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[RC] Elytes - Bruce WearyHi Frank-- Good to hear that you are back in the saddle again. You can't keep a good man down. Especially if he's a Husker! I'm not arguing with you about feeding a horse during a ride. I love to see a good appetite in my horse before, during, and after a ride. Let me make that perfectly clear. We all like things to be simple and uncomplicated. But, I think this tendency often leads to "all or nothing" thinking. When we debate the use of electrolytes, some are dead set against them and some are for the use of them. The suspicion is raised that they may contribute to ulcers or colic. Others see consistent enhanced performance in their horses when they use them. The truth is possibly somewhere in the middle: Elytes can, when used properly in a horse that tolerates them, enhance performance, hydration and the factors that are related to them. When used improperly, or in a horse that doesn't tolerate them, they can cause metabolic/GI distress. The same could be said of grain for some horses. It's true that the idea of a gluttonous horse, under certain conditions, contributing to GI distress is a theory. But it is based on intelligent observation. And, it is NOT a reason to withhold feed from an endurance horse. Gluttony is defined as consumption beyond the horse's need or stomach capacity, and is differentiated from a horse with simply a good appetite. This may be hard to identify during a ride as we watch a horse eat, but perhaps known after the fact when trouble arises. Heidi mentioned, and rightly so, that the filling and stretching of the stomach usually enhances the passage of food into the small intestine. In the case of ileus, however, when that mechanism is disrupted, gut overfill is now potentially an aggravating factor for some horses, as maybe even a "normal" gut fill might be. Again, not an "all or nothing" principle. But maybe a factor for some horses. Frank, you mentioned: "How the horse is prepared and how the trail is ridden, how the goals are pursued on the day of an endurance endeavor, are STILL the major determinants as to the majority of ill-effects a horse might experience due to endurance aspirations." This is a very well thought and common sense theory. Many people would agree with it at first glance. However, the horse death reports of the last few years don't support it in the least. There is no discernible pattern amongst the horses as to level of preparation, speed ridden or the goals of the rider. That is why we give some consideration to other possibly overlooked factors like elyte use, overfeeding, trailering distance, vaccinations, worming, etc.,. So, theories abound, often derived from common sense, our observations and experience. But I have found, as have many others, that things often work in a "counterintuitive" way. In other words, differently than we might first assume based on what we think we know. The debate and the mystery continues................ Dr Q =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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