As temperatures rise, most people become more active. We go outside en masse to enjoy the sun. Our horses, on the other hand, seek the shade and seem to have less energy. Horses warm up faster than humans and cool down less easily. Fortunately, you can help them with this! 

The most efficient way to help a horse lose their heat is by means of (ice) cold water. You can do this, for example, with buckets or a water hose. It is important to include the whole body. By pouring cold water over the horse several times, as much surface area as possible cools down. If a horse is really hot, it makes little sense to only cool the large blood vessels in the neck or between the legs. The following applies: the more surface that is cooled, the better. 

For optimal results, you should cool the horse for 30 seconds, then walk them for 30 seconds. This ensures that the cooled blood in the blood vessels just under the skin is replaced by warm blood from the body. If you then cool again, the horse will cool down faster. 

It is sometimes thought that cold water can damage the muscles, but the cold of the water cannot penetrate the fat layer underneath the skin. The cold water cannot reach the muscles. The colder the water, the quicker you can help the horse cool down! 

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