Notice that your horse is a little sore after a long show season?

Did you also notice that even with Black Friday sales, ice boots seem like a luxury?

Well worry no more! Giving your horse the care and rehabilitation that they need just got a whole lot easier.

Listed below are three DIY recipes and/or techniques for icing your horse’s legs without breaking the budget.

DIY Ice Boots #1

Supplies:

 

  • 4 sheets of Pop Ice Freezer Pops, frozen
  • 4 polo wraps 

 

Instructions:

  1. Wrap one sheet of freezer pops around your horse’s cannon bone area. 
  2. Hold freezer pops in place while you wrap the leg using a polo wrap. 
  3. Secure polo wrap with Velcro strap or an additional piece of vet wrap, if needed.
  4. Repeat process on other any other legs that need icing!

DIY Ice Boots #2

Supplies:

  • 90 ounce bottle of Palmolive Dish Soap (can be found for less than $5 at the store)
  • Heavy duty gallon zip-lock bags
  • Polo wraps (optional)

Instructions:

  1. Fill a zip-lock bag 1/3 of the way full with dish soap. 
  2. Seal the bag, removing as much excess air as possible. 
  3. Flatten out the bag so that the soap is dispersed throughout and makes a thin, even layer when lying flat. 
  4. Place the bag into the freezer and leave there for 2-3 hours, depending on your freezer temperature. Palmolive will never freeze completely, so it becomes more of a flexible frozen gel. 
  5. Remove bag from freezer and use as an ice pack wherever needed! You can utilize the wrapping feature, as described above, if you plan on using this for your horse’s legs. 
  6. Repeat steps as desired for however many homemade ice packs you need! 

These ice packs are perfect because they can be used on horses or humans, and if the bag rips you just rinse out the soap!

DIY Ice Boots #3

Supplies:

  • Creek that is at least 1½-2 feet deep
  • Fence or post in close proximity to the creek that is good and sturdy
  • Halter 
  • Lead rope 

Instructions:

  1. Put halter on your horse.
  2. Attach lead rope. 
  3. Lead horse into creek (ask for assistance if needed).
  4. Tie horse to fence and/or post.
  5. Let them stand in the water and soak for 20-30 minutes. 
  6. Repeat as needed!

Clearly this isn’t an actual recipe or any kind of project that you can actually physically make. However, this old classic trick isn’t just simple, it’s effective! There’s nothing more soothing than an ice bath after a hard workout. Utilize what you’ve got, and be prepared for a little splashing!