Soy: The Good, Bad and Confusing!
If there’s any horse feed that can cause heated debate about whether or not it is suitable and even valuable for horses- then soy may well take the cake. For
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Gastrointestinal (Gut) Health
Feeding The Injured Horse
Injuries in our horses can be frustrating and upsetting occurrences- and more often than not, they tend to occur when our horses are coming along really well. Ironically, although we
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Laminitis
Spring is here in the Southern Hemisphere! Which means crisp nights with longer daylight hours and warmer weather. After a long, cold winter-this weather is a welcome relief. But it
Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Horses: Rethinking The Use of Corticosteroids
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) in horses refers to a group of intestinal diseases that are caused by the infiltration of different types of inflammatory cells into the mucosal and submucosal
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Ulcers in Horses: The importance of understanding how medications work
There’s much interest in ulcers in horses and for very good reason. Equine gastric ulcer syndrome (EGUS) affects 60-90% of adult horses and 25-50% of foals and weanlings. The condition
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Foals & Colostrum
With foaling season now upon us in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s worth taking a moment to appreciate the importance of good quality colostrum. Colostrum provides antibodies (immunoglobulins), which are concentrated
Why do horses wind suck and crib bite?
Wind sucking or crib biting in horses is most likely to first occur in association with boredom and lack of forage/grazing. Most people are well aware that a diet high in
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Ulcer Medications: What Nobody Tells You and What You Need To Know
The most commonly used equine ulcer medications on the market generally come under names containing Gastro/Ulcer/Guard and contain the active ingredient omeprazole, which belongs to the class of drugs known
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Laminitis: How Naturopathy Can Help
What is laminitis? Laminitis is a painful, often devastating inflammatory condition affecting the lamellar tissue of the foot. Each hoof contains 550-600 primary laminae, and each of those consists of
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Fibre, Chewing and Gastrointestinal Health
Forages and fibre rich foods which require much chewing, comprise the base starting point for a diet which promotes health in the horse. Chewing results in the production of saliva.
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Corticosteroids. STOP and THINK!
Corticosteroids, more specifically glucocorticoids, are a group of potent anti-inflammatory and
immunosuppressive drugs that are frequently used in horses.
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Ulcer Medications: The Potential Impact on Stallion Fertility
With stud season rapidly approaching in the Southern Hemisphere, it is important to evaluate factors that influence stallion fertility. Many people are unaware of the potential effects routinely used medications
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Devil’s Claw and Ulcers
Many people are familiar with the terrific anti-inflammatory herb Devil’s Claw. This herb is predominantly used in cases of osteoarthritis and to reduce the inflammation and pain associated with injuries
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Nutrient Requirements for Horses: Fortified Feeds and the need for Supplementation
The vast majority of racehorses, performance horses and breeding stock are fed fortified feeds or balancer rations, which are designed to meet the daily nutrient requirements of horses. These nutrient
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Lignophagia: Why Do Some Horses Chew Wood?
Lignophagia (or chewing wood) is an all-too common behaviour observed in horses. Whilst it can be both practical and tempting to lather stable boards and fence posts with products to
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Foal Heat Scours and Diarrhoea
‘Foal Heat Scours’ is one of the most common types of diarrhoea to affect foals. Yet the name is a bit of a misnomer, and often leads to confusion as
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Vitamin K: The role of Gut Health and the Effect on Bone Health and Insulin Resistance
Vitamin K is a most important nutrient, which is derived from bacterial synthesis in the horse’s large intestine. For optimal levels of vitamin K to be produced, the horse must
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What Supplements are best for building Topline?
Topline describes the muscle coverage over the top of the horse’s neck, back and hindquarters. The strength of topline muscles can influence soundness and athletic ability of the horse.Now let’s
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NSAIDs and Ulcer Medications Together? Think Again
Most horse people are aware that the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) drugs (phenylbutazone, flunixin, firocoxib, etc) compromise gastrointestinal (GI) health in the horse. This comes about through inhibiting several
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