical problems DO occur when the electric fence gets shorted out such as the many trees that have blown over on my fences in the last two weeks. We have suffered through 3 major windstorms here. We narrowly dodged the bullet on the last one. A 70 foot fir uprooted and fell on one of my small barns with two mini-horses inside. Luckily, the Priefert steel panels that form the corrals took most of the blow and the tree did not slice the barn in half. It only sliced 4 feet into the roof.and stopped thereheld by the steel panels.Had to replace the barnlet, BUT didn't have to bury any horses. Two panels, each weighing 100lbs, had to be replaced on the barn perimeter and two pasture panels. I can't praise these panels enough for their strength. They are portable and CHAIN together. Best investment I ever made. Back to the electric fences: When the fence gets shorted out (to ground) the electrical charge IS felt at the waterers. I make a practice of checking the electric fence operation every feedingOR THE HORSES WILL NOT DRINK. THEY GET SHOCKED by the charge traveling through the ground. If you have ANY kind of metal water containers (that touch the ground) AND electric fencescheck your fences regularly for shorts. Fred and Lois Pack Pack's Peak Stables Wilkeson, WA USA -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of jean gayle Sent: Tuesday, December 08, 1998 10:44 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject:Re: straw causing impaction This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (jean gayle) Very interesting Brian re the warm water drinking vs cold. I use heaters in my outdoor troughs that keep the water warm. Occasionally electricity. low amount, may be present and my big horse is very sensitive and will woof and huff and not drink where both my Holsteiner and my little Howdy Fjörd would just drink away. Thanks for re-enforcing in my mind that straw and Fjö can be a problem. Jean Gayle Jean Gayle --- A Subscriber at Techline
Re: straw causing impaction
This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (jean gayle) This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (BRIAN C JACOBSEN) Yes, straw sure can cause impactions. It is so tough and fibrous that it doesn't get chewed as well and it doesn't get digested as well, both of which predispose a horse to an impaction. As such, I even cringe a little when I see someone feeding oat hay. By the time the oats are mature, the hay is really nothing but straw which has little nutritional value. Honestly, we see few problems from it, but it still makes me nervous. I'm of the opinion you're better off just feeding oats and a good quality grass hay. Very interesting Brian re the warm water drinking vs cold. I use heaters in my outdoor troughs that keep the water warm. Occasionally electricity. low amount, may be present and my big horse is very sensitive and will woof and huff and not drink where both my Holsteiner and my little Howdy Fjörd would just drink away. Thanks for re-enforcing in my mind that straw and Fjö can be a problem. Jean Gayle Jean Gayle --- A Subscriber at Techline
straw causing impaction
This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (BRIAN C JACOBSEN) Yes, straw sure can cause impactions. It is so tough and fibrous that it doesn't get chewed as well and it doesn't get digested as well, both of which predispose a horse to an impaction. As such, I even cringe a little when I see someone feeding oat hay. By the time the oats are mature, the hay is really nothing but straw which has little nutritional value. Honestly, we see few problems from it, but it still makes me nervous. I'm of the opinion you're better off just feeding oats and a good quality grass hay. Ingrid, it's neat to hear you have heated water buckets. I am preparing an article for a future issue of the Herald, and that is one of the ways I list to help reduce the incidence of colic. One reason horses colic in cold weather is because they don't drink as much water which can lead to impaction. It has been shown that horses drink something like 30% more water at a water temperature of 40 degrees (i.e. warmed slightly) than they do at 33 degrees (just above freezing). Keep in mind that the 40 degree water does not induce them to drink 30% more than they need. Rather it just helps them want to drink the amount they do need. When the water is just above freezing they are drinking approx. 30% less than they really should. Anneli, it was neat to hear your system of winter stall bedding. I had read about that and thought it sounded like a neat way to do it (very deep bedding - clean the road apples out - keep adding fresh bedding). As you said, it provides a lot of warmth for the horses. A magazine called the Small Farmers Journal ran an interesting article about an easy way to turn all that bedding into good compost in the Spring. Put a pig in the stall (the horse is no longer in there) and throw the pig's corn or slop or whatever right on the floor. In the process of rooting for corn and food, etc, the pig will mix all that bedding up, add some fertilizer of his own, and give you a nice end product that your garden plants will love! And then depending on how closely you bond with that pig, you either have a pet pig or a lot of bacon! : ) All the talk about cold and snowy climates is making me miss Colorado. The coldest I ever remember it getting was -20 degrees Farenheit, but otherwise it was very much as Jean Ernst describes for Alaska - a dry cold that the horses loved. Here in North Carolina it doesn't actually get as cold, but due to the humidity, it often feels almost as bad. Those few days when we have the freezing rain/sleet it is downright miserable. Usually, though, we have mornings somewhere between 20 and 40 degrees and days in the 30's to 50's. Recently though we have been having very mild weather as I guess many people have. Today was 75 degrees! Brian Jacobsen, DVM Norwegian Fjordhest Ranch Salisbury, North Carolina ___ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail. Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com/getjuno.html or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]
