digestive health
It can be hard to get a picky eater to consume enough calories to maintain optimal condition. Digestive aids, such as probiotics and yeast cultures, keep the digestive system in balance, which helps to stimulate a horse’s appetite. A balanced digestive tract utilizes feedstuffs more efficiently, so the horse benefits more from the feed he or she is eating. Article written by KPP staff. Copyright (C) 2013 Kentucky Performance Products,... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Tips and Topics
Most of us know that horses can suffer from equine gastric ulcers syndrome (EGUS), a condition where horses develop ulcers in their stomachs. Horses can also develop ulcers in their large intestines. This condition is referred to as colonic ulcers or right dorsal colitis (RDC). In a recent study of 545 horses tested for RDC, 44% of nonperformance horses and 65% of performance horses had colonic ulcers. Although they are not as prevalent as gastric ulcers,... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Nutritional Minutes | Tips and Topics
May 2009 Horse Health Article American Association of Equine Practitioners The number one killer of horses is colic. Colic is not a disease, but rather a combination of signs that alert us to abdominal pain in the horse. Colic can range from mild to severe, but it should never be ignored. Many of the conditions that cause colic can become life threatening in a relatively short period of time. Only by quickly and accurately recognizing colic –... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Health & Management | Tips and Topics
Gas colic is one of the more common types of colic and one of the least serious. It is caused when excess gas collects at some point in the horse’s intestinal tract, causing it to become distended. The distended gut stimulates pain receptors within the intestine, which then signals the horse’s brain that trouble is brewing. During a bout of gas colic, the abdominal pain may come and go, causing the horse to exhibit severe discomfort for... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Health & Management | Tips and Topics
Here are five tips to make sure your feed room and hayloft are ready for winter. 1. Clean out your feed room. A clean feed room will help to reduce feed losses due to insect and rodent damage. It will also give you more room to store and properly manage your feed, hay, and supplements. Toss any feed or supplements that are out of date, moldy or that rodents or insects have damaged. Clean up any spilled feed that may attract hungry... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Essential Vitamins | Fat & Fiber | Health & Management | Tips and Topics | Valuable Nutrients
By Gayle Ecker, Director of Equine Guelph The fall is a time of lovely colours, family get-togethers and winding down the busy show season. However, fall is often a time of increased colic calls to veterinarians. While not all colic can be prevented, paying attention to your management of the horse can go a long way to decrease the incidence, and the suffering of episodes. Colic, which is actually not a disease itself but a sign of stomach... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Health & Management | Tips and Topics
Once known as a stable vice, cribbing is now considered by equine behaviorists as a stereotypical oral behavior. Cribbing behavior (sometimes referred to as crib-biting) is rarely, if ever, seen in free-living feral horses but is frequently found in domesticated horses, leading researchers to believe that such unwanted behavior is caused by the way we manage our horses. When a horse cribs he grabs onto a solid object with his teeth, arches his neck, pulls... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Health & Management | Tips and Topics
One of the most prevalent myths in the realm of horse nutrition today is that bran mashes are good for horses. Horse folks have long fed bran mashes for a variety of reasons: to act as a laxative and prevent constipation, to increase water intake, to add fiber to the diet, and everyone’s favorite, to warm their horse up on a cold night. Unfortunately, the negative effects of an irregular bran mash greatly outweigh the perceived positive ones. Wheat... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Fat & Fiber | Tips and Topics
Over the past couple of decades improved management, nutrition, and veterinary care have contributed to increase longevity in today’s horse population. It is not unusual to hear of horses living well into their thirties. As horses age, the wear and tear of a lifetime of activity takes its toll on joints, leading to the development of arthritis. While there is no cure for arthritis, there are ways we can keep older horses more comfortable. What is... Read More »
Category : Health & Management | Tips and Topics
Horses 18 years of age and older are considered geriatric or senior horses. Some horses, like some humans, age more gracefully than others. Frequently, older horses struggle to maintain a healthy body weight. The reduced ability to absorb nutrients from the diet As horses age, the wear and tear of a lifetime of exposure to parasites and other damaging events negatively affect the efficiency of their gastrointestinal tract. Even horses on stringent... Read More »
Category : Health & Management | Tips and Topics
In every aspect of our lives we strive for balance. As owners and caretakers of horses we should also make every attempt to achieve balance in their lives too. We try to balance exercise with stall rest and stall rest with turnout. We try to provide balance in their nutrition as well. Understanding how to balance forage intake with concentrate intake is critical to ensuring optimal nutrition and energy balance. Concentrates are the portion of the diet we... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Fat & Fiber | Nutritional Minutes | Tips and Topics
We have all heard that certain horses exposed to stressful contiditons are at a higher risk of developing ulcers and hindgut imbalances, but did you know that how and what you feed your horse can also increase the likelihood of damaging his or her sensitive digestive tract? One of the most important facets of equine management is learning what strategies should be used to ensure digestive tract health in the horses you care for. Extensive research has... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Health & Management | Tips and Topics
The original Neigh-Lox®, with the blue label, was developed in 1996 to address the ever-growing problem of stomach ulcers in horses. Neigh-Lox’s proprietary formula maintains normal stomach pH by buffering excess gastric acid and coating the stomach. Four ounces (2 scoops) of Neigh-Lox helps maintain normal stomach pH for 6 to 8 hours. Neigh-Lox can be offered two to three times daily to horses that are at high risk for developing ulcers due to... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Tips and Topics
A scoop of grain and two fluffy flakes of hay in the morning. A scoop of grain and two fluffy flakes of hay in the late afternoon. A few hours of turnout on mediocre pasture sometime during the day. Sound familiar? This feeding pattern is repeated almost without thought, but is it best for a horse? Does it sufficiently mimic a horse’s natural desire to graze, and does it keep a horse’s gastrointestinal tract in tip-top shape? Or is a horse... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Tips and Topics
Bugs? What bugs? Horses are hindgut fermenters. In other words, the hindgut portion of your horse’s digestive tract contains millions of beneficial bacteria and yeast, often referred to as microbes or “bugs.” These bugs have the ability to break down otherwise indigestible fiber into digestible compounds through a process called symbiotic microbial fermentation. Both the horse and the bugs benefit from this process. By joining forces, the bugs and... Read More »
Category : Digestive Health | Nutritional Minutes | Tips and Topics
