Snacks Eats

Welcome back to Water Buffet Wednesday! Last week we had some great questions and helpful suggestions in the comments. When it comes to horses, there’s always more to learn!

This week’s menu includes a suggestion from the comments section 😊 This week we tried:

•Turmeric with Ginger- Turmeric has many health benefits including joint and inflammation support, but absorption is low unless it’s paired with black pepper- or apparently ginger! I figured the horses would like the taste of ginger over black pepper so that’s what we tried this week
•Carrot Powder, which was Spritz’s favorite for obvious reasons
•Fenugreek, which can support metabolism, the respiratory system, and digestion
•Salt, because it’s hot as heck here this week and extra salt supports hydration and electrolyte balance
•I also always make sure to have fresh plain water out for the horses. Water buffets are a supplement, not a replacement for plain water 💧

Last week we had a lot of questions about where to get herbs and which ones are safe. If there’s enough interest, I’m considering putting together affordable mini sample packs of the water buffet herbs I use, so you can try before you buy a pound of something your horse won’t touch. I went overboard buying herbs for my water buffet 😂 Let me know what you think! For now, check the link in my bio for some shopping recommendations to get your own water buffet started 😊

While the carrot powder was the clear winner this week, the horses enjoyed sampling all the options this week 😋 I typically leave the water buffet out for 1-2 days before I dump the buckets. This week the carrot flavor was completely gone within a few hours, and they drank a little over half of the other 3 options. Even if they don’t consume the whole bucket, I never feel like I’m wasting herbs. Just the process of being able to sniff and sample different flavors is valuable for providing horses with choice and enrichment ❤️

In today’s edition of Innocent Until Proven Guilty, how did Penny’s hock boot end up on her hoof? Guess we will never know since she will only respond to my questions with eye rolls and annoyed sighs 😂

Penny wears hock boots at night because she has a tendency to get hock sores. She’s a 29 year old OTTB, presumably with a lot of arthritis. The horses live out 24/7 on a track system, and Penny frequently chooses to sleep or roll in the coarse sand pile instead of the bedding pile, so the hock boots have been a lifesaver to prevent sores. They usually stay put on her hocks all night unless she gets the zoomies 😂

For those who are wondering about Spritz’s face, here’s a little bit of info on him!

Spritz came to me with scars on his face- one big one across the left side of his face, and several small ones on his eyelids on both eyes. I don’t know what happened to cause these injuries, but they are fully healed and don’t seem to bother him. He does need to wear a fly mask whenever flies are out, but otherwise he doesn’t require any extra care or special treatment for these scars.

Our 13 year old neighbor says I need to do an ASMR video, so here ya go 😂

I’d lose my mind if I had to listen to a human eat like this, but listening to Penny slurp and chomp her breakfast is my favorite way to start the day ☀️

And yes, I often hold her bowl for her, because that’s what she sometimes prefers. She’s 29 and she had a rough life before she came here, so I’m more than happy to accommodate her dining preferences 💕

Her breakfast contains soaked beet pulp, alfalfa pellets, and timothy pellets, along with California Trace, salt, liquid vitamin E, and SmartComfort pellets.

Snacks is here to remind everyone that you are innocent until proven guilty and you have the right to remain silent when your mother is interrogating you about your missing fly mask 😂

I can guarantee I know who helped him get his fly mask off 😂 He’s usually pretty good about keeping it on- I think he knows it really helps keep the flies away from his face- but also his favorite game is face tug-of-war 🙄

Never a dull moment with Snacks 💕

It’s Water Buffet Wednesday! Usually I pick my water buffet selections very intentionally for health and wellness purposes, but this week was all about flavor and hydration. I picked things I knew my horses had tried before and enjoyed, because it’s been so hot lately and I wanted to encourage them to stay hydrated.

This week’s water buffet included:
•Peppermint, which will give your horse minty fresh breath (we tested this out, just watch the first 5 seconds 😂)
•Rosehips, which is the absolute best flavor of all time, period, according to Spritz
•Beetroot, which smells like dirt but apparently tastes like juice according to the horses
•Salt, because it’s so hot out and my horses prefer to drink salt water rather than eat loose salt

As horse people, sometimes we have a tendency to overcomplicate things. Water buffets do not need to be elaborate to provide enrichment and choice! There’s no need to buy a fancy setup or spend $250 in bulk herbs to get started. Grab an extra bucket, some horse-safe herbs and spices from your kitchen, and see what your horse likes ❤️