Amy Parker, MS, PAS, reminds us that horses are 70 percent water. She shares the importance of hydration to overall horse health and how it varies with different nutrition and activity.
Understanding what stimulates thirst and how to increase consumption or create circumstances under which the horse will continue to drink is what’s important.”
Source: The Horse, November 28, 2022. Link. Normally, horses consume 1 gallon of water daily per 100 pounds of body weight (at environmental temperatures of 60-70 degrees F). Horses at a healthy body weight need to consume 2 percent of body weight in forage per day. Therefore, a 1,000-pound horse eating the necessary 20 pounds of hay must drink an average of 9 to 10 gallons of water per day which is about 2 quarts per pound of dry matter consumed.
INSIGHTS: Winter temperatures add to the challenge of keeping horses hydrated. Consider offering this article for your horse owner customers on social media or in newsletters.
Also see: Water, the most important nutrient, Oklahoma State University Extension, March 2017. Link. Note the printable pdf and a fact sheet links suitable for horse owner education