Working Ranch Magazine Summer 2025

ranch horse home because at least it smells like something that they’re used to which can help stimulate them to drink.” The saying goes, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink,” but Dr. Comer says that you can’t offer water enough. Electrolytes, mashes, or wetting down their grain are all good strategies for getting them the water intake they need even if they are less inclined to hydrate. TRUST YOUR GUT “Horse owners know their horses, so if something feels off, it probably is,” Dr. Cromer adds. “We’re gener ally trailering them to a place where we want them to perform at their best. We’ve usually invested a lot of time and money to be wherever we’re headed. So things to watch out for, of course, would be extra anxiety or behavioral changes that are not nor mal for the horse,” says Dr. Cromer. Generalized discomfort surround ing colic can be as simple as not eating their grain when they get to the desti nation. Pawing, nipping at their flank, resting more than usual, or decreased manure production. A general rule is that for every hour or so of hauling, we should see at least one pile pass while traveling.

TEMPERATURE For long hauls, Dr. Cromer recom mends taking their rectal tempera tures twice daily (if they can be safely acquired) before travel, continuously throughout the show, and when you get back. “Temperatures are critical because we know if we have a horse that is stressed, possibly a little bit behind on their flu ids, then we ask ‘em to go through a rodeo, a branding, trail riding, etc. while simultaneously being exposed to other horses — we know that the immune system may not respond to things that it sees every day in that environment and can lead to an infection,” explains Dr. Cromer. Much like when people are stressed, sleep-deprived, and off of their schedule, a cold is much easier to catch. “The same thing can happen in our horses, and the easiest way to pick up on that is taking their temperature because we want to catch it before we have overt clinical signs. The tempera ture just kind of tells us what’s going on in that internal regulator.” Another recommendation is to have a TPR chart, which is a temperature, pulse, and respiration chart, in the trailer. While a normal equine tem perature is 99.5 to 101.5, knowing that your horse is sitting a degree or

two above normal can be indicative of something brewing. FINAL THOUGHTS When it comes to hauling, it’s always best to take frequent breaks, if you’re tired, hungry, or sleepy they probably are too. Don’t be in a rush. “And for those longer distances, I would not rule out having a profes sional hauler transport your horses because they are the experts. They’ve seen it all, and you don’t have any thing to prove. Think about having someone who’s a professional and really knows how to manage those stops and monitor normal input and outputs for the horses.” In closing, Dr. Cromer’s final bit of advice was that wherever you’re headed, know what veterinarian and what services may be in the area. So if inadvertently you do have a prob lem, at least you already have a phone number to call. “We don’t want your horses to be sick to get wherever they’re going. We know how much money goes into these events or how people look for ward to branding season, and going to see everybody. You want your horse to do well when they get off the trailer,” adds Dr. Cromer.

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74 I SUMMER 2025 WORKING RANCH audited readers run 21 million head of beef cattle.