How to Stimulate Thirst in a Horse

Most horse people are familiar with the old saying, "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink." However, there are occasions when it's important to get your horse to drink. While horse owners can't force their horses to drink, there are ways to stimulate thirst to help prevent dehydration.

Things You'll Need

  • A bucketful of clean, fresh water
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 2 tbs. applesauce
  • 1 tbs. corn syrup
  • Electrolytes
  • Fruity punch drink, such as Kool-Aid or Gatorade
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Instructions

    • 1

      Check that your horse's water is fresh and clean. Many horses, like their owners, can be picky and will not drink out of a stale or almost empty bucket.

    • 2

      Add electrolytes to your horse's feed in the summer or when he is in heavy training. Electrolytes contain salt and therefore encourage horses to drink. Some horses will root around in their grain and not eat the electrolytes. In such a case, you can try mixing them in with a little applesauce or adding them once a week to hot bran mash with molasses.

    • 3

      Try sweetening your horse's water. Many horses don't like the taste of certain water (which is one of the reasons many people bring water from home to shows) or have a sweet tooth and will drink water flavored with a little fruit punch.

    • 4

      Combine 1 tsp. salt with 2 tbs. applesauce. Place it in a clean syringe or empty deworming tube and shoot it into her mouth. Keep her head up to keep her from spitting the paste out. Let her work the applesauce around and swallow, then allow her to go free. She should drink within a few minutes. If she does not drink, wait an hour and try another method.

    • 5

      Put 1 tbs. (5 cc) corn syrup in a clean syringe and squirt it onto the roof of your horse's mouth. Corn syrup is not only very sweet but also thick and will slow the trickle down from the roof of your horse's mouth to coat his tongue. Coating the roof of his mouth and his tongue is almost 100 percent guaranteed to compel him to drink.

    • 6

      Warm up her water by emptying out half of her bucket and adding a quart of hot water to it. When the weather first turns chilly, many horses decrease their water intake, even if they are still in regular training. However, most horses will drink deeply from a bucket of warm water in cold weather.

    • 7

      Take your horse for a vigorous 15-minute hand-walk or a light ride. Check with your vet before exercising your horse to ensure the exercise will not harm him.