Category Archives: Health & Nutrition

Horses and Headshaking: Symptoms and Remedies

Posted on August 29, 2011 | 1 comment

Marijke van de Water

A SPECIAL POST BY MARIJKE VAN DE WATER, B.SC., DHMS

Question: I have an 18 year old horse who has been head shaking for several months. He only used to do it when we rode but it is now almost constant. I’ve tried everything from diet changes to medications but have had no success. I am at a loss as to how I can help him.

Answer from Marijke van de Water: Head-shaking syndrome symptoms include flinging and jerking the head – sometimes violently – sneezing, scratching, nose-rubbing and any other activities that seem to give them relief, including blowing the nose, holding the nose under water or sticking their heads into trees or corners. They often become lethargic and/or depressed as the constant discomfort “gets them down”. Many of these horses have been tested with blood work, X-rays, scopes and/or scans but unfortunately most times there are no positive results.
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Why am I posting so much about our horse’s feeds?

Posted on April 9, 2011 | 3 comments

I’ve had a lot of emails but since I’ve started posting about GM feeds, I have had thousands! Within 3 days of posting the GM Alfalfa issue, I had more emails and responses and downloads of the brochure than all the other posts on this blog! (I have been answering the questions as fast as I can: sorry for the “blanket” response to most but I’m getting overwhelmed with emails). I’m proud of all of you! We care for our horse from the inside out! You are paying attention!

“We care for our horse from the inside out.” April

Since everyone is listening, I will add another important post on feed. This one deals with chemicals. While our horses rarely see pesticides on our hays, it’s important to know where your hay comes from. Growing next to fields that use sprays (especially aerial spraying) means your hay crop will be contaminated.

A few years ago, I watched a farmer spraying a crop of peas. The cloud of insecticide drifted over to a horse facility and landed on 2 ponies and a quarter horse belonging to a friend of mine. In less than 6 months, the quarter horse lost weight and died. The 2 ponies lived, but one is still suffering.

The vets concluded that it could have been from vaccines. While I agree (as I don’t like vaccines), I did watch the insecticide cloud drift for 3 days in a row over to their small field. The other horses were not directly in the drift. The vets dismissed my findings.

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Please Print and Hand Out GMO Flyers To Feed Stores

Posted on March 21, 2011 | 8 comments

Hi everyone! Seems as if the Genetically Modified Feed articles I have posted recently far exceed any of the hits to the training posts! I am glad, because it means you care about taking “beautiful care” of your horses on the inside as well as the outside!

I’d like to ask you to download the PDF files of a brochure on GE alfalfa, corn, sugar and soy, as it applies to your horse’s health, and distribute it to every place you can think of:

Feed Stores: bring them a handful and let them know you are not going to buy GM (GE, GMO) alfalfa when it’s harvested and baled at the end of this year.

Distribute it to: Tack stores – Horse organizations – Stables – Breeders – Local clubs – Horse shows and events – Friends – Put it out across the big wide web!

The most pressing issue for me are the 2011 sterility reports on humans. Within a single generation of eating GM foods, we are now seeing a proliferation of men with sterility problems ( http://scholar.google.ca/scholar?q=2011+sterility+and+gmo&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart http://www.google.ca/search?q=2011+sterility+and+gmo&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a). This is the beginning: don’t let it happen to your horses or animals.

A big thank you to everyone that’s taking this seriously. Yes, it will be an inconvenience getting non-GM alfalfa at the end of 2011, but we have time to turn it around with your help! So get these brochures downloaded and printed, and get them to your feed stores first – educate them if you can, but make sure they know you will not be buying this garbage, whose advantages are only for the profit of large corporations.

GE Alfalfa Brochure inside: Horse Industry Brochure Inside

GE Alfalfa Brochure outside:Horse Industry GE-GMO Alfalfa Brochure outside

Caution: the files are large, so if you have trouble printing kilobytes right now, this may be a long process. To start, print the outside PDF first. Then reinsert them into your printer again and print the inside. You may have to fiddle to get it right side up! If your paper jams on the second pass, let the paper sit flat for a day and it will feed better. On the outside sheet you will notice a tiny dot near the photo of the little girl feeding the horse, and another by the two horses discussing the cons of eating GE Alfalfa. Those dots are for you to find the “fold” when you are folding these brochures. This makes it real easy for you to get your brochures looking real nice. You will notice the inside fold is shorter: I planned it that way! I have to say this or else I will get hundreds of emails wondering why this doesn’t work. I have also added photos of the brochure below.

Happy printing and folding, and I’m interested to hear your stories and comments about your GE alfalfa blitz!! And as always, you can email me at: aprilreeves at shaw dot ca


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Monsanto buys off Therapeutic Riding Facility

Posted on March 10, 2011 | 2 comments

I know I may not be a popular horse person with this, but it’s time we all saw the dragon for what it is. Once again, Monsanto is buying people’s favor, one desperate industry at a time.

A therapeutic riding facility in Henry County, Tennessee, has received $2,500 as part of a program administered by the Monsanto Fund.

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My pony has problems breathing and is extending his legs while walking and trotting. Any ideas?

Posted on March 1, 2011 | Leave a comment

Question: My pony suddenly started to breathe hard and extends his legs while trotting and walking. Is this normal? What should I do? This is not normal for him.

Answer from April Reeves: This is typical of a horse/pony in the beginning stages of laminitis. It is crucial that you have a vet out immediately. Laminitis comes first before founder, and once your pony passes into the founder stages, it’s not easy to bring a horse/pony back, if ever, once the coffin bone rotates and drops.

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Genetically Engineered Alfalfa and Your Horse

Posted on February 11, 2011 | 4 comments

A new product is about to be force fed to your horse that you need to know about: Genetically modified alfalfa.

In Canada and the US, 2011 is the first year for GE alfalfa planting. For those asking why a horse owner should care, I have written the details so that you become educated on this. Feeding horses should be as important as learning how to ride and train.

What is GE Alfalfa? Monsanto has altered (in a lab) the alfalfa plant to be pesticide resistant. That means, every cell in the plant will produce a pesticide strong enough to kill bugs when they bite into it, AND allow farmers to spray pesticides as they need.

Non-GE Alfalfa (what our horses have eaten for decades) does not need to be sprayed. It rarely has weed issues or insect problems. The crop is often grown in-between other crops to bring nitrogen back to the soil. It has no need of modification, as it already is a wonderful plant just as it is!

Now, your horse will be exposed to chemicals two ways: through the cellular level in the plant, and through spraying, a process not necessary in the past. In short, there was no need to modify alfalfa. GE alfalfa was also not intended to be fed long term to any animal.

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Guliz Unlu: The Hunter Bump

Posted on January 4, 2011 | 3 comments

Question: My question is, my horse has a goose rump but someone called it a hunter bump. It’s very pointy and my horse is sore if I touch it there. Can you work on it and take it down? If so, how?

Answer from Guliz Unlu, Equine Energy Body Worker: Hi Cayley – The lumbar span is the weakest area of the horses back, unlike the spine above or below, which has ribs and pelvis attached, the lumbar span has no other supporting bones. This is an area where much of the riders weight is carried…

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Horses and Genetically Modified foods – A recipe for survival or extinction?

Posted on December 30, 2010 | 16 comments

I have received a lot of emails about GM feeds, so I compiled a post that describes the basic information you need to know about GM in horse feeds, and the potential issues and dangers around them. I also post any new issues at the bottom of this page.

GMO – Genetically modified organisms are mankind’s way of producing desired effects within a plant/animal that nature either has not done yet, or cannot do. GM plants are created in a lab by scientists, that alter the DNA of the plant by adding a foreign gene into the plant’s DNA (one example was the flounder fish gene in tomatoes). It’s not an exact science, in the aspect that it works first time, every time. It can take years to perfect, adding millions to the cost of the experiment. The most common alteration to the plants horses eat (corn, sugar) is the addition of Bt bacteria, which alters the plant to resist the intense continual spraying of pesticides on the plants without killing them. It also allows any insects that come into contact with that plant to die from trying to eat it.

Think about this for a second, and then continue reading.

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Canadian Bill C-544 put forward to ban horse slaughter

Posted on June 17, 2010 | Leave a comment

April: I rarely get into this sort of thing but I’m also a big “foodie” when it comes to humans and horses, so this post has to be shown. Alex Atamanenko is a huge supporter of Genetically Modified-Free Alfalfa, which, for horse owners, is a great thing! Believe me, we don’t want GMO alfalfa or wheat in Canada. Ever. I work hard to petition and keep it from entering. It has the potential to make all our alfalfa-eating horses ill: very very ill.

There are several issues around banning horse slaughter. One is simple: ignorant horse owners will simply abandon their horses somewhere or leave them to starve. An ugly truth for anyone that has come across this, but the horse world does have this reputation of attracting some of the bottom dregs of society (I don’t mince words and I don’t apologize for them). Secondly, Canada is about to put tons of our taxpaying dollars into an “Equine Passport” that no one can completely control. Once again.

I just lost a horse: I put him down as it was the humane thing to do. Someone commented after that I could have made $500 on his carcass. My horse was so full of antibiotics, bute, other chemicals and drugs to keep him alive for those 6 days that I’m sure his “meat” would have killed someone. But yes, I could have released him into society, if I lacked integrity.

Take a read on this and let me know what you think. Should we propose some “law/rule/governance” that every horse owner should partake in, such as a fee for euthanizing that goes into the “coffers” before a horse is bought? Or ????

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JUNE 17, 2010

ATAMANENKO MOVES TO BAN HORSE MEAT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION

OTTAWA – New Democrat Agriculture Critic, Alex Atamanenko (BC southern Interior) tabled a Private Members Bill (C-544) yesterday that would effectively shut down the slaughtering of horses for human consumption in Canada.

“The fact is that drugs which are prohibited for use during the life of any animals destined for the human food supply are routinely being administered to horses,” said Atamanenko. “It is irresponsible for Canada to allow the sale of meat from horses as a food item when they have never been raised in accordance with the food safety practices required for all other animals.”

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Horses and Genetically Modified forages: Are we Moving Our Horses Toward Extinction?

Posted on March 28, 2010 | 11 comments

Hello everyone. I rarely speak about “issues” in the horse world, but this is too big and too important to walk away from.

Our horse’s forages: alfalfa and hay – are in potential peril, and within a few years may be gone forever. Here’s the story:

All Alfalfa and Wheat may be Genetically Modified in North America in the next few years

GE corporations (Monsanto & others) are working hard to push their untested GMO alfalfa and wheat crops in the US and Canada. The US already has 5332 acres of RoundUp Ready alfalfa (since 2004). There is no wheat yet anywhere. Because the alfalfa was grown before it was approved, it was halted and is undergoing additional testing and environmental studies. No human or horse studies have been done to prove this is safe. No long term studies are ever done on any GMO foods. Many independent tests show serious health issues (Genetic Roulette).

Horses have evolved over thousands of years, naturally

Horses are sensitive to their environments and their feeds: any horse owner who has any level of awareness of their animal understands this. Their bodies have evolved slowly over time to adjust to changing plant types and feeds. However, along came man, and believed that he/she could do better than Mother Nature. As we asked more of our horse, we began to alter the feeds we give them.

The horse, though, has evolved for years, slowly, methodically, and if you look at the timeline to how many years we have been changing his natural diet, it’s really not that long (20-30 years). It has been a dramatic ride for the horse: from field to stalls: from hay to concentrates and feeds he would never find in the wild (soy, corn, heavy oils).

It’s not working. Horses are getting fatty liver diseases, insulin resistance, heart attacks, cancers and the same type of health issues humans have (that eat high fat and carb diets). And now there’s another issue to add to the mix: genetic modification. Thirty years ago this was unheard of. Last year 6 horses under the age of 10 died from cancer in my area.

What is Genetically Modified foods and why should you be concerned for your horse?

Genetic modification has many levels of concern attached to it, from health to environment and corporate control. We’ll take a look at each one so you have a good general knowledge of the problems horse owners may face.

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Watch a newborn foal on Barnmice webcam!

Posted on February 10, 2010 | Leave a comment

Barnmice has a webcam set up to watch and record the births of 4 mares (mare stare), due any day now. Head over to Barnmice, create an account if you want (not necessary to get hooked on the proceedings) and keep vigil. Most mares foal in the early morning hours, so if anyone gets to see this please let the rest of us (who sleep through all this stuff) know.

Barnmice Live Foal Cam

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Calling all horse owners: stop GM Alfalfa!!

Posted on January 28, 2010 | Leave a comment

Please send this to every horse owner you know!

I’m involved in politics when it comes to horses. I am a food activist and have spent years studying and understanding food and how it impacts us and our horses. I lecture and speak all over the country on this, and I’m asking for your help.

I want our horses to be able to eat healthy, non-toxic foods and I want to be able to buy horse feeds without fear of this. However, those of you who feed sweet feed – you are feeding GMO, Genetically Modified Organisms. The corn 20 years ago is no longer the same. It has been genetically altered (DNA has been changed) and contains deadly bacteria (Bt), viruses, and pesticides/herbicides. While this may not matter to you, the rise in cancer and other serious health problems in young horses leave one suspect, especially when you didn’t even hear of a horse getting cancer 40 years ago. In 2009 in my area 6 died from cancer before the age of 10.

Please read through this and decide for yourself. I hope that you act and send your letters in today. Your horse will thank you for it by living a long, healthy life. We don’t want GM foods, not for us or our animals!

Appeal to farmers and consumers – Act now to stop GM alfalfa.

Send your comments to the US Department of Agriculture by February 16,
2010.

Its not yet legal for Monsanto to sell its GM alfalfa seeds in Canada
but a US injunction on planting in that country could soon be
overturned. If GM alfalfa is planted in the US, it will quickly
contaminate our food system as well as Canadian alfalfa crops. It will
also lead to the legalization of GM alfalfa in Canada (Canada approved
Monsanto’s GM Roundup Ready alfalfa in 2005 but it still needs variety
registration as a last step before commercialization here).
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How do I feed my yearling Arabian filly correctly?

Posted on January 11, 2010 | 3 comments

Question: I have a yearling Arabian filly that I want to feed correctly. I have gone through countless pages of books, online websites, and opinions from feed stores, friends, trainers, and breeders. EVERYONE is an ‘expert’ – no one has a consistent opinion and I’m getting frustrated.

What I DO know, is that she is doing really well on her Orchard/Alfalfa (30% alfalfa or less) and now that she’s a yearling I want to drop her protein from 16% to 14%. She gets 2 qt/day of the grain. She’s ok on the feed I was giving her, but I DON”T like how sweet it was. She has free access to the hay, and I want to put her on something that she will truly benefit from as far as her graining. I saw in another post your comments on Arabians and sweet feed and its effects on their coat and system.

What are your opinions on feeding the Growing Arabian Yearling? Do you think their tendency to take a little longer to mature physically should change the “regular” young horses diet? In what way?

Answer from April Reeves: When it comes to feeding first ask 2 things:

1. Are there foodstuffs in the product that a horse would not find in the wild (molasses, sugars, especially refined, corn, soy, oils)?

2. Do the feeds you purchase (concentrates) have studies done by the manufacturer themselves? Many companies are jumping on the ‘trends’ bandwagon, meaning they build what horse owners want. Problem is, not all horse owners have a clue as to what their horses actually ‘need’. We tend to overfeed our horses, pumping them with chemicals, diets and concentrates that they really don’t need and their liver and kidneys sure don’t! I’m always questioning the motives behind a feed company’s choice of ingredients. Many are in it for the quick dollar, not the simple science of the horse.

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Can you wash a horse too much?

Posted on January 7, 2010 | Leave a comment

Question: Can you wash your horse to much? I have never had a problem with this but I wash my horse about once a week  in the summer. I thing its good for the horse and me. lol. I turn her loose and she just roles in the dirt when I’m done but someone told me it was unhealthy to wash your horse this much. (my brothers wife said that, been eating on me,  they dont like how I train or even ride my horse because I am way into Natural Horsemanship and they do things cowboy way but hay you never no she might be right so thought I’d ask. Dont want to hurt my horse)

Answer from April Reeves: If you are using soap every week, you are likely stripping away essential oils in the coat. I only use soap no more than once a month, if that. I do use water to wash away all sweat and mud on the body and legs, when it is warm enough, and I do that daily! Water alone does not damage the oils. It is important to remove sweat and mud as it will damage the coat and hairs. It also keeps the horse healthier and happier, so spray away every day if you want! Just put the soap bottle away. You will find you won’t need soap at all if you just use water. I don’t know where you live, but we can’t wash off our horses all year ‘round. I make up for it in the summer though. All my horses love to be sprayed; it’s a good thing to get a horse use to.

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Should I buy a 2-year-old Appendix Quarter Horse with potential hock problems?

Posted on December 21, 2009 | 7 comments

Question: I am looking at a 16.3 hand 2 yr old appendix quarter horse gelding. His owner is a college student and can’t afford him anymore so she is selling him for a reasonable price. When he was 1 a bone spur was found on his hock. His owner had him injected with hock injections and has kept up on proper shoeing and neither her nor the trainer have seen any signs of the problem since. He is now 2 and is broken. He has been shown (hunter under saddle, equitation, and showmanship) and has won a good bit of money, and is ridden/worked everyday and hasn’t been injected since. I’m wondering if he could’ve grown out of this or if it is going to give me any future problems, i already have a horse with a badly injured back so i don’t need another hurt horse. I plan to do hunter under saddle, equitation, showmanship, some western pleasure, and some light jumping (around age 5) he will be worked just about everyday and shown almost every weekend. PLEASE HELP!!!!!

Answer from April Reeves: Ouch, there are many things you have written that suggest to me to look somewhere else for a horse. I’m not a vet but after all these years there are certain training methods that show up in physical problems down the road, and riding before the age of 3 is the most prominent.

Regardless of the bone spur, anyone who has started a horse that young and works it every day is setting the horse up for back issues down the road. No, there is never a guarantee of this, but your odds right now of having a horse with back issues are 50% and in my books, that’s 50% too much.

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Non-Invasive Foal Imprinting

Posted on December 11, 2009 | Leave a comment

WELCOME TO THE WORLD – a non-invasive and loving approach to imprinting

By Liz Mitten Ryan

De-sensitization and imprinting are found in every trainers tool box. Their importance to our efficient handling of horses is invaluable. From a human perspective our interaction with horses from handling to riding is safer and less stressful. Its value to a trusting partnership though is dependent on how sensitive and considerate we are to the horse. Is our horse enjoying the relationship more as a result or are they simply dead to the stimulus?

My journey with horses has been an adventure of discovery. I am always looking to refine and enhance the connection and communication, to dance with my horse to the rhythm of joy, love and perfect communion. I know that our journey as spiritual beings seeded in matter is universal. Each and every being is an equal and unique fruition of one consciousness in all life.

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How can I change the behavior of a young colt from acting like a stallion?

Posted on November 10, 2009 | Leave a comment

Question: We have a colt pony that is approx. 18 months old.  He ran the pasture with our 2 geldings and mare for the last 10 months.  He is starting to act like a stud naturally.  We plan on gelding him. But in the mean time how do we keep him from getting so hot headed around the mare.  We have built a wood fenced area for him because when we pasture him separately he just walks through or jumps the fence to get to the mare.

We tried to pasture him with one of the other geldings and they just constantly bite and harass each other. (they also do this when they are all together) Is this just playing or him trying to be the boss because he is a colt?  They remove chunks of hair and skin.

He is becoming hard to handle, throwing his head, pawing the ground and getting pushy.

I know it comes down to training, but I don’t want to do the wrong thing and make him worse.  Any advice would be very helpful.

Answer from April Reeves, Horseman’s U.com: Your attempts to alter your colt’s behavior by changing his surroundings and pasture buddies will not work in any way, shape or form.

Colts (uncastrated males) have a deeper sense of ‘being’ in this world than a gelding does, simply because he has hormones that a gelding doesn’t. It’s that simple, yet we humans still try to ‘correct’ these bad and unwanted behaviors as if the horse was able to communicate like a human. They can’t.

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My horse has an odd angle to her back legs.

Posted on November 7, 2009 | Leave a comment
Good straight back legs

Good straight legs

Question: I have a 4-year-old, 17HH Dutch Warmblood mare that’s got an odd angle to her back legs. When she stands, there is a straight line from hip to hock, but then it dives in.  I want to use her for jumping, but something tells me (gut instinct) that those back legs may not take the work involved. Everyone at the barn tells me that her legs are big so there is no problem, and that I should be riding her by now. What do you think? Can I breed her?

Also, what exercises can I do to strengthen them without having to go over fences?

Answer from April Reeves: Good instincts. This appearance of a sharp angled hock is called ‘camped out’ or ‘sickle hocked’. If you were to stand the mare so that her back legs had a vertical line from top of hock to bottom of pastern, you would find that line would be pushed out behind the point of the hip. Some sickle hocked horses just stand with their back legs up and under, and some (camped out) stand with their back legs out. Sickle hocked horses tend to have too much angle to their hock joints, while ‘camped out’ back legs sit back from the hip line, with the angle more pronounced through the gaskin.

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Why are horses aggressive at feeding and what can you do about it?

Posted on October 13, 2009 | Leave a comment

Hand feeding a horse hayQuestion: My horse is mean at feeding time. She pins her ears back and lunges at the hay in my hands. Yesterday she bit me. I can’t even put grain in her stall any more without her attacking me. Help.

Answer from April Reeves, Horseman’s U.com: First, let’s understand the psychology behind why a horse reacts this way.

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Am I feeding my 6-year-old Arabian properly?

Posted on September 17, 2009 | Leave a comment

Arabians are versatile and fun!Question: I have a feeding/nutrition questions regarding a 6 year old Arab gelding. He is out 24/7 and brought in for feedings. His rations this winter was: 1/2 scoop of sweet feed with 2 pounds Triple Crown Safe Starch for breakfast, then they are turned back out where free choice grass/timothy/alfalfa hay.  I bring him in to feed in the evenings where he gets 2 more pounds of the Safe Starch with 6-10 alfalfa cubes, and 10-12 dry ounces of rice bran which I then moisten, a capful of soy oil (for the omega threes), and cup (8 oz exactly) of sweet feed mixed together.  Once I am done with him he is turned back out for more hay.

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What salt block is best for horses?

Posted on September 11, 2009 | 8 comments

Horses need cobalt in their diets if they don't receive cobalt anywhere else.

Blue cobalt salt block

Question: When we went to buy my new horse a salt block there were so many choices! I was told the brown one was best, then a customer in the store told me to buy the red one, so I didn’t buy anything! And they have blue and white ones too!! Help! Are the colors poisonous?

Answer from April Reeves: In my opinion, the perfect salt block for horses does not exist yet (hint to equine feed manufacturers – form one from sea salt please).

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When should I start my new foal?

Posted on April 27, 2009 | 1 comment

Start your newborn foal earlyQuestion: I’m about to have my first foal (actually my mare is). Everyone has an opinion on when to start this colt. When do you think I should I start this foal?

Answer from April Reeves: My answer is the very first day of his/her life! Colt starting is not just about leaving the foal until it’s 2. If you want a really great horse to ride at the end of the day it all begins from the beginning! Why attempt training later in the horse’s life when you can do it when the horse is a baby? Why spend twice the time trying to fix problems later in life?

Colt starting is not just about riding, but getting your new foal use to you and all that a human offers. Brushing, hoof trimming and handling, leading, standing, tying, spook proofing, trailering – all these can be done the first year of the horse’s life. Don’t make riding your only goal.

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My pony has symptoms we cannot diagnose. Any ideas what he may be suffering from?

Posted on April 23, 2009 | 1 comment

Horses and ponies today face new health issues not seen beforeQuestion: I have a 14 year-old 14-2hh dressage pony mainly tb. We have had him since last July. Around one month ago while my daughter was having a jumping lesson with him he started hyper-extending his left fore leg, only in the trot and perhaps only 3 times that day, as if he had some rubber from my arena stuck in his boot. That week my daughter rode him 4 times and he increasingly did this extending thing with the left leg and by the end of the week was doing it in walk and trot with both front legs. I called my physio who, although could find a few issues with soreness, nothing that would cause this strange behavior. I called a vet out, checked for lameness and he is sound!, Then we lunged him, with side reins and without, no hyper extension. As soon as I got on him he started doing this thing again both in walk and trot and on both reins and with both front legs. Our Vet put the pony on bute and suggested we keep working him. The next day worked him – he was much worse, tried him on just a headcollar and he still did it. I felt it was conditioned behavior as he only did it twice with the headcollar on. But when I was finished he was breathing really heavy, which was not like him, he is very fit worked by myself 4/5 times a week. I called the vet again and he told me to perhaps rest him. That night had to call vet out on emergency as horse not breathing properly. The vet diagnosed mild pneumonia. Put him on antibiotics for two weeks and Ventapulmin. He had a further week off. Vet checked him and declared him fit to start work. He came back into work yesterday and is still doing the hyper-extension thing, only with front left at the moment. I only rode him for around 10/15 min. Today he has been coughing, no mucous. I have no idea what it could be or where to go from here any suggestions would be welcome.

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My older Paso Fino gelding is losing weight trying to protect a mini mare.

Posted on March 30, 2009 | 2 comments

Paso Fino horseQuestion: I have a 20-year old paso fino gelding who looked like a 3-year old, great muscle-tone, he had the perfect weight, et cetera. We also have a miniature mare who he despised until we brought home a paint draft gelding and a pony stallion. Now, Arthur (the paso fino) won’t leave the mini’s side and is stressing himself out over trying to take care of her and keep her from the stallion. He’s lost weight and the vet said to increase his weight to a bucket and a half (hand-held feeders) of grain plus a cup of oats per feeding twice a day. He’s still not gaining any weight, so we upped his weight to 2 buckets of grain and a cupful of oats. Tomorrow we’ll be getting sweet feed for him to see if it bulks up his diet, but his weight just isn’t improving. Are there any supplements you’d suggest?

Answer from April Reeves: Your gelding was the herd leader of his herd of 2 (he and the mini) but when you brought in two others, his natural instincts went from leader to protector. He’s just doing his job.

In this situation you will have to decide whether to fix the problem (separate Arthur and the mini) or change his diet.

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How can I add pasture time to my very thin TB mare?

Posted on March 14, 2009 | Leave a comment

Thin horse needs time to adjust to pasture Question: Hello. I just purchased an 11 yr old 16.1 hh TB brood mare who is very skinny and lost her foal to Placenta Previa about 8 days ago. She was a race horse as well. The man I purchased her from said she was abandoned and took her in and only had her for 4 weeks. He said she has been fed hay most all her life.

I don’t want her to colic and I want her to put weight on. I eventually want her to be in the pasture full-time, but don’t know how to wean her into pasture without her getting colic. Right now I feed her a flake of alfalfa hay in the morning, let her out for about 2 hrs in the afternoon to graze, then another flake of hay early evening, then 5 scoops of senior equine with 2 scoops of wheat bran at night. Is this nearly enough??? I would prefer her to graze more than to get more hay, but I am in fear of her getting colic. Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated! Thank you so much.

Answer from April Reeves: Putting weight on your mare is going to be a slow process. Depending upon her history of neglect, many mares never get good weight back. Once a horse is very thin, it’s a tough road to get back the weight, as much of it is muscle, and severe or prolonged starvation and depleted feeds can waste muscle tissue.

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Help! How can I get my fat Mini thinner?

Posted on March 10, 2009 | Leave a comment

Mini horse and mini donkey share space

Mini horse and mini donkey share space

Question: I have a miniature horse mare and I got her in 2006. She was nice and fit and now she is fat and overweight. She is not pregnant but has been fat for a while now. I am in junior high and I am stuck with school and homework, but I try to get out there and work with her whenever I can. I have cut off grain and made her hay only half a flake now. She seems to MAYBE be losing SOME weight but she is still fat. Is there a way I can get her to lose it? I am thinking of entering her in 4-H and I will be using her in parades and showing, but I need to get her slimmer….

Answer from April Reeves: Because Mini’s are small horses, they fall under the same guidelines for feeding and care that a horse does. They just eat smaller amounts and have less square footage to brush.

Unfortunately, they are not in need of less when it comes to exercise. Because they are small, humans think that Minis are capable of handling very little physical activity. The opposite is true.

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Our mare refuses to nurse her new foal. What can we do?

Posted on March 8, 2009 | Leave a comment

A happy foalQuestion: Mare had a colt 2 days ago and is sour toward her. With coaxing she has let her baby nurse a time or two, but will stop & get irritated. Colt won’t readily take a bottle so we keep trying to get the mare to tolerate her. She is not upset at anyone handling her & doesn’t care to even be with her. The colt gets upset and makes noises at the absence of her mom, but not the other way around. Any way to encourage mare to accept her &/OR good way to get colt to take a bottle? Any good milk substitute you recommend?

Answer from April Reeves: I have run into this problem on occasion. I have never had to separate a mare and foal because of it, nor added milk replacement. You do have a big job ahead of you though.

Some mares experience odd sensations when first letting a foal nurse. They may experience tickling, soreness and irritation. Like some people, some horses are over-sensitive or hypochondriacs. These mares need time to adjust to their new situation.

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Does sleep affect a horse’s behavior? Do they sleep standing up?

Posted on March 5, 2009 | 4 comments

Horse sleeping soundlyQuestion: How is it that horses can stand up and sleep. We are having an argument at our barn. I think it’s an old wives tale, as my horse stands but never seems to fully sleep in this position. We are also arguing about the effects of a light on in the barn all the time. Please, I need your help on this one, as our whole barn is at odds right now! Does sleep affect behavior?

Answer from April Reeves: Horses indeed sleep standing up. They use what’s called “Equine Stay Apparatus”, a system of tendons, ligaments and muscles in the horse’s leg. The lower leg joints lock with assistance from the above and the suspensory apparatus.

These parts work together to keep the horse’s legs in a standing, locked position. While your horse may appear to be awake, he is likely asleep enough to kick out at you if you were to approach him unexpectedly.

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Why do horses crib, and can you eliminate it?

Posted on January 18, 2009 | 1 comment

A SPECIAL POST BY MARIJKE VAN DE WATER, B.Sc., DHMS, Equine Health & Nutrition Specialist

Cribbing horseCribbing – Vice or Pain?

Cribbing is the term we use to describe the behavior wherein horses grasp stationary objects with their upper teeth, arch their necks and swallow or suck in air. Cribbing, although on occasion is habitual and/or behavioral, is almost always a sign of stomach distress.

Horses most often begin to crib in an effort to alleviate stomach discomfort from indigestion, nausea and/or burning. These symptoms are frequently caused by the overfeeding of starches and/or proteins which, over time, creates excess gastric (stomach) fermentation. This hampers both the digestive and buffering capabilities of the stomach and increases levels of unfriendly bacteria and acids damaging the interior of the stomach, resulting in gastritis, gas, acid, nausea and feelings of premature fullness.

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Can you have Marijke van de Water give us some information on laminitis and Metabolic syndrome, in regards to feeding?

Posted on January 15, 2009 | Leave a comment

Marijke speaking at Farm Fair 08A SPECIAL REPORT FROM MARIJKE VAN DE WATER, B.Sc., DHMS

Healing Laminitis & Metabolic Syndrome with Nutrition
A complex condition and number two cause of death in horses, laminitis is related to the over-feeding of grass and grain and is actually a metabolic disease that affects the laminellar tissue; specialized tissue that ensures the structural integrity of the hoof by adhering the coffin bone to the inner hoof wall. Because of the highly vascular nature of the horse’s hoof it is extremely susceptible to inflammation and damage especially from digestive toxicity resulting from the over-feeding of starches and sugars. The lamina becomes stressed from high blood sugar levels as well as leaky gut syndrome where the bacteria, acids, and toxins migrate from the hindgut to the hoof initiating damage. Once the laminar tissue becomes weakened the connection between the hoof wall and coffin bone separates causing pain and inflammation. If left unchecked the coffin bone eventually drops – at which point it is labeled as founder.

The three major factors that trigger laminitis as caused by the feeding of high starch grains, and grass and hay which are high in sugars are: Continue reading →

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