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Horses’ water intake

Horses’ water intake

It is very important that horses have access to drinking water of high quality. However, studies show that the water supply method, for example automatic water bowls or buckets have a great impact on water intake, drinking behaviour and fluid balance in horses. In addition there is a great impact of diet and how much water is provided via the feed.

A preference study where horses got to choose between drinking from buckets or an automatic water bowl (flow 8 litres/minute) showed that all horses preferred drinking from buckets. Horses also drank 40% more per day when drinking from buckets than from an automatic water bowl with a minute flow of 3 litres. There can be several possible explanations to why the horses preferred drinking from buckets, water surface and depth are greater and the smell and taste of water can be different after contact with air, which is the case when it is poured into a bucket. Horses have a high drinking rate which is probably due to that at the watering hole wild horses were easy prey for predators. Therefore an automatic water bowl with a low flow rate is not consistent with horses’ natural drinking behaviour as they have to prolong their drinking time to consume the same amount of water.

The same study show no difference in excretion of water via faeces and urine when the horses drank from bucket, automatic water bowl (flow 8 litres/minute) and automatic water bowl (flow 3 litres/minute). However, since the water intake was significantly less with the automatic water bowl with a minute flow of 3 litres the difference between water in and water out via faeces and urine was significantly less. This implied that the horses tended to decrease in body weight and two of the horses even had a net loss of body water. When horses cannot maintain normal fluid balance water is absorbed from the hindgut to compensate and protect the intravascular volume and the risk for impaction colic increases. Therefore it is important to check water supply method and verify the flow in automatic water bowls. Automatic water systems cannot always be considered as free access to drinking water.

The feed’s water content also has great impact on horses’ water intake. Table 1 show mean values for how much horses drank when they consumed hay, haylage and silage and their total water intake (via drinking + water via feed). When horses consume drier feeds they need to drink more; the table show that the trotters in training drank 7 kg more water per day when they consumed hay and haylage than silage.

Text 28.1 tabell 1 eng

Ambient temperature also has a great impact on horses’ water intake and this shows in table 1; the trotters in training had a total water intake of 26-28 kg/day during winter and 35-36 kg/day during summer. You find more reading on water intake and fluid balance here; differences between hay and silage diets, between different forage intakes and different protein intakes.

Sara Muhonen, AgrD

References:
Muhonen S 2008. Metabolism and hindgut ecosystem in forage fed sedentary and athletic horses. Doctoral thesis. Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Sueciae 2008:68.

Nyman S. 2001. Water intake and fluid regulation in the horse. Doctoral thesis. Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Sueciae 2001:98.

Nyman S & Dahlborn K. 2001. Effect of water supply method and flow rate on drinking behavior and fluid balance in horses. Physiology & Behavior 73, 1-8.

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