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TheHorse.com THE HORSE December 2017
Fahrenheit, so if you have a very cold,
below-zero day, it's going to take some
effort to keep the water from freezing and
to maintain it right around that 45- degree
temperature," says Martinson. "If you
have automatic waterers, ensuring that
they're well-insulated and maybe in a
sheltered area can help conserve heat. If
you have a stock tank, you can try put-
ting in one or more tank heaters. Here in
Minnesota, a lot of people with the large
100-gallon tank heaters will insulate and
cover half of the tank to help contain
some of that heat."
Because horses also aren't going to
want to touch an ice-cold salt block, you
can encourage drinking by sprinkling
table salt over their feed instead.
Another method of increasing water
consumption is soaking pelleted or extrud-
ed concentrates, beet pulp, or hay cubes
before feeding. Coleman says as long as
you're sure the feed will be eaten before it
freezes, this method can be effective.
The biggest myth he encounters is that
horses can get their water requirements
from eating snow. "This isn't a good plan
for keeping horses," he says.
Body Condition Score
Your best indicator of whether your
horse is getting enough nutrition to main-
tain adequate body weight over the win-
ter is his body condition score. Although
this might be easy to judge visually when
your horse has a slick summer hair coat,
a shaggy winter coat will probably require
hands-on assessment.
"The horse's body condition going into
winter is critical," says Coleman. "A horse
with a body condition score of 6.5 will
have some added insulation that will help
maintain core body temperature, while a
horse with a BCS of less than 4 will have
less insulation and require more energy.
For a horse living outside in my area, my
preference is 5-6.5."
Take-Home Message
Your horse's ability to maintain his
weight and health over winter depends
on factors such as his activity level, the
region and climate, his metabolism rate,
and feed quality. By tending to his feed
and water needs and monitoring his body
condition, you can ensure he enters spring
as robust and healthy as he was when last
year's warm weather departed.
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