True or False, You Should Drink Water From The Spring Where Horses Drink?©

 

“A Polish soldier ‘bonding’ with his horse, 1980-1990”, posted by u/welcometothezone, HERE.

 

I have never gone horse trekking and I am not a horse person, but I do know how to ride¹.  I hope that this article will help us better understand our ancestors, whose every journey was by horseback – Author’s note.

 

This article was born from a conversation with my wife about a Facebook post she received.  The post included the picture above and a quote, which was attributed to Saint Seraphim of Sarov, and began with “Drink water from the spring where horses drink.  The horse will never drink bad water” ². 

 

Many times, modern people, living in developed countries, take pure, disinfected water for granted.  But once you venture away from modern municipal water supplies, or if there is a disaster and these systems are offline, you will have to find pure water or disinfect the water yourself to kill all of the dangerous bacteria, viruses, protozoa and parasites living in it, before you can drink it or cook with it. 

 

Saint Seraphim of Sarov, who died in 1833, was a monk, ascetic, mystic and hermit who lived in the Russian wilderness, and his quote is an interesting quote, but is it true or is it false: did he simply mean that to live as one with God, you had to live a natural life and trust in God, as did the animals of the forest?  If Saint Seraphim of Sarov’s quote about horses being able to detect pure water is true, and not just an allegory on how to live a natural godly life, then this would be an important fact for modern people and reenactors of the 18^th, 19^th and early 20^th centuries to know.  If it isn’t true, then how would people who lived during the 18^th, 19^th and early 20^th centuries have killed the bacteria, viruses, parasites, and dangerous protozoa that lived in their water?  And what should we moderns, do today to disinfect our water, when we are uncertain if it is pure or not?

 

I didn’t know if it was true or not about horses and pure water, so I did what I always do, and did some research.  In keeping with Saint Seraphim of Sarov’s quote being from the early 19^th century, I have only used sources that would have been available during the 18^th, 19^th and early 20^th centuries: here is what I found.

 

A quote from the Field Artillery Manual, 1928, page XXXII, 16

 

Horses are notoriously sensitive animals and according to Ellie Fraser, writing in Horse Family Magazine, “Horses have a very good sense of smell and taste and will refuse to drink – even to the point of dehydration – if their water is polluted, stagnant, or even if their water supply changes abruptly”³.  If this is true, then surely horses could be used to detect good and bad water?

 

However, if horses are so discriminating, why then do the early sources consistently state that horses would drink marshy, muddy, bad, or other dirty water, and, in fact, seemed to prefer it to clean spring water? 

 

An excerpt from The Sportsman’s Dictionary, 1735, section DRA, page 4.

An excerpt from A Treatise on Cattle, 1776, page 77 to 78.

 

In fact, many of these early authors noted that horses preferred drinking pond-water to well-water, even though pond water might be full of life, both plant and animal, or possibly, other nasty things.

 

An excerpt from “The Water We Consume”, The Farmer’s Magazine, 1871, page 283.

 

Cuthbert W. Johnson, who wrote “The Water We Consume”, in 1871, stated that the reason why horses prefer pond, brook or river-water, in that order, over well-water, is that pond, brook, or river-water is a softer water than what is obtained from a well: well-water could be a hard water, full of dissolved minerals.  Also, per Mr. Johnson, horses do not prefer overly cold water and well-water is usually a constant cold temperature.

 

So, according to Mr. Johnson, horses can sense mineral content in water, but does that mean that they can tell if water is free of germs and parasites? 

 

A quote from the Field Artillery Manual, 1928, page XXXIII, 16-18

An illustration from the Field Artillery Manual, 1928, page XXX, 4-5

 

It doesn’t appear that horses can tell if water is free of germs and parasites, since they prefer, and drink, the soft waters found in farm-ponds and brooks, which might be muddy, cloudy, thick, and dirty!  Also, ponds, brooks, rivers and even wells, given the state of sanitation in the 18^th, 19^th and early 20^th centuries, were notoriously impure, and given a horses liking for soft pond water, I don’t think that Saint Seraphim of Sarov’s quote is true.  Most likely he was making a statement about living a natural life, trusting to God, like the animals of the forest do. 

 

So, if you are thirsty, go ahead and drink water from the spring where horses drink, the water should be soft, just disinfect it first! 

 

An excerpt from the Field Artillery Manual, 1928, page XXXIII, 16-18

 

In the wilderness, if you are not positive that the water is pure, and who can be 100% positive, and you can disinfect it, then disinfect it⁴!

 

Today, we have chemicals, UV lights and advanced filters that can kill or remove dangerous bacteria, viruses, and parasitic protozoa from our water, however our ancestors of the 18^th, 19^th or early 20^th centuries had far fewer choices. 

 

During the 18^th and 19^th centuries, boiling their drinking water was the only effective way our ancestors had of disinfecting their drinking water, although other methods were tried. 

 

An excerpt from A Mental Museum, for the Rising Generation, by Jesse Torrey, Jun.; 1829, page 199-200.  The United States Environmental Protection Agency does not list vinegar as a water treatment that they consider acceptable⁵.

An excerpt from Counsel for Emigrants, and Interesting Information from Numerous Sources, 1834, pages 79-80.  According to the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention, to kill viruses and bacteria, the concentration of ethanol, also known as ethyl alcohol, the type of alcohol that we drink, has to be between 60% to 90%, which leaves very little room for the water⁶.

 

During the early parts of the 20^th century both boiling and using calcium hypochlorite, a chlorine product, were available to our ancestors⁷. 

 

An excerpt from the Field Artillery Manual, 1928, page XXX, 6-7

 

Today, boiling is still considered the most effective means of disinfecting your drinking water, provided you have the means and the fuel to build a fire.  The Field Artillery Manual, 1928, suggested that you boil your water for five minutes to ensure that your water is disinfected.  Today, however, the United States CDC recommends heating water to a rolling boil for one minute, and for an additional three minutes at elevations above 2,000 meters (6,562 feet), to insure that the water has remained hot enough, for long enough, to destroy any dangerous pathogens.  Similarly, the National Wilderness Conference advocates bringing water to a rolling boil for one minute at sea level and boiling it for an additional one minute for every 1,000 feet (305 meters) above sea level, to ensure that dangerous pathogens are destroyed.  For more information read “Water Disinfection: When is boiled, boiled enough…? ©”, HERE.

 

So, now we know that while horses can sense whether water is hard or soft, they do not mind drinking water that is muddy, cloudy, thick, and dirty!  So, if you are thirsty, go ahead and “Drink water from the spring where horses drink”, just disinfect that water first! 

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That is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!

 

 

Notes

 

¹ I learned to ride at my Grandfather’s farm.  He had a pony named Simon, who was cranky when he was younger, but who got much more mellow as he aged.  We used to ride him up the hill to get the cows, as we didn’t want to walk since hills in the Catskills are long and steep.  Unfortunately, Simon had a fatal addiction to radiator fluid, and he broke into the tractor one day, thirty plus years ago.  Rest in peace, Simon.

 

² Saint Seraphim of Sarov, was born Prokhor Moshnin on July 19, 1759, in Kursk, Russia and he died on January 2, 1833.  He is venerated by both the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church

 

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Saint Seraphim of Sarov,

 

Saint Seraphim of Sarov’s full quote is as follows:

Drink water from the spring where horses drink. The horse will never drink bad water.

 

Lay your bed where the cat sleeps.

 

Eat the fruit that has been touched by a worm.

 

Boldly pick the mushroom on which the insects sit.

 

Plant the tree where the mole digs.

 

Build your house where the snake sits to warm itself.

 

Dig your fountain where the birds hide from heat.

 

Go to sleep and wake up at the same time with the birds – you will reap all of the day's golden grains.

 

Eat more green – you will have strong legs and a resistant heart, like the beings of the forest.

 

Swim often and you will feel on earth like the fish in the water.

 

Look at the sky as often as possible and your thoughts will become light and clear.

 

Be quiet a lot, speak little – and silence will come into your heart, and your spirit will be calm and filled with peace.

 

³ Ellie Fraser, “You can lead a horse to water, but should it drink?”, Horse Family Magazine

 

⁴ “A doctor can fix giardia, but he can’t fix dead”, or “doctors can cure a lot of things, but they can’t cure dead” is a survival refrain that Peter Kummerfeldt teaches, and I have echoed since I first heard it in 2005.  When worst comes to worst, and you are facing dehydration, drinking actually or potentially infected water is better than not drinking any water at all. 

 

This might seem like common sense, however as my daughter says, “what is common sense to one person, isn’t common sense to another; common sense only exists in the context of your environment”.  In the 1990’s two hikers in the Grand Canyon, ran out of water and didn’t want to refill their water bottles at a late season creek-bed pothole, teeming with tadpoles and other life: one of the hikers later died of dehydration and the other barely survived.

 

Peter Kummerfeldt, is a 71 year old survival expert who graduated from the Air Force Survival Instructor Training School and later was an instructor at the Basic Survival School, in Spokane, Washington, in the Arctic Survival School, in Fairbanks, Alaska, and the Jungle Survival School, in the Republic of the Philippines.  Also, Peter was the Survival Training Director for the United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, for twelve years (from Peter Kummerfeldt’s biography at “OutdoorSafe with Peter Kummerfeldt”, found HERE)

 

“Canyon Missteps, Lesson: Respect For Danger” Popular Mechanics, Volume 182, Number 8, August 2005, page 67,

 

⁵ Katie Herrel, “Will Vinegar Purify Water?”

 

⁶ Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “Chemical Disinfectants”

 

⁷ An excerpt from Field Artillery Manual, Volume One, page XXXIII, 19-20

 

[Field Artillery Manual XXXIII, 19-20]

 

 

Sources

 

Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “Chemical Disinfectants”, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/disinfection/disinfection-methods/chemical.html, accessed August 27, 2020

 

Counsel for Emigrants, and Interesting Information from Numerous Sources, [John Mathison, Aberdeen, Scotland, 1834], page 79-80, https://books.google.com/books?id=o64NAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA79&dq=drinking+bad+water&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjlxsKbxLvrAhVNmuAKHeEsB9Y4sgUQ6AEwB3oECAgQAg#v=onepage&q=drinking%20bad%20water&f=false, accessed August 27, 2020

 

Herrel, Katie; “Will Vinegar Purify Water?”, Backpacker, November 11, 2009, updated February 9, 2017, [© 2020 Cruz Bay Publishing, Inc. an Active Interest Media Company], https://www.backpacker.com/gear/will-vinegar-purify-water, accessed August 27, 2020

 

Johnson, Cuthbert W.; “The Water We Consume”, The Farmer’s Magazine, January to June, Volume the 39^th, Third Series, [Rogers and Tuxford, London, 1871], page 283-284, https://books.google.com/books?id=bgtOAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA283&dq=the+preference+which+the+horse+commonly+shows+to+pond+water&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjKyrqdsLnrAhUYlnIEHcZiCjcQ6AEwAXoECAQQAg#v=onepage&q=the%20preference%20which%20the%20horse%20commonly%20shows%20to%20pond%20water&f=false, accessed August 26, 2020

 

Fraser, Ellie; “You can lead a horse to water, but should it drink?”, Horse Family Magazine, August 2, 2011, (updated June 28, 2020), [© 2020 Horse Family Magazine], https://www.horsefamilymagazine.com/you-can-lead-a-horse-to-water-but-should-it-really-be-drinking-this-stuff/#:~:text=This%20will%20vary%20per%20horse,their%20water%20supply%20changes%20abruptly., accessed August 23, 2020

 

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Saint Seraphim of Sarov”, [©2020 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.], https://www.britannica.com/topic/mysticism, accessed August 25, 2020

 

Mills, John; A Treatise on Cattle, [Dublin, 1776], page 77-78, https://books.google.com/books?id=hYYaAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA77&lpg=PA77&dq=%22Clear+river+water+is+the+best,+and+accordingly%22&source=bl&ots=ezsPgeiuaL&sig=ACfU3U2qFJ5KHNZwIB7uIppKNhnUJ6LlVw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjvmOibpbnrAhVoUN8KHbmNAWoQ6AEwAXoECAEQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22Clear%20river%20water%20is%20the%20best%2C%20and%20accordingly%22&f=false, accessed August 26, 2020

 

The Sportsman’s Dictionary, Vol. I, [Printed for C. Hitch, at the Red Lion, London, 1735], section DRA, page 4, https://books.google.com/books?id=jy4PAAAAYAAJ&pg=PP196&dq=will+horses+ever+drink+bad+water&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSzYadmLXrAhWRKs0KHfN0Bg0Q6AEwBnoECAAQAg#v=onepage&q=will%20horses%20ever%20drink%20bad%20water&f=false, accessed August 24, 2020

 

Torrey, Jesse, Jun.; A Mental Museum, for the Rising Generation, [Thomas Desilver, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1829], pages 199-200, https://books.google.com/books?id=_d8NAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA199&dq=drinking+bad+water&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjnl7Dvw7vrAhWKknIEHQEfBYg4qAUQ6AEwBnoECAgQAg#v=onepage&q=drinking%20bad%20water&f=false, accessed August 27, 2020

 

u/welcometothezone, “A Polish soldier ‘bonding’ with his horse, 1980-1990”, https://www.reddit.com/r/HistoryPorn/comments/6qdcbm/polish_soldier_bonding_with_his_horse_198090s/, accessed August 23, 2020

 

Webster, T.; and Parkes, Mrs.; American Family Encyclopedia Of Useful Knowledge, [J. C. Derby, New York, 1856], page 1115, https://books.google.com/books?id=sVtHAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA1115&dq=will+horses+ever+drink+bad+water&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjH6qSso7XrAhVXbs0KHYSkAiQ4ChDoATAJegQICRAC#v=onepage&q=will%20horses%20ever%20drink%20bad%20water&f=false, accessed August 24, 2020

 

Wilson, Arthur R., Captain, Field Artillery, U.S. Army; Field Artillery Manual, Volume One, Third Revised Edition, [George Banta Publishing Company, Menasha, Wisconsin, 1928]