From: Paula
Hi Jessica,
I have scoured your archives (and, in fact, much of the internet) but I can't find any suggestions for how to convince our horses that their new automatic waterer is not a monster out to get them.
First, a bit of background:
Up until recently, our horses were watered using the standard farm hydrant/hose/bath-tub-as-trough (or bucket) system. They always have access to water, and they are outside horses (not stable kept, though they do have access to shelter in all fields). In the winter, we have always had to break ice on the trough, because there was no electricity to the field to power a de-icer.
However, this fall we have been making some improvements to the pastures, and we installed an automatic watering system to service two fields. The waterer always has water in the top stainless steel tray, and uses a float to regulate when the water should refill. The tray is heated to keep the water warm/unfrozen in cold weather (we live in British Columbia, Canada, and below zero temperatures are the norm from November to March). We installed the waterer as per the manufacturer's specifications on a concrete pad, with carefully done plumbing and electrical work.
We have 4 horses: a 13 year old Arab mare that we have had for almost 6 years, and who to our knowledge has never used an automatic waterer of any type; two 8 year old Tennessee Walker Mares, half-sisters who have always been together. We bought them 2.5 years years ago, and they had an automatic waterer of the same type as ours at their previous home. Our 4th horse is an 18 year old Tennessee Walker gelding that we purchased this past spring. He very well MAY have used an automatic waterer in the past but we are not sure.
However, none of the horses are comfortable drinking from the waterer. Because we want the waterer to service two fields, it is located in a different place from the old water trough, but we placed their old bucket by the new waterer as a visual reminder for them. The horses will stand at the waterer and nod their heads at it, paw the ground by it, etc, but generally will NOT drink from it.
For example, 2 days ago, I looked out, and one of the 8 year old mares, Joey, was standing nodding her head at the waterer, acting like it was out to 'get her.' We made sure that there was no stray current running through the water, which there wasn't, and had a good giggle. However, by yesterday morning it was clear the horses were NOT drinking from the trough. We worked with them, using apples to entice them. Ultimately, with the float cover off, the three walkers did drink from the waterer. The arab - who is boss mare- flatly refused. We spotted her drinking from a mud puddle rather than use the waterer.
Last night, after several hours during which we weren't sure they had drank, we decided we needed to provide them with a bucket of water. They are on grass hay (timothy, I believe) at this time of year, not pasture, and we don't want any colic. As well, one of the 8 year old mares is in foal for next spring. The arab nearly bowled me over for the bucket -- she was THIRSTY.)
As best I can observe, all 4 horses are drinking from the bucket, NOT the waterer. However, we have invested considerable time and money into this waterer, and are looking for an explanation for WHY they are so concerned by it, and for ways to convince them to use it. I hoped you might have some suggestions. Is there something about the waterer itself that could be bothering them? A sound, a vibration, the colour (the casing is orange)? Would clicker training be a way to convince them the waterer is ok? Or is there another way to teach them that it is safe?
Needless to say, until we are sure they are using the waterer, we will be providing them with an alternate source of water. However, this water will be cold, and it is dropping below zero at night, so we would rather not have to worry about breaking ice. PLus, I always believed horses don't drink as much cold water as they will tepid water.
Thanks,
Paula
Since you have left their bucket in place and they now understand that you WILL fill it with water eventually, they may perceive that they have no real need to deal with the automatic waterer at all. But I do quite understand your worry about horses becoming dehydrated - it IS a concern. Generally - and here I am speaking as someone involved with horse rescue - truly thirsty horses will eventually drink from any source, no matter how unpleasant the taste of the water, so I have to wonder if something else is involved here.
Perhaps there might be some "factor X" that is noticeable to them but not to you? Sometimes a new watering system can make the water taste a bit odd at first, until the flavour of the cleaner, lubricant, or polish on the metal wears off, or, in the case of new plastic, until the plastic has a chance to outgas and/or the horses have a chance to become accustomed to the new odour or flavour. Still, the presence of water is something horses care about very much, and even when a new outdoor watering system features a terrifying styrofoam ball that moves when the horse drinks, it's usually the case that one or more horses out of a group will eventually become more courageous or curious or just more thirsty than the others, and will have a go at drinking from the new contraption. After that, the others usually line up to have a drink. Horses are highly motivated by thirst, and they are as curious as cats - so the fact that yours are ALL saying "No, we don't want to drink from that" makes me think that there must be something more than simple unfamiliarity.
I would wonder whether there is any chance that your horses may be getting an electrical shock? I've seen such cases before, and they are always very confusing and frustrating to the horses' owners. You probably know that electric water heaters - the sort used in stock tanks - can short out, and need to be checked daily. You might not realize that even carefully-installed automatic watering systems in pastures can In one case, the waterer leaked a bit at the base, so there was always a puddle in front of it. This didn't seem like anything bad - after all, their old rubber tank had always had a puddle in front of it, from humans overfilling it, and it never caused a problem. But the combination of shod hooves, puddle, and the current owner and her husband and her children all took turns standing in front of the waterer and putting their hands into the water - not one of them received a shock, but... as it later turned out, the horses WERE receiving small shocks from the water. The humans were all wearing rubber-soled boots, and so no current was conducted when they put their hands into the water! They were all left with the impression that the horses were "just being silly", and they were all wrong.
When I discussed that incident with a veterinarian whose practice is in an area where winters are always dire and heated water tanks are essential, he said that he, too, had heard of such tihngs, and that he read about a case that involved a horse that was electrocuted (but not killed) by an automatic waterer and an electrical short. If I'm remembering the story correctly, that short had been present for quite some time, and had made all of the horses in that pasture unwilling to drink from the waterer, but was completely hidden from the humans until one of them - I believe - put a hand out to steady himself on a cold day, touched a wet or frost-covered bit of fence whilst his other hand was in the water, and finally experienced the shock for himself.
I'm not an electrician and I don't know much about wiring - just enough to understand that there can be many different possible causes for horses to receive shocks from their watering device. Shorts (short circuits), improper grounding, "stray voltage" - even mice or rats chewing on wires can cause electrical problems. In this case, I don't think that mice are likely to be a factor as the entire system is so new, but if I were you, I would want to look into the other possibilities, especially that of stray voltage, as you did mention that a metal tray is involved in this watering system. Stray voltage is apparently a well-known problem on farms, even when all of the electrical wiring and hookups were done strictly to code. It's enough of a problem that most veterinarians will warn horse-owners of the winter danger of stray voltage from water tank heaters! I wouldn't begin to know how to diagnose it, though... I think this calls for an electrician who has extensive experience with farms and various types of electricity-powered watering systems.
Ask him to check everything, even things that you are absolutely certain don't need checking. Shocks aren't necessarily consistent - again, talk to the electrician - so it's entirely possible that the horses are being shocked sometimes but not every time... however, intermittent reinforcement is a very effective method of training, and if the waterer is administering even occasional shocks to your horses, what they are likely to learn is that they can't trust the waterer at all. Of course you may be right - electrical shocks may have nothing to do with the problem - but your description of the horses' behaviour says "shock" to me, and it's something you need to investigate thoroughly. Horses don't make up stories about these things - if they're telling you that they have to wonder "Will it bite me this time?" whenever they approach the tank to drink, they're telling the truth. The bottom line, in any case, is that you cannot afford to go into the winter with your horses unwilling to approach their water tank!
Please let me know what you discover.
Jessica
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