Equine Nutrition by KER's Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

 

Slimming Down a Cresty Neck
by Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

Q: Suppose a horse has a cresty neck score of 2. If we reduce caloric intake slightly and exercise the horse 4-5 days per week, will the score return to zero if the horse loses weight? If so, will it return to zero if the horse has EMS? Cushing's disease?

A: Horses are given a cresty neck score (CNS) to determine degree of fat deposition and to more easily monitor changes in neck thickness. A narrow range of scores exists; a score of zero would describe a neck with no crest, and a score of 5 would describe a massive crest that has shifted permanently to one side, called a fallen crest.

If the horse loses weight with a change in diet and activity, it should lose fat out of the subcutaneous layers all over its body. The fat that accumulates in the neck tissues is a little different than other body fat, and the amount lost on the neck may depend on the breed of the horse. Draft horses and draft crosses, some pony breeds, and Morgan horses may retain a bit more crestiness than members of other breeds. If the horse is hot-blooded like a Thoroughbred, it should lose all of the crest once it has achieved moderate body condition. Stallions of any breed might retain more crest than mares or geldings because deposition of fat in the neck is a secondary sexual characteristic.

If you can get a EMS horse to a body condition score of 4 or 5 and keep it in a consistent work program, it should resolve a lot of the issues with insulin resistance. The problem is getting the horse to lose that much weight. A structured schedule of near-daily exercise is usually necessary.

Article reprinted with the permission of copyright holder Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit www.ker.com for more horse health and nutrition information.

 

Feeding Efficiency
by Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

Q: How do the nutritional needs of recreational trail horses differ from those of horses competing in other disciplines?

A: Some of what you have to pack depends on the backcountry. If forage is sparse, then packing forage cubes or pellets would be the most compact way to bring in essential forage to supplement what little the horse can pick up. One advantage of forage cubes and pellets is that they can be fed wet as a way to make sure the horse consumes water. Check ahead of time to know if you need to have certified weed-free forages. If there are abundant natural forages, then bringing along some type of grain concentrate will be very much appreciated by the horse. On a weight-by-calorie basis, the high-fat feeds certainly give the horse more energy with less bulk than low-fat or conventional feeds. Pelleted rice bran together with some type of vitamin/mineral supplement would give more calories per pound. Conventional high-fat pellets (6-12% fat) would be another option as would a high-fat sweet feed, but rancidity might be an issue if the temperatures are consistently high. Bring along a small salt block or loose salt to add to the feed calorie-dense feed.

Article reprinted with the permission of copyright holder Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit www.ker.com for more horse health and nutrition information.

 

Pastured Horses
by Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

Q: When horses are out on pasture, what extra vitamins, minerals and supplements would be helpful to make sure they are getting all they need?

A: Good-quality forage found in pastures goes a long way in meeting a horse’s nutrient requirements. Nutrients abundant in green grass are water, digestible fibers, protein, vitamin A (in carotenes), vitamin E and vitamin D (from sunlight). There can be sufficient amounts of macrominerals such as calcium, phosphorus and magnesium.  Microminerals like zinc, copper and manganese are present but may be inadequate. Selenium can be deficient, adequate or excessive depending on the area of the country.  Sodium is usually low in the forage, so free-choice salt (sodium chloride) should always be available. If the pasture is poor, either in quality or quantity, then the supply of the above-mentioned nutrients would be less. Three general types of supplements may be used to balance nutrients that are deficient or missing in the forage, and these vary in what nutrients they offer:  vitamin/mineral fortified salt (formulated for horses), vitamin/mineral supplement (fed in small quantities, only appropriate if more calories or protein are not necessary), or commercial concentrate (contain additional calories and protein; the amount of calories needed will dictate whether it would be a low-intake balancer type or a regular commercial feed).

Article reprinted with the permission of copyright holder Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit www.ker.com for more horse health and nutrition information.

Feeding Trail Horses
by Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

Q: How do the nutritional needs of recreational trail horses differ from those of horses competing in other disciplines?

A: There is not much difference in the vitamin, mineral and protein requirements between trail horses and other performance horses.  The biggest differences would be the amount of calories needed and the form in which the calories are consumed. Forages (grass or hay) provide an ideal source of energy that is constantly available as the horse goes down the trail. Forages are also necessary for a properly functioning digestive tract and act as a major stimulus to the thirst response for water intake. All of these are important for the trail horse.  If the trail horse can get enough calories from forage alone, then the ideal diet would be forage with a vitamin/mineral supplement and salt to supply the other nutrients that are low or missing in the forage. Only if the horse cannot maintain his weight on forage alone is it necessary to add some kind of more calorie-dense feed.

Article reprinted with the permission of copyright holder Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit www.ker.com for more horse health and nutrition information.

Tying Up
by Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

Q: Is there anything you can feed that would prevent or greatly reduce the risk or tying up, and is there any feeding regimes that could cause tying up?

A: There has been a long-recognized association with the feeding of high-starch meals and the occurrence of tying up.  Consumption of high-starch meals is commonly thought of as the cause of Monday morning disease, seen in work horses that were fed full rations on their day off and then suffered from tying up the following day when pulled out to work. More recently, researchers have been able to link high-starch intakes to tying up in horses with certain genetic muscle disorders like polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM) and recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis (RER).  A horse with PSSM builds up too much sugar (glycogen) in the muscle tissue, and thus responds well to removal of as much starch as possible from the diet.  RER horses can tolerate a moderate amount of starch, but a narrowly defined threshold often tips them over the edge. There are a few nutrients that when deficient or imbalanced can lead to muscle problems such as selenium/vitamin E or calcium.  Also when a horse becomes dehydrated and has lost a lot of electrolytes through sweating it can bring on a bout of tying up. To avoid tying up, make sure the horse has a well-fortified diet with the proper balance of minerals and vitamins; back off or slow down if the horse becomes dehydrated; replace electrolytes when the horse is sweating intensely; and avoid high-starch meals if the horse is suspected of having either PSSM or RER.

Article reprinted with the permission of copyright holder Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit www.ker.com for more horse health and nutrition information.

Recovery
by Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

 

Q: What should you feed your horse when your trail ride ends up being longer and harder than you expected and the horse gets back to the trailer pretty tired?

A: There is nothing better for a tired horse than to allow him to graze fresh grass, if it is available. Grass has the benefit of having the right combination of nutrients for energy and a lot of water for rehydration. Letting the horse eat with his head down is also relaxing for the horse and stretches the tired back muscles from carrying the weight of rider or pack. If there is no grass, then hay is the second best. Feeding the hay on the ground and dousing it with water may sneak a little moisture into the horse. Make sure there is fresh water (not too cold) available for the horse. Fiber from the forage in the gut should trigger the thirst response and make the horse want to take a good drink. The fiber and water in the gut form a reservoir of energy and electrolytes for the horse to draw upon to replace what was lost during the long trail ride. Once the horse has gotten a belly full of forage, it would be reasonable to offer a small concentrate meal.

Article reprinted with the permission of copyright holder Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit www.ker.com for more horse health and nutrition information.

Eating on the Go
by Equine Nutritionist Dr. Kathleen Crandell

 

Q: I would like to know if feeding hay in the trailer is safe for horses, and what is your recommendation of how to feed a horse in a trailer so it doesn't choke?

A: Horses are fed hay in trailers without incident all the time, but there is a slight chance that a horse could choke. There are a few things you can do to reduce the risk. Tying the horse so that it is able to get his head down and chew in a more natural swallowing position is one idea. It may seem very convenient when the trailer has a built-in feed bunk, but it can be very uncomfortable for the horse if he cannot step back from the bunk and lower his head. Hay bags work better because the horse can take a bite and then drop his head to chew. Wetting the hay before putting it in the trailer not only reduces the dustiness in the trailer but also provides moister bites. Because horses do not particularly like drinking in the trailer, moistening whatever they are eating may ease its passage down the esophagus. Feeding the same hay the horse is getting at home may be wise if the horse has a tendency to gorge when offered something that is different or more palatable.

Article reprinted with the permission of copyright holder Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit www.ker.com for more horse health and nutrition information.