Dr. Lydia Gray hand-grazing her horse Newman post colic surgery
I have a 7 year old Haflinger mare – pleasure use – I’m concerned with being sure she’s receiving adequate nutrition requirements without over feeding. Currently she’s on a hay based diet with a gastric supplement and a joint supplement fed daily. She receives soaked alfalfa cubes daily in order to add supplements to her diet. She has a history of colic including surgery and a bout of colitis which landed her in the hospital for 10 days. Her feed includes Triple Crown Light fed daily (approximately 1-2 lbs / day). Thank you. Barbara
Dear Barbara,
Sorry to hear about your mare’s mishaps—colic, surgery and colitis. Fortunately her diet based on hay, supplemented with the correct amount of a pelleted concentrate, and supported with a handful of alfalfa cubes sounds very appropriate. With the stress your mare has been under, a gastric (stomach) supplement is not a bad idea, although given her history of hindgut or large intestine issues you might want to consider a digestive supplement to provide ingredients targeted for the tissues, environment and special needs of the cecum and colon.
Ingredients to look for include:
•probiotics (direct fed microorganisms or bacteria such as Lactobacillus, Enterococcus and Bifidobacterium)
•prebiotics (soluble fibers like MOS, FOS, arabinogalactan, inulin and even psyllium)
•digestive enzymes (amylase, lipase, protease)
•active live yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae and boulardii)
•amino acids (glutamine, glycine, Threonine)
•herbs (turmeric, ginger, licorice)
•hindgut buffers
Many of these have research supporting their use in maintaining a normal, healthy hindgut so I encourage you to check them out. Sounds like you’re on the right track though—keep up the good work!
Lydia F. Gray, DVM MA, currently serves as the Medical Director/Staff Veterinarian for SmartPak Equine. Prior to joining SmartPak, Dr. Gray served as the first-ever Director of Owner Education for the American Association of Equine Practitioners. She has authored numerous articles in publications such as The Horse, Horse Illustrated, Western Horseman and a variety of veterinary journals and magazines. Dr. Gray is also a frequent speaker at horse expos, veterinary conventions and other locations. After graduating with honors from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine and receiving her Master's Degree in Interpersonal and Organizational Communication, she practiced at the Tremont Veterinary Clinic for several years. Dr Gray is active in the American Veterinary Medical Association and Illinois State Veterinary Medical Association and enjoys training and showing her trakehner Newman in her spare time. Find Dr. Gray on Google+: Find Dr. Gray on Google+
