RE: [RC] Descanso disasters, vol 2 - Kitley, Carrie E Civ USAF AFSPC 30 MDSS/SGSLFWhen I was a kid and had horses, one of the standard rules of thumb after riding a hard ride, was NOT to let the horse drink and eat immediately. We were to walk them around for a bit, get them relaxed and cooled, THEN allow them to drink and eat to avoid a colic incident. One of the differences I've noticed in this sport is that we are to let the horses eat and drink right away. Drinking right away, I can certainly get behind, but just curious as to why the eating is allowed so immediately these days. Things are definitely different now. I'm not saying it's wrong, just making a point about past vs present standards of horsecare. I know we've come a long way. Maybe there was something to the old ways? I'm not a vet, so I honestly don't know. I let my horse eat and drink whenever she wants, and when she does, I'm THRILLED because she seems to think she's a camel. =) Carrie Kitley <\_~ // \\ carrie.kitley@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx? -----Original Message----- From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of sherman Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 2008 11:02 PM To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [RC] Descanso disasters, vol 2 Even with rapid HR recoveries and many mini-checks (I do exactly what you suggest, checking HR and seeing that they can recover every time we stop for any reason) a colic can sneak up. It happened to Shadow 43 miles into a ride. She always pulsed down to below 60 within 2 or 3 min. at the most, and we'd been riding conservatively, not letting the HRs go much over 135. At the 43 mile check, she pulsed down in about 2 minutes, as usual, then ate and drank, then we went and vetted, all okay, then we go back to let the horses eat more and Shadow starts staggering and trying to fall down. We rushed to the vet and she had no gut sounds now, this was within 10 minutes after we'd vetted and gut sounds had been fine, HR 48. So sometimes, it's just a matter of $#&T happens. Fortunately, Shadow recovered after one shot of banamine, then started eating again and gut sounds were back in about 30 minutes, no trip to the hospital or fluids, just hours of monitoring her condition. Kathy Hello Ed, You are right that many factors enter in and I agree that the 10min 60bpm is simple but no guarantee. What I was getting at was to use every stop to check recovery for a while to prevent a buildup of heat or stress or dehydration or whatever, sort of like a string of mini training rides instead of the big vet check to vet check push. Gives a rider a better chance to recognize trouble sooner and also learn what kind of trail and speed causes the worst recovery times for their horse. Definitely not gonna get top ten on that routine, just dinner. ;-) Don Huston =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 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!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 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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