Yeah, it's HOT. Whether you are riding in the wee hours of the morning to try to beat the heat or taking the weekend off to chill out, frozen treats are a welcome part of the day. It's easy enough for you to grab a slushie, popsicle, ice cream cone or frozen margarita, but what about your horse?
It's a snap to make horse popsicles, and any help with hot weather hydration is a plus, so why not give it a try. There are myriad recipes online (and some really bad videos on YouTube...), but honestly, it is this simple: Fill a plastic cup or food storage container with some apple and carrot chunks, add a bit of gatorade or unsweetened apple juice diluted with water, freeze, remove cup and serve.
You are the chef, here, so mix it up as you like--grate the carrots/apples and add some oats, include a dollop of unsweetened applesauce, a couple of peppermints or a spoonful of molasses. Just make sure the ingredients are all horse-safe, and not too sugary. You can put the popsicle in your horse's feed tub, hand feed (freeze a carrot in the center as a "stick" to hold), or you can freeze bailing twine into the popsicle itself and hang it from the stall bars.
If your horse doesn't engage with the popsicle, not much lost--plus he/she will likely eat all the chilled fruit and veggie chunks after it melts. Want in on the action? Whip up some popsicles for yourself, too. Stay cool out there!
