Mythbuster Monday: Walking Out Is the Most Effective Cool Down Method
On Mythbuster Monday, we tackle a variety of equestrian myths to either bust or confirm. Today’s discussion: Is walking a horse after work the most effective cool down method?
It’s Mythbuster Monday, where Horse Nation dives into different equestrian myths and provides research-based evidence to either bust or confirm those myths. Today’s topic: Walking a horse after work is the most effective cool down method.
Myth: Walking a horse after work is the most effective cool down method
Myth or Fact: Myth
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During the hot summer months, after exercising your horse, you should always make it a priority to set aside ample time for cool down. Horses warm up quickly and need time to cool down their large body mass.
But, what is the most effective way to do so?
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According to the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP), research is showing the quickest way to bring a horse’s body temperature back to normal is continuous water application. This cools a horse down in approximately two minutes while walking the horse to cool down takes approximately 25 minutes.
This doesn’t mean to abruptly stop your work out. Allow your horse’s heart rate and breathing to make its way back to normal, but don’t walk until the horse is dry. Once breathing and heart rate are normal, begin hosing with tap water.
The Equine Chronicle also cites that stationary horses being hosed down is the most effective cool down method. The study they cited attempted five different ways of cooling horses down: walking until dry, walking with fans on the horse, walking with intermittent cold water application, walking with intermittent cold water application and scraping, and stationary with continuous tap water application. The study showed that the fastest way to cool the horse was stationary with continuous tap water application at two minutes. The longest time to the recovery period was walking alone without any water application at 25 minutes.
Andrew Dart, BVSc, PhD, DACVS, DECVS, the director of the Research and Clinical Training Unit at the University of Sydney in Australia also discusses the cooling down of horses by hosing with cold water in an article by The Modern Equine Vet. He states that while this is proven to be the most effective cool down method, it may not be feasible at many barns. While picking the most effective cool down method for your horse, think about access to large quantities of water in the summer months as well as wait times for wash areas in busy barns such as race barns.
According to an article by Performance Footing, there are a couple things that need to be done in order for this to be the most effective cool down method. First, you must continue spraying the horse with cool water until heat stops radiating from the body. Secondly, you must begin at the neck and chest to release the most heat the fastest and then you can work your way to other parts of the body once the horse has significantly cooled down.
After diving into the research, it’s apparent that continuous hosing after a work out is the most effective way to cool down your horse. There are different methods riders can use if they do not have access to large quantities of cold water but, if you want to get your horse back to his baseline quick, use the hosing method!
Do you have an equine myth you’d like us to tackle? If so, send it our way! Email your suggestions to [email protected]. Put Mythbuster Monday in your subject line.
