pasture | Horse Racing Free Tips

Grazing Overweight Horses: Restricted Access Appropriate At Times

Are you toying with the idea of regaining control of your horse's body condition by implementing a weight-loss plan? Depending on your horse's situation, restricting access to pasture might be the place to start.

Why limit pasture access? Aren't horses natural-born grazers?

While horses evolved as grazers, the quality of the pasture grasses has increased dramatically in recent years, making it unsuitable for some horses, especially those that tend to be easy keepers.

“Many horses can graze pasture grasses with no problem whatsoever. Chronically overweight and obese horses sometimes benefit from limited grazing, however, which results in caloric restriction and improved health,” explained Kathleen Crandell, Ph.D., a nutritionist for Kentucky Equine Research. “Overweight horses are at a higher risk for insulin dysregulation and metabolic syndrome, both of which can lead to laminitis.”

In addition, many horse owners use restricted grazing preemptively to keep horses and ponies from becoming overweight.

What's the best approach to restrict pasture intake?

Horse owners have found several ways to successfully restrict pasture intake. The method used is often dependent on access to facilities and turnout areas, owner schedule, and what works best for the individual horse, according to Crandell. A trial-and-error approach must often be taken. Effective methods include:

Strip grazing, which uses temporary fencing to section off areas of a larger field, allowing horses to graze fresh pasture in a controlled, strategic manner and moving the fences as pasture is eaten down.
Feed limited hay (weighed at about 1.5 to 2 percent of body weight) provided in a way that slows consumption (e.g., small-hole haynets). For horses at risk for laminitis, hay should be tested for nonstructural carbohydrate content (below 12 percent is recommended).
Use of drylots that allow limited or no access to pasture, but appropriate hay or other preserved forage is allocated, the quality of which is dictated by age, workload, and metabolic status of horses.
Well-fitted grazing muzzles curb consumption by allowing horses to eat through holes or slits.

With all these options available, how do I know which method is the best?

Results of a recent survey in England may help you decide.^* Nearly 470 respondents had experience using one or more of the aforementioned restricted grazing methods. The most important considerations reported by respondents were practicality and welfare.

Fencing for strip grazing is more expensive and labor intensive than grazing muzzles, and these costs may therefore limit the method employed. Further, most boarding facilities have management restrictions. Owners are typically not allowed to alter a paddock, have only limited opportunities for turning out their horse (especially during inclement weather), and do not have the space or resources for drylots.

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In terms of welfare, grazing muzzles had a low “welfare rating” by owners participating in the study, yet muzzles were frequently used. The researchers suggested that this disparity likely arose because muzzles are inexpensive and not particularly labor intensive.

While grazing muzzles got a bad rap in terms of welfare, respondents may not have fully understood the benefits of muzzling. For example, horses evolved as trickle feeders, grazing almost continuously for 16-18 hours a day. When their grazing time is restricted, horses are at risk of gastric ulceration, alterations in the equine intestinal microbiome, and behavioral changes, such as the development of stereotypies.

According to Crandell, “Muzzles do not necessarily limit a horse's time spent grazing or exercising; they do, however, restrict the amount of grass that can be consumed. Muzzles also allow horses to have contact with their peers, which means this approach supports both the physical and psychological needs of the horse.”

Horses fed all-forage diets benefit from a ration balancer or a high-quality vitamin and mineral supplement, as these products provide important nutrients that are often in short supply in fresh and preserved forages.

Crandell also recommends addressing the potential stress associated with restricted grazing. “Horses with restricted grazing may benefit from a research-proven digestive supplement, such as Triacton.” Triacton provides total digestive tract support, including ingredients that buffer both the stomach and hindgut for gastrointestinal protection during times of stress.

^*Cameron, A., P. Harris, A. Longland, S. Horseman, and J. Hockenhull. 2021. UK horse carers' experiences of restricting grazing when aiming to prevent health issues in their horses. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science 104:103685.

Reprinted courtesy of Kentucky Equine Research. Visit ker.com for the latest in equine nutrition and management, and subscribe to Equinews to receive these articles directly.

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Endocrine Issues: Designing A Diet For A Metabolic Mare

Question: My 17-year-old Morgan mare weighs about 1,200 pounds and is in moderately fleshy body condition, just right by my estimation. I ride purely for pleasure, usually at the walk and trot. On days I don't ride, I longe her. She's fed 13 to18 pounds of soaked hay daily, 3 pounds of unmolassed straw/alfalfa chaff, a vitamin and mineral supplement, and biotin. She maintains her weight on this. Her hooves are strong, but her coat does not shine as it should. She has equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) with bouts of mild laminitis. This year she was extremely sensitive to the grass and has spent long stretches in her stall following a laminitic episode that was more severe than usual. Despite these laminitis flares, she has no radiographic changes to her coffin bones. She's added something new to her list of ailments lately, though: occasional mild colic. What else can I do for her from a nutritional perspective?

Kentucky Equine Research responds: A diagnosis of EMS with laminitic episodes can make diet formulation a challenge, though you seem to be on the right track. Her basic ration, which consists only of forages and vitamin and mineral fortification, is appropriate given her body condition. You are wise to offset the potential soluble carbohydrate content of her hay by soaking it prior to every meal.

In reference to future grazing, however, continue to proceed cautiously and under the direction of a veterinarian that is familiar with the mare's endocrine-related problems. She has shown that she is becoming more and more sensitive to pasture grasses, so her time spent grazing might be restricted, even severely so, in the future. Some horses with metabolic disorders cannot handle grazing at all, regardless of season, time of day, or pasture composition. For these horses, a drylot that allows them to exercise as they wish with suitable preserved forage at their disposal is an option. With respect to pasture and hay, try to keep the level of nonstructural carbohydrates below 12 percent.

Two high-quality supplements from Kentucky Equine Research might also help, especially if you believe she may be able to tolerate some grazing in the future, even if it's limited by a grazing muzzle of another means of restriction. EquiShure is a time-released hindgut buffer that supports digestive health by minimizing disruptions in the microbial population brought about by diet or management changes, including those prompted by grazing. EquiShure stabilizes the pH of the hindgut and reduces the incidence of recurrent colic in some horses.

Another research-proven product recommended to reduce inflammation and support a normal endocrine response is EO-3, a marine-derived supplement that provides the specific omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA, which are known to have many health benefits. Further, EO-3 will likely add shine to her coat and may keep certain skin problems, such as scratches, from developing.

Equine Grazing Behavior Offers Clues For Forage Needs As Pastures Decline

As the growing season winds down or as drought sets in, horse owners must provide horses with an appropriate alternative forage to fulfill fiber requirements. In most cases, this involves the use of hay, though other products such as haylage or hay cubes are appropriate and sometimes fed.

The question that looms large for most owners is when to offer alternative forage. The pasture reveals a couple of important clues, namely growth rate and plant health.

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Owners will know when pasture growth slows as there will be less need for routine mowing and maintenance. Depending on stocking rate—that is, the number of horses on any given acreage—pasture might withstand a slowdown in growth rate and continued grazing, so long as more land is allotted per horse. A large, seven-acre paddock that comfortably sustained five horses in peak growing season might support three as pasture growth declines.

“Observation of grazing behavior might be a tipoff, too. If horses spend more time grazing, they are likely finding less to eat. In periods of lush growth, you might catch horses resting more often, as it is easier for them to satisfy their appetites and their need to graze,” said Dr. Kathleen Crandell, a nutritionist with Kentucky Equine Research (KER).

Plant health is a more obvious indicator. As autumn segues into winter or as rainfall decreases, pasture grasses often turn brown and unpalatable, at which time growth is almost assuredly arrested. Horses will snack on these remnants, but more nutritious forage should be offered.

“Owners ought to offer hay as soon as they feel horses are not consuming sufficient pasture to meet daily forage requirement, which is about 1.5-2 percent of body weight daily,” advised Crandell.

For a 15.2-hand, 1,100-pound horse, that would be 16.5-22 pounds of hay each day. Keep in mind, though, that this amount will likely satisfy the horse's complete forage requirement.

“If the horse is still nibbling away at pasture much of the day, it might need only a portion of this. If the horse leaves hay in favor of pasture, then too much hay is probably being fed at the time. Gauge requirement through consumption,” recommended Crandell.

To maintain weight, many horses, in combination with their forage, will be consuming a well-fortified concentrate feed that supplies all of the protein, vitamins, and minerals required for their well-being. Those that do not should be fed a vitamin and mineral supplement, such as Micro-Max, developed by Kentucky Equine Research and available in the U.S. and other regions. Micro-Max supplies minerals that have been chelated or proteinated, which increases their digestibility and allows horses to derive maximum benefit from them.

One vitamin that is particularly deficient in diets composed of preserved forages such as hay is vitamin E, an important antioxidant in the horse's immune arsenal. The most effective source of supplemental vitamin E is d-alpha-tocopherol or natural vitamin E. Nano-E is a natural-source vitamin E supplement that possesses a unique delivery action, nanodispersion, which allows the vitamin to hit target tissues more quickly than other vitamin E supplements. Nano-E is available worldwide.

Don't know where to begin with supplementation? Complete a simple questionnaire and start the consultation process.

Article reprinted courtesy of Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Visit equinews.com for the latest in equine nutrition and management, and subscribe to The Weekly Feed to receive these articles directly (equinews.com/newsletters).

The post Equine Grazing Behavior Offers Clues For Forage Needs As Pastures Decline appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Is A Happy Horse Or A Needy Horse More Inventive?

Horses are goal-driven innovators when seeking out food, but they're also innovators when it comes to playing and developing comfort behaviors.

There is ongoing debate among behaviorists about whether horses invent solutions in response to needs, or if they innovate more when their needs are met. Dr. Konstanz Krueger and a team of scientists contacted horse owners and caretakers directly and through web postings to find horses that exhibited unusual behaviors and also scoured the internet for videos of horses doing unusual things. In total, the team found 746 cases of horses that had developed an innovative behavior, like opening doors or gates.

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The team then investigated the behavior to see if there was a need or an opportunity for the different innovations. They also looked at the frequency of the behavior and the sex, age, and breed of the horse, as well as the influence of management factors like access to pasture, social contact and housing condition.

The study team had so many responses relating to horses, mules or donkeys opening doors and gates that a more specific questionnaire had to be developed. In total, 632 reports described 1,011 innovative behaviors. They were from 427 horses, four donkeys and three mules.

One equine science professor and two people with bachelor's degrees in equine science rated the behaviors to determine if they were truly “novel.” The actions not deemed “novel” were excluded from the study.

The team found that the innovations were not affected by age, sex, breed, or specie. Though both groups of horses were innovative, horses housed in groups and those that were turned out 24/7 developed a wider variety of innovative behaviors because they had the opportunity – they were not seeking relief from environmental pressures.

The team concluded that equids that experience social conflict, those that are stalled, or those that are hungry produce a restricted amount of goal-driven innovations they repeated often to try to address their needs, such as escaping or foraging.

Read the study here.