Do you struggle with your horse’s stress levels? Horses are creatures of habit and are uneasy when in new environments, changing social groups, or when their routine is disrupted. Stress and anxiety can also be caused by boredom or a lack of stimulation, inappropriate exercise programs, pain and discomfort, or changes in their feeding program.
If your horse is an easy keeper, sometimes it can seem like they get fat off of air. Some equine breeds are known for being more metabolically efficient than others. These horses may have metabolisms that preferentially favour fat storage. Any excess energy in the diet can result in weight gain.
Horses involved in endurance riding require appropriate fitness training, careful management, and balanced nutrition to support stamina and recovery. Endurance racing may involve horses covering up to 100 miles or 160 kilometres in a single day. This poses challenges with maintaining energy, hydration and soundness. During intense training and competition, endurance horses can have 60% higher energy demands compared to horses at maintenance.
Gastric ulcers are lesions in the horse's stomach that can cause pain, recurrent colic, poor exercise tolerance, weight loss and behavioural changes in your horse. Ulcers in the squamous (upper) region of the stomach form when gastric acids come into direct contact with the stomach lining, resulting in erosion of this barrier.
If you have a horse prone to laminitis, deciding what to feed can be stressful. Feeding a diet that is too rich in sugars can make things worse for your horse and lead to flare-ups. But there are some simple rules you can follow to feed your horse appropriately and reduce the risk of an acute laminitis episode.
Veterinarians report that they are treating more horses for hyperlipidemia, potentially as a result of modern sedentary lifestyles and the feeding of high-carbohydrate diets. This life-threatening condition commonly occurs in ponies, miniature horses, and donkeys with insulin resistance.
Kelp is a species of seaweed that is a nutritionally-dense source of protein and trace minerals. It contains the essential mineral iodine, which is important for thyroid function, growth and metabolism.
Cribbing, also known as crib-biting, is the most common oral stereotypic behaviour seen in horses. Cribbing involves the horse repeatedly and compulsively grasping an object between its teeth and sucking in air. Horses may crib bite for many hours per day, reducing time for other important activities such as eating and socializing.
What do you need to know to properly care for and feed your horse in the cold winter months? Horses are very adaptable to a wide range of temperatures and are well-suited to living in cold climates. However, you may need to adjust your feeding and management practices when the weather turns cold to keep up with your horse's higher calorie demands.
Curcumin, derived from the turmeric plant, is a spice that recently become popular to feed to horses as a dietary supplement. It has purported anti-inflammatory benefits and is used in horses with laminitis, arthritis, metabolic syndrome and other health conditions. Turmeric has long been used in traditional herbal medicine to help relieve symptoms associated with digestive, skin, respiratory and joint disorders.
De-worming your horse is an important practice to prevent health complications associated with internal parasites. Worms, also known as helminths, are large endoparasites which live within horses and other mammals. In high numbers, they can result in colic, weight loss, intestinal impaction and lead to organ damage.
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