22/08/2024
Training my apprentice on all aspects of the business 👶🐴😅
Integral Equine Nutrition
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- Integral Equine Nutrition
Integral Equine Nutrition offers independent, evidence-based feeding advice. Specialising in on-site
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Integral Equine Nutrition is run by Sophie Fletcher, BAnVetBioSci (Hons I), MAnSc, and aims to optimise your horses health, well being and performance through correct nutrition. Advice is both practical and science-based, as Sophie has been involved in both horses and research science for many years.
16/07/2024
Newest brand ambassador 😅🥰
26/06/2024
Not long till she starts mucking out, right?
03/06/2024
I haven't managed to get back to social media posts - but we are back at the desk and making custom supplements, here's proof 🥰
Hoping occasional baby photo will make up for the lack of my regular posts 🤣
09/05/2024
I love being able to visit horses in person but having a tiny human dependent is going to make that a little tricky for the time being!
In person consultations will resume in order of geographical proximity to me - so Terrey Hills/Duffys/Ingleside will be first up, possibly in the next month or three (depending on whether we won the lottery on the contented baby front and with a lot of help from Mamie Fletcher !).
In the meantime, I am accepting remote consultations, with a longer turn around time!
Remote consultations are really easy to do, do just as a good a job for the vast majority of cases AND they're a bit cheaper! Same diet balancing, report and custom supplements formulation, as well as all that follow up support that you get with an in person consultation.
Simply fill in the form, and I'll be in touch to get started with optimising your horse's diet, it's that simple!
www.integralequine.com.au/remote
07/05/2024
Bit wet again, zinc reminder!
While some cases of mud fever in wet and muddy weather are unavoidable, horses that develop chronic issues may need their trace mineral balance looked at.
Zinc is particularly important as it has functions in maintaining keratinocytes, which ensure a good skin barriers and wound healing.
Many (most?) commercial premixed feeds and supplements do not contain enough zinc.
02/05/2024
Haven't had a chance to announce our new sponsored rider because it happened right before baby time!
But very proud to be sponsoring this amazing little rider ❤️
02/05/2024
Preparing myself to get back at the desk at least next week!
Got to get through the baby paperwork that's piling up first though 🤦♀️😅👶🐴
21/04/2024
Hello hello!
Meet Francesca Dominique, 5 weeks old today, meeting the horses 🥰
I have mixed feelings on sharing photos of her on a business page but as so many of you sent your love and thoughts prior to the birth, here's a compromise 😅
I was planning a better photo shoot (may still come!) but it was a lot harder to selfie the horses and baby at once than I expected 😅
Tiento immediately walked away, Hakon thought the snuggly package on me *might* just contain food 🤣🤦♀️👶🐴
15/03/2024
This is what's under long "lush" grass that's been rested pretty much the whole growing season (September till now) - no wonder the horses aren't that keen or gaining weight 🤣
For reference, the green stuff is about thigh high!
08/03/2024
At this time of year, long "lush" grass is typically NOT highly nutritious or sugary - just look how much my horses have left in their finished section, choosing to graze the short grass in the laneway or eat teff in the dry lot instead.
Tomorrow they'll get some juicier tips,in the new section but they'll soon be back to searching through the roughage!
06/03/2024
Myth Busting!
**Edited for clarity - sugars most definitely can be reduced through soaking - I'm just busting the myth that the colour of the water is linked to the sugar**
The colour of the water after soaking your horse's hay has NO bearing on the amount of sugar that was in the hay, or has come out - the colour is due to dirt, pigments and tannins (like in tea) in the hay, NOT sugars!
Don't believe me?
Molasses is dark brown because it is boiled to remove all the water from the sugar cane juice (which is a light greenish colour to start with, despite containing plenty of sugar!), caramelising the sugars. Think about what grass sap looks like (which would contain the same sorts of sugars as your hay...) - it's colourless!
04/03/2024
It's not uncommon to come across the often very strongly voiced opinion (especially online...) that horses are not "meant" to eat grass, that it's bad for them and that they weren't designed to eat it. They then typically promote dry lot or track systems for housing, filled with slow feeder hay nets.
These statements make me rather annoyed... horses are evolved to be 90% GRAZING animals, meaning that GRASS should make up 90% of their diet, the remainder being shrubs, legumes, herbs etc. So a blanket statement saying that grass is not appropriate for horses is simply incorrect.
*Some* grass is inappropriate for *some* horses - not all grass is the same, not all horses are the same! Diverse, healthy grasses are the biologically appropriate diet for the vast majority of horses.
Horses were certainly not designed to eat 100% hay based diets - hay being a man made food at the end of the day... man made... dried... stored... GRASS! So the "grass is evil, hay is best" view point has always confused me a little...
Yes, the sugar levels in hay made from any particular grass will be a little lower than the live grass was before it was made into hay due to the respiration process as the grass cured, and the sugars in a given batch are stable and can be known, which is definitely helpful when managing sensitive horses. The downside is that dry hay is lacking in certain nutrients (vitamin E and omega 3 fatty acids for example) that are also very important and abundant in fresh grass. There is also generally less species diversity, and obviously less water (and therefore more feed) per mouthful...
There are pros and cons to pretty much everything in life, let alone horse feeding - so when you come across these sort of statements, it's worth having a little think :)
02/03/2024
LAST DAY FOR CUSTOM SUPPLEMENTS
Last orders for supplements need to be in (paid) by TOMORROW (Sunday 3rd March)
Apologies for the last minute change, but there have been some last minute changes on the baby front requiring an acceleration of plans - appreciate everyone's understanding and support.
Thanks to everyone who has already put double and early orders in to jump the shut down period - very helpful 🥰
01/03/2024
Turmeric - is black pepper necessary?
Turmeric is widely touted to be a magical cure for just about anything (which is possibly stretching it, but evidence suggests that it has a remarkable number of potential biological effects, at least in rodents and humans), but only if you use it in a particular way.
Fans of the golden spice insist that it must be mixed with a fat source (coconut oil is the fave), and *freshly cracked* black pepper.
When feeding horses, this is not always terribly practical - so is it necessary? And why do people say this?
When researching turmeric for my Master's project, I learnt that curcumin (the major bioactive ingredient) is very poorly absorbed - to the point that many wonder how is can have an effect in the body at all. So various things have been tried to try and increase blood levels of curcumin.
From my final thesis 2016 -
"Absorption is another complex issue regarding the use of turmeric. Curcumin is widely
acknowledged to be very poorly absorbed and rapidly metabolised, resulting in extremely low
plasma concentrations (Anand et al., 2007). Whilst equine pharmacokinetic data is not available
for turmeric or any of its constituents, horses would be expected to have a similar pattern, with
possibly more rapid hepatic metabolism (herbivorous).
Popular advice regarding turmeric
supplementation suggests a fat source be fed alongside the turmeric, as well as mixing it with
pepper. As turmeric is hydrophobic, but lipid-soluble, absorption from the digestive tract is
improved with a lipophilic vehicle (Shishu & Maheshwari, 2010), and piperine (a component in
black pepper) has been shown to slow the metabolic process sufficient to allow an increase in
bioavailability of curcumin 2- to 3-fold (Shoba et al., 1998).
In this study, a fat source (powdered
coconut oil) was included in the daily meal, however as the use of pepper has not been studied in
horses, it was not used to avoid introducing confounding factors in the trial."
So we chose NOT to use pepper in the trial, as it may have had its own effects on the horses - and guess what?
IT STILL WORKED!
While I don't know whether it may have worked *better* with the pepper, I'm guessing the effect would be minimal. Turmeric's efficacy is not solely based on curcumin - it contains 100s of components that may work in synergy with each other to create the results we.
Additionally, in the case of gastric ulcers which I was studying - the turmeric may have actually had a topical effect by physically coating the ulcers and acting that way.
Take home message - if getting your chef's pepper grinder out every day is stopping you from feeding turmeric, don't stress - just add the turmeric (quality IS important though) and make sure there is some sort of fat source in the feed (flaxseed, a dollop of whatever oil you may feed, it doens't matter) - and Bob's your uncle!
28/02/2024
Scenario:
A horse pasture that has predominantly kikuyu grass and some sub clover.
The horse grazes the pasture continuously with only a few weeks off each year.
Manure is removed weekly.
As a result, while the grass may looks green, the grasses have horizontal growth habits and very little root development (easily pulled out by the horse).
Plus, the grazing has caused roughs and troughs to form- with some areas overgrazed and others untouched.
Problems created:
Overgrazing has caused the soil to become more compacted, reducing the pore and tunnels for larger organisms like earthworms and arthropods to move around and find food.
This in turn reduces fungal populations and leads to anaerobic bacteria-dominated soils.
Without the right conditions and nutrients, the plant roots will be stressed, leading to less growth, less sugar exudate production (the plants are keeping the sugars to themselves) and little ground moisture during dryer times, or slippery mud during heavy rain.
Solution?
Learn about, and implement, sustainable pasture management strategies so that we can encourage healthy soil food webs and agroecosystems, even in our horse paddocks!
26/02/2024
Lots of very green, growing grass around, which can promote a sense of panic in some horse owners due to potentially elevated potassium levels - but is this actually something to worry about?
Read on!
POTASSIUM
Potassium is an extremely important mineral and electrolyte in the body - it's involved in the maintenance of acid-base balance, osmostic pressure (fluid control) and a crucial ion involved in neuromuscular excitability (electrolyte = conducts electricity when dissolved in water).
Luckily for horses, potassium is ABUNDANT in their natural diets, and according to the NRC Nutrient Requirements of Horses, it is "normal" for potassium intake to greatly exceed the estimated minimum requirements.
I strongly agree with this - any forage based diet I've every analysed has anywhere between 5-10 times more than the text book potassium requirement of between 25-50g. This is because all forages typically contain at least 1-2% potassium - if a horse consumes an average of 10kg of this forage over a day, its daily intake will be a MINIMUM of 100g. Most grass and hay analyses I see actually have between 2-3% potassium, which ups the daily intake to 300g, just for the base forage portion of the diet!
Again, luckily for horses, they are very efficient at excreting potassium through the kidneys - and the more that is consumed, the more the rate of excretion is increased through urine, faeces and sweat. This is a totally normal process. Sweat is a huge factor in potassium loss, and potassium deficiency can be a problem in heavily exercising horses, especially in hot humid climates - as horses do not have very good mechanisms to conserve potassium.
So the horse's system is very prepared for the "excess" of potassium it naturally encounters day to day. The NRC suggest that the maximum amounts listed are in fact nowhere near levels that could cause toxicity, and potassium excess has not been reported in the scientific literature to date.
There is a genetic syndrome - hyperkalemic periodic paralysis (HYPP), which causes horses to be very sensitive to potassium, and it is recommended to keep their diets under 1% potassium (100g - note this is still 2-4 times higher than the minimum requirements).
In recent times there has been a trend toward blaming potassium from lush pasture grass and lucerne hays for all sorts of symptoms ("grass affected"). It is true that rapidly growing grasses have higher potassium levels than dormant ones, and that lucerne tends to be a little higher than grasses, but the difference means little in the context of ALL forage being high in potassium!
Interestingly, veterinary experts in treating HYPP do not recommend restricting grazing fresh pasture, as even though it can be high in potassium per kg DRY MATTER, the fact that pasture is usually 80% water means that the rate of consumption is much slower than a dry feed/hay, and thus will not produce high blood potassium levels.
And finally - falsely high serum potassium levels are EXTREMELY common due to blood sample handling errors. I previously worked in a hospital pathology laboratory, and every day there would be samples that needed to be recollected or the potassium result discounted - this is due to haemolysis of the sample, which is where the red blood cells begin to break down and leak their contents into the serum. This can occur due to collection technique, if the sample is not correctly agitated post collection, or if it is left for too long before spinning to separate the red cells from the serum.
Horse blood is even more prone to this issue than human, as they have very high levels of potassium in the red blood cells - so even a very slight amount of haemolysis can result in an elevated potassium result.
22/02/2024
Once you collected your sample (see yesterday's post), it's important to get it dried ASAP - this is to preserve the nutrients as is in the sample. If you leave the sample to wilt and dry naturally, it will actually keep "respiring" as it slowly dies (morbid!), using up sugars in particular, which will give you a falsely low result. Mineral levels should still be OK.
Please be slow and CAREFUL when microwaving - it gets very hot and can go very quickly at the end. I don't want to hear about anyone setting their microwaves on fire! 🔥🔥🔥
Full video here (free access)
https://integralequine.podia.com/community/topics/92109/posts/293080-instructional-video-how-to-properly-dry-your-grass-sample
21/02/2024
Taking grass samples is one of the things I can do during a nutrition or pasture management consultation... but you can still do it yourself when I go on maternity leave (and while I am still consulting now, there's no way I'm bending down that many times to take your sample anymore, so starting now!)
Why do I promote pasture testing? 🌿🌱☘️
We make a lot of generalisations about "grass" when it comes to feeding horses - good grass, bad grass, morning is better, natives are better, spring grass is sugary etc etc.
But these assumptions are made based on research that was almost invariably NOT done in your paddocks, and probably not even in our hemisphere...
Many people will say "oh but grass testing is a waste of time because the nutrients change all the time" - yes, particularly the sugars are known to vary over the day, but even with that in mind, wouldn't you rather know something than nothing? 🤔
Once you start taking semi regular samples (noting the time of day, conditions etc - taking a photo is an easy way to track that), you will start to understand a bit more about how your own pasture ranges in nutrients, and can make better nutritional and land management decisions based on this.
More importantly in many cases, trace minerals are relatively stable over time in your pasture and these are some of the most commonly supplemented parts of your horses diet - very worthwile to know these!
So - here's a video explaining how to take a good grass sample, and I'll be following that up with how to properly dry your sample before sending it to the lab. As always, please feel free to ask questions or discuss!
Full video in link (free access)
https://integralequine.podia.com/community/topics/92109/posts/293057-instructional-video-how-to-take-a-grass-sample
20/02/2024
Last orders for supplements need to be in (paid) by 15th MARCH!
Assuming baby doesn't come early (possibly a dangerous assumption 🤣), no orders will be accepted after this time until May at the earliest.
Thanks to everyone who has already put double and early orders in to jump the shut down period - very helpful 🥰
For anyone else - don't be like Hakon making the most of his morning grazing and risk leaving it too late!
19/02/2024
Anyone else feel like they're swimming rather than walking lately??
Humidity is a killer for pregnant ladies and horses alike :P
As horses rely heavily on evaporative cooling (sweating) to maintain body heat, they can find it very difficult to dissapate heat under extremely humid conditions - meaning they will sweat more and more to keep cool - even when overall temperatures are not that high like today.
This leads to loss of both water AND electrolytes (chiefly sodium - salt), which can lead to a dehydrated horse that doesn't feel thirsty - not a great combo!
Allow plenty of rest and lower intensity if you choose to exercise your horses in these conditions as they will reach higher body temperatures much more quickly than usual.
Of course ensure plenty of water is available at all time and salt in the diet! If your horse is looking particularly flat and lethargic, and isn't laminitic/metabolic, this is the time you might think about offering a tasty drink - a dollop of molasses in a bucket of water with a tablespoon of salt makes an easy electrolyte drink!
16/02/2024
We've all heard the expression "no hoof, no horse", and it is certainly very true!
Growth and maintenance of a healthy hoof depends on a number of things - diet, genetics, trim/shoeing and environment.
Obviously my focus is on nutrition, so I look to get the best possible quality hoof growing down from the coronet band via diet.
Hoof supplements are a common way for horse owners to go about this - but are they necessary? Common ingredients in hoof supplements include zinc, essential amino acids and biotin (a B vitamin).
These nutrients are all important in growing a healthy hoof, but have a think... should they not already be covered in a healthy, well balanced diet?
If a specific hoof supplement has made a big difference in the quality of your horse's hooves, it may be that your overall diet isn't quite right🤓
15/02/2024
Did you know that the average pelleted feed contains around 12 MJ/kg (that's energy/calories), while good quality lucerne hay packs just under 9MJ/kg?
That means on a purely calorie for calorie basis, 1 whole kilogram of pellets (this is usually a little more than a standard "scoop") can be replaced by only 1.3kg of lucerne hay (less than a standard biscuit, which is usually closer to 2kg).
With the current price of bagged feed going through the roof, plus the many benefits of feeding forage over pellets, this swap will more than likely save $$$ and improve the health and wellbeing of your horse.
Of course there are other nutritional factors to take into account here to create a well balanced diet, but this is an example of a simple, healthy diet change I might make for a client's horse - why not find out how I can help yours!
14/02/2024
Just a cute photo for Valentine's day 🥰
13/02/2024
Although you may have noticed that I have a particular personal interest in getting chunky horses to lose weight, I actually have more clients that come to me because they struggle to get their horses to gain and maintain sufficient condition - both fat and muscle.
It's a super frustrating and expensive exercise when you seem to be adding more and more scoops of this and that, with minimal results - and in some cases this can go for years, with many people believing that their horse is simply a poor doer and will never really do well on a simple diet.
There can be underlying health conditions causing this issue, but more often a simpler solution is to make sure that you're spending your hard earned 💲💲💲on the right sort of feed, and that you're feeding it in the right quantities (and more is not always better!).
The right feed will vary from horse to horse and depends on the forage situation as well as horse workload etc, and having a balanced diet overall will also help the digestive system work more effectively, often resulting in needing to feed LESS with your horse putting on MORE condition! 🐎🥰
Sometimes it feels like magic 🪄 - but all you need is a little independent, expert advice to unlock it!
12/02/2024
There's a bit of room rearranging going on at home at the moment - welcome to my new office nook. where the diet analysis magic happens!
09/02/2024
Wheat by-products such as bran are lower in starch than whole grains and are commonly used in "cool", "grain-free" feeds, however research has found that even low amounts of wheat middlings (similar to bran) disturb gut bacteria significantly (as much as whole corn).
This is why I am quick to remove wheat containing feeds, especially for horses that have digestive or behavioural issues.
The article is open access, so have a read if you're so inclined! 🤓
Harlow, B. E., Lawrence, L. M., Hayes, S. H., Crum, A., & Flythe, M. D. (2016). Effect of dietary starch source and concentration on equine f***l microbiota. PloS one, 11(4),
08/02/2024
Growing horses have increased and more precise nutritional needs than mature adults, and it's at this young age that they are set up for future health and soundness.
Energy and protein need to carefully matched to the individual horse to support steady but not excessive growth and long term metabolic health, while macro minerals such as calcium, phosphorus and magnesium need to be correctly balanced for good bone development. Trace minerals are equally important - copper deficiencies are known to contribute to developmental orthopaedic disease.
Stud/breeder pellets promise to provide these needs, but in my experience often fall short, and are all high in sugars and starch, making them unsuitable for the vast majority of breeds - babies simply don't need high levels of grain to grow well!
An individual diet analysis is one of the best investments you can make for your youngsters' futures!
07/02/2024
The clock is ticking and I am really cutting back on travel distances now as my ribs and baby do not seem very compatible when I'm driving in the car!
Local (Terrey Hills etc) visits still being booked, and I am planning a day NEXT WEEK in Galston/Dural (weekday TBC - please let me know ASAP if you would like to book in), but looking like all other areas will be remote consultations only from now.
I love seeing horses in person, but we get excellent results via remote consultations too, and they are a touch cheaper :)
You can get started any time by filling in the online form
www.integralequine.com.au/remote
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Videos
How to dry your grass sample
Once you collected your sample (see yesterday's post), it's important to get it dried ASAP - this is to preserve the nutrients as is in the sample. If you leave the sample to wilt and dry naturally, it will actually keep "respiring" as it slowly dies (morbid!), using up sugars in particular, which will give you a falsely low result. Mineral levels should still be OK. Please be slow and CAREFUL when microwaving - it gets very hot and can go very quickly at the end. I don't want to hear about anyone setting their microwaves on fire! 🔥🔥🔥 Full video here (free access) https://integralequine.podia.com/community/topics/92109/posts/293080-instructional-video-how-to-properly-dry-your-grass-sample
How to take a grass sample
Taking grass samples is one of the things I can do during a nutrition or pasture management consultation... but you can still do it yourself when I go on maternity leave (and while I am still consulting now, there's no way I'm bending down that many times to take your sample anymore, so starting now!) Why do I promote pasture testing? 🌿🌱☘️ We make a lot of generalisations about "grass" when it comes to feeding horses - good grass, bad grass, morning is better, natives are better, spring grass is sugary etc etc. But these assumptions are made based on research that was almost invariably NOT done in your paddocks, and probably not even in our hemisphere... Many people will say "oh but grass testing is a waste of time because the nutrients change all the time" - yes, particularly the sugars are known to vary over the day, but even with that in mind, wouldn't you rather know something than nothing? 🤔 Once you start taking semi regular samples (noting the time of day, conditions etc - taking a photo is an easy way to track that), you will start to understand a bit more about how your own pasture ranges in nutrients, and can make better nutritional and land management decisions based on this. More importantly in many cases, trace minerals are relatively stable over time in your pasture and these are some of the most commonly supplemented parts of your horses diet - very worthwile to know these! So - here's a video explaining how to take a good grass sample, and I'll be following that up with how to properly dry your sample before sending it to the lab. As always, please feel free to ask questions or discuss! Full video in link (free access) https://integralequine.podia.com/community/topics/92109/posts/293057-instructional-video-how-to-take-a-grass-sample
Flaxseed is an excellent source of omega 3 fatty acids for your horse, especially if their access to fresh pasture is limited. Omega 3 fatty acids are considered anti-inflammatory and can help with a whole range of inflammatory conditions and flaxseeds gives coats that extra shine we all love! Plus it's fun to run your fingers through :P
Icelandic V Spanish reactions to... food 😂🤪 Hakon - hmm I can eat this! Tiento - HELP IT MIGHT EAT ME! (I have owned Tiento for 12 years now, and no, I wasn't doing anything scary behind the camera!) #icelandichorse #spanishhorse #andalusianhorse #horses #equinenutrition #equinenutritionist #horsefeeding #sillypony
Ever wondered what my horses' feeds look like? Watch and see! 🙂
Keeping cool on a hot day!🥵💦 Do you horses enjoy being hosed down? Melita and Tiento eventually came up to get a spray - Tiento in particular enjoys the water when it's hot and will turn himself around to make sure you get every side wet 😜 Hakon the Icelandic does NOT enjoy being hosed at any time, so needs to be caught - but he definitely looks cooler afterwards!
Grass nerd time! 🌿🤓 I've got results back from a couple of weeks ago (when I made the tutorial videos on how to sample and dry grass) and YAY they are well under 10% sugars+starch 🥳 I sample two paddocks for comparison and they are: Energy: 8.4 and 8.6MJ/kg Protein: 17.5 and 16.9% ESC: 5.5 and 6.5% Starch: 0.9 and 0.3% I sampled mostly the tips (and also clover) that the horses are preferring, so this would be representative of their first day of grazing in these paddocks - by day 4 or 5 they would have to be eating more of the length and likely getting higher fibre and lower goodies. I also got the trace minerals checked as it's been a while since I did them, and not much has changed - copper and zinc SUPER low compared to iron (which isn't high compared to many hays I see) - trace mineral content doesn't tend to change that much over seasons and time, which is why it's a great idea to get mineral supplements balanced to pasture tests if your horses eat a good amount of grass. Our calcium:phosphorus levels are looking a little better to at a nice ideal 2:1 - they have been closer to 1:1 lately, so our application of lime seems to be having an effect (this has also been noticable with the changes in weeds).
A little herb buffet for Tiento - watch to the end to see what he liked! On a bit of a whim I decided to get a selection of horse appropriate herbs to add a little diversity to the nighttime feeds, and then I thought, why not offer them separately first to see what he likes best! This also doesn't "force" him to eat them, like if they were mixed in with his dinner Tiento is already familiar with chamomile, so no surprises he licked that up, but I've never given him clivers, nettle or yarrow. Strong dislike shown for the nettles! I am not giving these herbs for any medicinal purpose (that's beyond my area of expertise!), nor on a regular basis, but just want to try and mimic the diversity horses would come across in nature. I'm not convinced that most domestic horses have "nutritional wisdom" to the extent that they can self administer pure minerals correctly (as some people believe), but I'm open to the idea of them being attracted to and learning to select plants that are good for them, given enough diversity (and enough forage generally so they aren't hungry). Food for thought! *Note - yarrow is thought to be toxic in LARGE quantities, if in doubt consult a herbalist*
How to dry your grass sample
Once you collected your sample, it's important to get it dried ASAP - this is to preserve the nutrients as is in the sample. If you leave the sample to wilt and dry naturally, it will actually keep "respiring" as it slowly dies (morbid!), using up sugars in particular, which will give you a falsely low result. Please be slow and CAREFUL when microwaving - it gets very hot and can go very quickly at the end. I don't want to hear about anyone setting their microwaves on fire! 🔥🔥🔥 Full video here (free access) https://integralequine.podia.com/community/topics/92109/posts/293080-instructional-video-how-to-properly-dry-your-grass-sample
How to take a grass sample
I LOVE getting results back from pasture tests 🌿🌱☘️ We make a lot of generalisations about "grass" when it comes to feeding horses - good grass, bad grass, morning is better, natives are better, spring grass is sugary etc etc. But these assumptions are made based on research that was almost invariably NOT done in your paddocks, and probably not even in our hemisphere... Many people will say "oh but grass testing is a waste of time because the nutrients change all the time" - yes, particularly the sugars are known to vary over the day, but even with that in mind, wouldn't you rather know something than nothing? 🤔 Once you start taking semi regular samples (noting the time of day, conditions etc - taking a photo is an easy way to track that), you will start to understand a bit more about how your own pasture ranges in nutrients, and can make better nutritional and land management decisions based on this. So - here's a video explaining how to take a good grass sample, and I'll be following that up with how to properly dry your sample before sending it to the lab. As always, please feel free to ask questions or discuss! Full video in link (free access) https://integralequine.podia.com/community/topics/92109/posts/293057-instructional-video-how-to-take-a-grass-sample
Setting up a new grazing section isn't that hard with temporary electric fencing! Basic step in posts/pigtails and tape work fine, but this Gallagher Animal Management reel makes it extra easy (and I'm not sponsored by them 😅) You don't need to poo pick when using small cells, and this is quicker than poo picking, especially in grass this long! (If you need the fence to be hot, you would need to mow or cut the grass under the lines, ours are *usually* pretty respectful of fences) More detailed discussions on our set going on in the Member's site - link in comments.
A little note to make sure you keep an eye on your horse's behaviour - nutrition is not always "set and forget"! Tiento has started to the following things over the last few days - chewing his yard fence (he almost always does this in autumn) - not grazing as much as the others (again, not necessarily abnormal, but noticeable) - has been persistently looky/spooky over the last couple of rides, even though he feels quite sound and loose in the body (he's Spanish, so he can be lively sometimes, but he is generally sensible working at home) - slight girthyness last ride (NOT normal) All these not terribly unusual things occuring at the one time has me suspecting he has a sore tummy! I say tummy because I have no idea if it's gastric, or hindgut, but he is definitely a little uncomfortable. He has ad lib forage at all times, gets a pre-ride lucerne snack, has no concentrate feed, has a relatively laid back lifestyle and hasn't even been ridden that much lately, so no obvious risk factors at play here. It could be something to do with changing autumn pasture (either too much very mature grass - hard to ferment - or maybe he's been selecting too much very young autumn pick, or clover)? Whatever it is, I'm betting it's temporary, but have taken a few measures anyway - sticking to walk and trot - the faster the horse moves the more at risk of acid splash he is, but he does still need some exercise! - popped a little bentonite clay into his feed (the only tummy soothing thing I had on hand, there's plenty of other options) You could also - increase (or introduce) pre-ride lucerne - triple check the amount of nighttime forage (and I might increase his teff to rhodes grass hay ratio, just for a few days to make sure he is eating plenty and keeping the belly full) - reduce grain Fingers crossed 🤞 he feels better soon!
Traffic 🐎🏃♀️🚜 = compaction Compaction = shorter roots Shorter roots = shorter plants 🌱 *************** If you're interested in my pasture management content but not interested in endlessly scrolling my page to find it, you can find it all neatly filed away in the member's site 🤓 Plus you can ask me specific questions relating to your pastures and any other nutrition related queries you may have. Check it out here ➡️ integralequine.podia.com $19/month, cancel any time.
Last week we did a run through of our grazing set up - so here's a look at what else Tiento eats during the day! Tiento is a 17yr old PRE gelding, in light work.
Equestrian in the Vines was a blast! I've got limited stock left over from the stand for sale 🔥 Special 🔥 "trial size" 2.5kg packs of Golden Joint Complex for $80. This size will last about 6 weeks at the average dose rate. 👌 This is the perfect amount of time to see how it works for your stiff or arthritic horse 🐎! PM me to order 😍 ✨Golden Joint Complex ✨ is made fresh to order from anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant and joint supportive ingredients, pressed into a palatable pellet. Alleppey turmeric (5% curcumin), MSM, glucosamine sulphate, chondroitin sulphate in a flaxseed base - all human grade ingredients.
New research shows confirms what good horse managers already know from experience and research in other species - horses will tend to congregate around where they are fed! We can use this to help manage their impact on the land - one way of doing this is by using a central dry lot or loafing area with the grazing rotation branching off it. This is a super fast run through our current dry lot and laneway set up - if you'd like to come on the "walk and talk" with me (at a more leisurely pace) and learn a bit more about how it works, as well as read my summary on that latest research - sign up to new the member's site! https://integralequine.podia.com/ You can also ask your own questions on any aspect of horse nutrition and get access to more support and savings, come join us 🐎🐎🐎
If you've been managing your summer active pastures well this season, you may have lots of "lush" grass around - we certainly do, but as I found yesterday, my horses are losing weight with seemingly no effort. Watch the video to see why!
Weigh in day for our lot - so quick and easy with the scales, no guessing! Last weigh in was 3 weeks ago. Excuse the unkempt look, no brushes were harmed in the making of this film 😅 All losing weight which is great for the boys, but we have already upped Melita's feed - with her having PPID/Cushings and getting on in age we don't want too much weight loss, especially going into winter. . She should bounce back quickly though 🐎 The fact that they're all following the same pattern despite getting slightly different hay and feed rations tells me that the grasses must be getting super low in nutrition right now - watch out of if you have less good doers on grazing. I'll post what the grass is looking like tomorrow - you might be surprised 😮
Does your horse eat clay or dirt? Do they do it at a particularly time of year or after eating particular things? My horses often eat clay in spring and autumn, and it seems to be correlated with wetter weather Mineral, salt or forage deficiency is often blamed for this behaviour (known as geophagia), however there is no real evidence to support this idea - and it's seen just as often in horses that are supplemented and have plenty of forage - Tiento here being case in point! Clay eating has been documented all over the world in humans and is thought to have toxin binding and soothing effects, as well as often having a good mineral content, but even in humans it's not well understood! While you do need to be careful that they are not consuming harmful quantities of sand (to avoid sand colic), there appears to be no reason for concern if your horse has a taste for clay.
Feeding laminitic horses & teff hay
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Integral Equine Nutrition is run by Sophie Fletcher, BAnVetBioSci (Hons I), MAnSc, and aims to optimise your horses health, well being and performance through correct nutrition. Advice is both practical and science-based, as Sophie has been involved in both horses and research science for many years.
