Emergencies can strike with little warning, which is why being prepared is a must for both horse owners and horse boarding providers. In the summer, the risks range from thunderstorms to heat waves. Some states may also implement rolling blackouts. Knowing how to protect your equine companions in challenging situations and ensure they receive the care they need should be your priority.
What Emergencies Should You Prepare for?
Some emergencies exhibit signs before they escalate, while others happen without any warning. Consider these extreme summer conditions and scenarios:
- Power outages: The local utility company may announce scheduled outages, but unexpected blackouts can also occur. Power outages can affect equestrian facility management.
- Storms: Severe weather, such as flooding, thunderstorms, and tornadoes, can affect barn structures and horse safety.
- Heat waves: Horses may suffer from heat stress, dehydration, and other health issues during prolonged periods of high temperatures.
- Wildfires: Fire spreads quickly, and horse boarding stables are full of fuel, from the hay to the structure itself.
How Do You Reduce Risks Before an Emergency?
Protect your horses and be prepared for the unexpected with these proactive strategies.
Create an Emergency Plan
Develop a general plan that can serve as the base model for strategies for storms, tornadoes, wildfires, and other disasters. Outline who is in charge of vital tasks, such as:
- Monitoring horse health and behavior
- Maintaining communication with authorities
- Facilitating the evacuation of horses
Ensure everyone’s aware of the best practices in certain situations, like using battery-operated lights instead of candles for lighting to reduce fire risk.
Include clear clauses in your horse boarding contract about the horse owner’s responsibilities during emergencies. Clarify protocols for evacuation, communication, penalties, and liabilities to prevent misunderstandings.
Review your emergency plan every six months. Update it with any relevant changes in staff, home ownership, and local conditions. You can also create a system for boarders and your team to provide input or suggestions to improve the plan.
Prepare Safety Equipment
These safety essentials can help make disasters more manageable in your horse stable:
- Fire extinguishers: Place portable extinguishers throughout the facility and ensure they maintain their charge every few months.
- First-aid kits: Keep them stocked with equine essentials, such as adhesive bandages, gauze and antiseptics, thermometers, and horse-specific medications.
- Flashlights and batteries: Place portable lighting and extra batteries in accessible locations throughout the facility.
- Monitoring devices: Invest in equipment that continuously monitors equestrian facilities and provides sufficient battery power to operate during an extended blackout.
Invest in Power Generators
Outfit your equestrian facility with a power generator or several to prepare for blackouts. Have a licensed electrician assess your electrical panel and identify the critical loads. Then, consider their recommendations for the ideal generator type and capacity for your facility.
A portable generator is usually enough for small, hobbyist stables, but you may need more powerful models for commercial or boarding facilities. Emergency generators, which can provide 20-2,000 kilowatts of power depending on the unit, can restore critical power and ensure operation for hours. On the other hand, regular or standby units can run for days or weeks and are often used to keep businesses running.
How Can You Keep Your Horses Safe During a Blackout in Summer?
Veterinarians often deal with a higher number of dehydration and heat stress cases during the summer. Blackouts can increase the risk by affecting water pumps and ventilation systems. Here are some ways to ensure an adequate water supply and ventilation in your horse stable:
- Set up multiple water sources and check their levels regularly to monitor intake.
- Assess water quality regularly to ensure it’s free of contaminants.
- Consider a gravity-fed watering system as a backup option.
- Monitor barn temperature often, especially during blackouts.
- Watch out for the signs of heat stress in horses.
Be Proactive for Your Horses
Conduct regular emergency drills to familiarize everyone in the horse boarding facility with the protocols. With enough practice, prompt actions will become instinctual, reducing response times and preventing delays during actual disasters.
