Paralegal Leads a Horse to Water

You lead your horse to water. Horse Quencher will make it drink.

The product, created and sold by three horse-loving friends, has become a hit among equestrians and leisure riders for convincing their otherwise finicky friends to drink water, no matter what the source.

“If they're used to a certain water, and they're out on a trip, they're not going to drink,” said Horse Quencher co-founder Anne Kusmich. “When you throw this in, it's like a treat.”

Kusmich, Leslie Reiss and Nancy Issenman are the “Quencher girls” — three businesswomen whose company, Equatic Solutions, is devoted solely to developing and marketing Horse Quencher. In two years, they've sold 15 tons of the trail mix-like concoction.

Reiss lives in Upper Makefield and Kusmich and Issenman live in Hunterdon County, N.J. The three women met over their love of horses. Kusmich and Reiss breed and sell horses, while Issenman is a former show jumper who's an avid trail rider.

Kusmich developed the “horsy cocktail” for a pregnant mare that refused to drink. A friend suggested throwing some feed into the water, and she started to experiment with different ingredients that would appeal to her horse.

“Everybody would say to me, "You should market this,' ” Kusmich said. “I'm a paralegal and a barn manager. What do I know about marketing?”

Kusmich, Issenman and Reiss would meet in Reiss' kitchen to make up batches of Horse Quencher. For marketing help, they turned to Reiss' husband, Gary, a serial entrepreneur who's owned a variety of businesses. Gary Reiss is Equatic Solutions' chief executive officer.

Issenman, a retired municipal clerk who runs the business full time, took the cocktail to an equine nutritionist to help develop the final product, a mixture of all-natural ingredients including molasses, salt and grains. It comes in four horse-friendly flavors — apple, peppermint, butterscotch and root beer — and is available for $29.99 in a 2.5-pound bucket or 10 single-serving sizes. They've had to refund only two customers whose horses didn't like it, they said.

The mix was recently named the Official Hydration Product of the American Endurance Ride Conference, the national governing body for endurance horseback riding in the United States. The product is available online, as well as in feed stores nationwide.

“The ball is starting to roll in the right direction,” Reiss said.

Horses are particular about the water they drink, and may not drink water they're not used to, said Megan Campbell, a veterinarian at the Mid Atlantic Equine Medical Center in Ringoes, N.J. For years, horse owners have tried numerous tricks to get their horses to drink, adding apple juice, molasses or other treats to the water.

Horse Quencher, she said, has been a hit with most horses she's given it to.

“This theory has been around for a long time,” she said. “Someone's finally put in a sellable product.”

Issenman said they're making a profit, but putting the money back into the business. The goal this year is to continue the company's expansion across the U.S. Once they achieve that, Issenman said they may add new products, possibly for other finicky animals.

“Someday, you'll see Horse Quencher at the Kentucky Derby,” Kusmich said. “That would be great.” (Source)