Travelling horses in hot weather, advice and tips for owners

When temperatures rise, ensuring your horse stays cool, comfortable and hydrated on the move becomes a little more complicated. Here’s how to succeed

Travelling horses in hot weather isn’t impossible, but it requires thoughtful preparation to ensure equine welfare is maintained.

In the UK, professional transporters are not allowed to move horses in temperatures exceeding 30°C – and this is a good rule of thumb for private owners to follow.

Tips for travelling horses in hot weather

Here’s how to best ensure equine welfare when transporting horses in hot weather.

1. Do your homework

Try to plan your travel around the weather conditions and avoid travelling during high temperatures and high humidity. If it is unavoidable, pick the times of day when it’s likely to be coolest.

Setting off early in the morning, for example, will make the experience much more pleasant for both you and your horse.

2. Plan ahead

Before setting off, ensure horses are fully hydrated by providing them with unrestricted access to forage and water for at least six hours with plenty of space to rest and relax.

3. What to wear?

While you might usually reach for one of the best travel rugs for a journey, it’s unlikely to be needed in hot weather. Any equipment on the horse’s body may contribute to overheating, the risks are likely to outweigh the benefits on a hot day.

Also consider leg protection. Thick travel boots may cause sweating, when a lighter pair of breathable brushing boots or cross-country boots combined with over-reach boots on all four legs will offer a basic level protection for a horse who typically travels well.

4. Prepare for the worst

While it sounds pessimistic, when travelling by road you just never know when or for how long you might get held up. Therefore, make sure you have plenty of forage and water on board for top-ups to keep your horses happy and healthy, and be confident you know what to do if you find yourself stuck on the road with a horse.

5. Provide good-quality forage

Access to quality forage will help maintain a healthy digestive system and provide an ongoing source of energy, as well as creating a small reservoir of fluid in the horse’s gut to help keep them hydrated.

You could also give a small fibre feed ahead of travel for this reason.

Two women securing horsebox with horses on board early in the morning to avoid travelling in hot weather

Loading up and travelling early in the day often means you can avoid the worst of the heat. Credit: Alamy

6. Boost airflow

Opening the rear section of a trailer helps draw hot air out while fresh air is pulled in through the windows. But avoid travelling with the front door above the ramp open as there is a risk of flying debris being blow into your horse’s face.

If you have a roof vent, open this at the back, as it also draws warm air up and out of the transport while you are driving. You can also use clip-on portable fans to help keep air circulating.

7. Stick to frequent watering intervals

In normal conditions, horses should be offered water at least every four and a half hours while travelling. In hot weather, that interval should be shorter.

This is at your discretion, but use what you know. How hot and dry is it? Has your horse eaten and drunk well in the hours before setting off? Is he sweaty? Is he overweight? All these factors will help you decide how frequently to stop and offer water.

8. Make water tempting

Anyone who has offered their horse a drink in an unfamiliar place will know that horses can be choosy about the type of container they will drink from and the taste of the water. However, it’s important to stress that this doesn’t mean they’re not thirsty.

If possible, try and take water from home in a large capacity container (like this one) and provide it in a bucket they are used to drinking from.

Additionally, it’s always beneficial to familiarise them to different containers in case you can’t take your own. You can also try flavouring the water with apple juice.

9. Minimise stress

Horses can become dehydrated more quickly when they are stressed or unsettled so try to minimise this wherever possible.

Loading and unloading are two of the main stressors for horses when travelling so make sure you do as much as you can to keep the process calm and relaxed.

Practising often without the pressure of heading to a show or event will help it become second nature.

When you are on a schedule, leave plenty of time to load to avoid time pressure.

Ensure the vehicle is well ventilated and drive carefully to make the journey as comfortable as possible.

10. Prepare for the arrival

As with pre-planning before a journey, it’s just as important to give plentiful forage and water upon arrival at your destination. If you’re travelling to a show or event then make sure your horse has time to relax, graze, eat hay and drink before competing or beginning exercise. You could also feed a rehydration mash.

Risks of travelling horses in hot weather

Dehydration is the greatest risk and can affect any horse.

Signs of dehydration include:

fatigue
weakness
dullness
loss of performance
decreased appetite
abnormal drinking, such as taking longer than usual draughts or gulping
infrequent urination
dark urine
red or congested mucus membranes

Recommended ways to prevent or correct dehydration include:

making clean, fresh water available at all times
offering additional water sources with an electrolyte supplement
administering electrolytes around two hours before travel
feeding haylage, which has a higher moisture content than hay, or using soaked hay if appropriate
standing your horse in the shade as much as possible
offering water after exercise and packing a rehydration mash to administer if necessary

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