Conference noted::equitation

    
    I got out for 6 to 8 hrs on the weekends...and my horse will drink
    when he is thirsty and not before...I have never seen him drink yet!
    I allways give him the chance.  He will not even drink when we get
    back to the barn...he will olny drink when he is TOTALY cool..maby
    your horse is the same?????  I keep pinching his skin to see if it
    is plyable and if it is, I don't worry..
    
    Defently watch out for pawing...he did that to me ONCE....until I found
    out that pawing ment he wanted to take a bath ;-)
    
    L

    
    I am still working on this myself. 
    
    I go for hours up in the mountains and would prefer that my horse drink
    more.  She used to not drink at all.  And after many, many rides, she
    has started to drink a little.  And paw a lot.  
    
    She absolutely WON'T drink if someone is ahead of her going into a
    stream.  She WON'T drink if the stream is moving very fast or is muddy. 
    I also suspect she would drink better if she didn't have a bit in her
    mouth.  (Of course, when going to horse shows, she is hesitant to drink
    any strange water and it takes her about a day to decide that the water
    is drinkable.)
    
    You might try dismounting until she feels comfortable.  You might try 
    dropping the bit.   
    
    And if you get it figured out let me know--I need all the help I can 
    get.  (And if you can figure out how to get them to p** on the trail
    let me know.  E.C. has been known for being out on a trail for 6 hours
    and not 'going' !)

    A suggestion if you are worried about dehydration...when I go on
    longer rides I carry with me a sponge on a long enough cord to
    reach the ground. Drop it down and dip it in the stream/pond,
    reel it back up and sponge your horse off with it. It helps a lot,
    my mare loves when I do this and it really helps keep her cool.
    Mine will drink if she feels the need, she's pretty self-preserving
    and can be relied upon to pretty much set her own pace. Not that
    she knows how far we are going, but when she tires she'll relax
    and just sort of amble along at a leisurely walk and when she's
    perked back up she'll start scooting her butt a bit implying she'd
    appreciate being allowed to trot for a ways. I take my cues from
    her, and sponge her off every change I get. My friend and I are
    just starting to get into the 20 mile ride scene, it's a lot of
    fun and both our horses seem to be thriving on it. I do see how
    you'd be concerned about your horse's pawing leading to dropping
    down and rolling, I've always allowed my mare to paw in it because
    the water splashes up and cools her belly (dont use your best tack!).
    She also dips her face in up to her eyeballs and blows bubbles
    occasionally. Never had her attempt to roll, but I think I'll keep
    that possibility in mind and drop my stirrups for a quick exit just
    in case!

    My mare does the same thing....she won't touch strange water, unless
    she's really, really, really thirsty.  The more I expose her to other
    places and events, the better she's become about strange water.
    
    My friend says they have to be taught to drink in the water.  he has a
    stream running through his property and to teach his new mare to drink
    he had to put a bucket of water in the stream.
    
    RE: P** on the trails....another friend competes in the endurance
    events and has trained his horse to pee when he wistles a song.  It
    is a very funny sight!
    
    
    re: .3
    
    Are we talking about the same horse.....Jesse loves to stick her face
    in the water and blow bubbles.....I get a kickj out of her every time!
    I also let her splash and paw, after everybodys had a chance to drink,
    that is.

    ....talking about rolling in the water....yesterday during
    our trail ride, we stopped to "play" in the water.  One rider
    caught her horse and pulled his head up just in time to avoid
    his attempt to roll!!!!
    
    Lynne
    

    I use the same technique as in a previous note.  I take
            along a sponge and sponge my mare down when I get a chance.
    
            I use one of those sponges that look like a big bone and then
            tie a long raw hide around it and let it drop in the water
            That way I don't' have to get off, then I wipe her down and
            then ring out the water tie it to the front of my saddle
    (usually
            English)
    
            When we are on a 20 mile or thirty mile trail the break
            stop usually has water.  I take the sponge and sponge her down
            and take off the saddle so her back can get some air.
    
            When I let her relax she usually goes P**
              

    The endurance riders I know put their sponges in those plastic 
    net bags that turkeys come in. Then they tie the top of the bag
    closed with the rope attached to the saddle.
	

    A trick I read about is cutting the top off of a bottle
    styled liked a bleach bottle to make a scoop, and tying
    it by the handle and attaching it to the saddle with a 
    long cord.  When they reach water, they just throw the
    scoop overboard, and reel up the scoop of water to pour
    over the horse.  They had a list on where to pour & where
    not to pour, but I don't remember that much detail.  It
    had something to do with constricting the blood vessels.
    
    Lynne  

    
    Re: .9   You do not want to put cold water on any of the major muscle
             groups on a hot horse.  These include the hip, loin, back, etc. 
             The cold water causes the blood vessels to constrict and the 
    	     horse to tie up.  The best places to use water to cool a horse 
    	     is any of the large surface blood vessels such as the jugular 
    	     and carotid arteries in the neck and the large veins on the 
    	     inside of the rear legs.  The cold water cools the blood as it 
    	     passes through the veins from and to the muscles and helps to 
    	     cool the horse from the inside out.  
    
    Pat

    Another thing I was told by a very good endurance rider is that 
    some horses will drink from small puddles, but won't drink from 
    streams or ponds. She says people find this disturbing, but that 
    actually the horse is being smart because the water in the small 
    puddle is going to be warmer than the stream or pond water, and 
    warm water is less likely to cause the stomach to cramp.