equine obesity

Spring grass – how do we manage intake?

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While “Dr Green” can be the best medicine in some cases, for others, it can cause problems.

Grass contains simple sugars (that are produced in daylight hours via photosynthesis) and fructan, (sugar in its storage form). Known as WSC or “water soluble carbohydrates”, high intakes can lead to laminitis, insulin dysregulation, and weight gain. WSC levels can vary depending on temperature, soil fertility and moisture, so it is often hard to determine the best time for turnout.

Also, it may not be the grass itself that is the issue. Sometimes, simply the change of routine (going from being stabled on dry hay or sparse pasture to being turned out on grass) is enough to trigger a bout of colic. Your horse’s digestive system will be unused to the non-structural carbohydrates in grass and this can cause digestive upsets and therefore colic.

Grazing muzzles, strip grazing and timed turnout amongst other options can be used to help control your horse’s intake of grass. However, when managing weight, care must be taken not to restrict fibre intake too much as gastric ulcers may result. If you’d like advice regarding spring grass, associated issues and how best to manage your horse’s weight or diet, do speak to us!

Sweet itch

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Its the time of year when we should start to consider sweet itch and helping our horses to deal with insect hypersensitivity.
Although this localised allergic reaction can be very uncomfortable for your horse or pony, there are various things that can be done to lessen the impact:

  • topical shampoos
  • stable horses at dawn and dusk when midges are most active.
  • insecticidal sprays
  • keep horse away from areas of standing water, woods and trees.
  • use special fly rugs/hoods.
  • Use fans in stables (midges are poor fliers!)
  • In some cases small doses of steroids may be appropriate.

If your horse is suffering from sweet itch and you’d like advice on management or other forms of treatment, do give us a call.

Laminitis

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Laminitis can be extremely debilitating for horses. The laminae (that hold the pedal bone to the wall of the hoof) become inflamed and this can cause the pedal bone to rotate or drop.

There are conditions that can put a horse at risk of suffering laminitis such as EMS or Cushing’s (PPID) so it is important to consider that there may be underlying issues, rather than just putting it down to an excess of spring grass. If your horse or pony seems to get recurrent bouts of laminitis despite being on an appropriate dietary regime, it may be an idea to get a blood test done to screen for hormonal diseases that could be the culprit. The good news is that many cases can then be managed with medication and supportive shoes or pads when necessary.