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RE: [RC] Ol' Time E'olytes - heidi

Joe said:

One more time:  no one here is saying to never use electrolytes, or 
that any use
of electrolytes is bad for your horse.


I completely agreed with all your statements Joe. I just get
uncomfortable when there's suddenly a bunch of people saying "I compete
without them and they cause ulcers". Makes me worry that a bunch of
people in hot humid climates will throw down their syringes and think it
was all just a big mistake.


I certainly DO hope that it will make them THINK before they
automatically assume that they "have" to give them, though--even in
hot, humid climates.  Some horses even there do better without.  And I
hope that it will make people seek to be educated about them, instead
of just adding more when the horse ain't doin' right.


Josie and I are both starting new horses this year. ( I bought my new
boy, Gunner, from a lady named Dean that used to ride with ya'lls crowd
at Bankhead :-)  I hope to do his first 50 at Million PInes. Did 5 hours
at a good clip today and he drank great and acted starved grabbing grass.
So...I go to Soperton...which amazingly has an EXTREMELY high pull rate
every year. For instance I pulled up 3 years starts/finishers was 70/44,
63/38, 72/50  It's the first warm ride. It's in the deep south, warmer
than most of our climates. I'll be asking him to go farther than he's
ever gone...normally I would give a dose just before we start the ride,
and one at each vet check. (4 total)  What would you do different than
that to "err on the side of caution"?


Um, ride slower?  Make a point to stay at vet checks until they DO eat
and drink, instead of being like Kaboot?  (Sounds like you may well be
on the way to that anyway, from what you describe.)  Let him push the
envelope a little bit so that he doesn't become dependent on them?  Or
perhaps condition at home under a rump rug or a sheet to simulate
warmer conditions?  I'd willingly ride any of my young horses under
those conditions without e-lytes, at least until I had enough of a base
on them to see if that's really where they have a need.  Just a thought.

Heidi


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