Preventing Small Animal Drownings in Your Horse's Water Trough

This almost sounds silly. But over the years we've had a number of accidental deaths in our water trough. Unsuspecting squirrels or chipmunks have met an early demise by slipping into the horse's water trough trying to get a drink. We've also found frogs and birds.

We don't like killing the wildlife and if the bodies aren't noticed this can quickly foul the water and make it unsafe for your horse to drink. Fresh clean drinking water is essential to your horse's health.

We remedied the problem by leaning a small clean log on the side of the trough so it extends into the water. This allows any critters that fall in an escape route. Be sure to use a piece of non-toxic and untreated wood.

Keep your water trough clean by scrubbing it out occasionally, especially if algae tends to build up in warm weather. If there is a drowning give the trough a scrub with bleach or vinegar, rinse very well, and let it dry thoroughly before refilling.