Electrolytes for Horses

Replace Vital Salts Lost Through Sweating

Warm weather, exercise, travel, stress and illness can lead to increased sweating. This means we need electrolytes to help keep our horses healthy and working at their best.

So, if a horse has access to water, what’s the problem? Why should we be worried about electrolytes? The reason is that supporting our hard-working horses is more complicated than just replacing lost water.

When a horse sweats it loses both water and essential salts particularly Sodium, Chloride, Potassium, Calcium and Magnesium which together we call Electrolytes. Water loss leads to dehydration which means they can’t function and perform to their best potential. If uncorrected, dehydration will also cause serious problems. As a horse exercising in warm weather can lose 15 litres of water an hour, and early signs of dehydration are subtle and hard to spot, it’s our responsibility to ensure adequate hydration whenever the horse is working or the weather is particularly warm. To do this we have to consider electrolytes.

Electrolytes are vital salts like sodium and potassium that are dissolved in all the body fluids, including the blood. They help keep these fluids at the correct concentration which is vital for the horse’s health and to aid performance. In addition, the concentration of sodium in the blood is key to controlling when the horse drinks, known as the “Thirst Stimulus”.

The Nettex Electrolyte range has been formulated to replace vital salts that are lost through any form of sweating. Two levels of administration are available – liquid and syringe paste. To help keep your horse in peak condition all year round.