The horse and its kidney

How the horse kidney works

The kidneys are responsible for excreting fluids. More specifically, it excretes the fluid that the body doesn't need after the kidneys have filtered all of the nutrients. In addition, the kidneys are responsible for eliminating foreign substances that are not required. When it comes to horses, you should pay particular attention to the following information:

• Every day a horse drinks much more water than a human. It comes to around 4 to 10 liters per 100 kilograms of live weight. This means that a horse weighing 500 kilograms will drink around 20 to 50 liters of water a day. This amount has to be filtered and then excreted.
• Of course, this amount of water needs kidneys and a urinary bladder, which can expand sufficiently. This fact in turn means that there must be enough space in the body.
• Note that the two kidneys are in different places on the horse. The right kidney sits between the 15th and 17. Rib and thus still in the chest area. The left kidney, on the other hand, sits between the first and third lumbar vertebrae.
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• The location of the kidneys means that you, the rider, should sit in the light seat when the horse urinates. This is the only way to reduce the pressure on your right kidney.


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Urinary Excretions - What To Look For In Horses

There is Horseswho do not dare to urinate while riding. If you consider the amount that the kidneys and the urinary bladder have to absorb, it becomes clear what agony a horse suffers if it does not dare to drain this amount of urine in time. Apart from that, there are a few more things you should consider when it comes to horses:

• The horse's urine is usually light yellow to light brown and slimy to gelatinous (containing bile). This is caused by the mucous glands in the kidney pelvis and ureter.
• When the urine dries - this is particularly noticeable in winter with ice and snow - it can change color to orange or orange. Change red. In this case, don't panic right away.
• But always react immediately if the urine emerges from the horse discolored. This does not always have to be a disease of the urinary tract; other diseases can also be responsible for the discoloration. Always call a veterinarian in this case.
• Also make sure that the horse stands up to urinate more often, but then does not urinate. This is always a warning sign.
• See if your horse is urinating enough. After all, the animal produces between three and ten liters of urine per day and per hundred kilograms of live weight. If you have the feeling that your horse is not urinating enough, you should definitely call the vet.
• In cold weather, the kidneys could get sick relatively quickly. In this case, ensure that there is enough warmth and, as a precaution, cover your horse with a blanket. Never put a sweaty horse out in the cold.

A horse's kidneys can only function 100% if the blood supply to the horse's body is perfect. One of the reasons for this is that they are also responsible for the osmotic pressure in the blood vessels. If the horse has too little blood, the kidneys cannot do their job perfectly.