Equine Veterinary Services

Equine Veterinary Services Il Dr D'Albena e la Dr.ssa Caporelli offrono un servizio veterinario 24h/24 dedicato alla popolazion
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Il Dr D'Albena e la Dr.ssa Caporelli offrono un servizio veterinario 24h/24 dedicato alla popolazione equina della Svizzera e del Nord Italia.

24/06/2025
23/06/2025

Flexion tests are a diagnostic tool used to localize lameness to a specific joint or group of joints. ๐Ÿฉบ By applying controlled pressure for a set time and observing the horseโ€™s gait immediately after, we evaluate joint sensitivity and mechanical dysfunction.
https://performanceequinevs.com/appointment/ -type

13/06/2025

๐ŸŒฑ ๐“๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐“๐š๐ฅ๐ž๐ฌ ๐€๐›๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐’๐ก๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐†๐ซ๐š๐ฌ๐ฌ - ๐„๐ฏ๐š๐ฅ๐ฎ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐‘๐จ๐ฅ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐†๐ซ๐š๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐‡๐ž๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ & ๐๐’๐‚ ๐‹๐ž๐ฏ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐Ÿด

I have seen some images and posts circulating lately regarding the ideal grass height to reduce โ€˜sugarโ€™ intake in horses. The common recommendation is that short grass will have the highest sugars compared to taller grasses. But is this really the case?

๐Ÿ“– ๐‹๐ž๐ญโ€™๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐ข๐ซ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ซ๐ž๐ฏ๐ข๐ž๐ฐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž๐ฌ๐ž ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ๐ฆ๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐œ๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ž๐ฌ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž๐ฒ ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐š๐ง๐ญ:

In plants such as grasses, simple sugars (often grouped with starch and fructans and termed nonstructural carbohydrates or NSCs) are produced via photosynthesis. This class of carbohydrate is an important source of energy for the horse and they are digested and absorbed in the foregut, leading to an increase in blood glucose and insulin. As a result, high levels of NSCs in the diet can be an issue for horses with metabolic concerns, specifically related to insulin dysregulation which may be observed in horses diagnosed with equine metabolic syndrome (EMS), Cushingโ€™s (PPID), and laminitis/founder.

The belief that short grass has higher NSCs is due to the fact that grasses tend to store these sugars in the lower base of the stem. As a result, shorter grass is more concentrated in NSC. But is this actually the case โ€“ what has the research shown us?

๐Ÿ”ฌ ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐ซ๐ž๐ฌ๐ž๐š๐ซ๐œ๐ก.

A study performed in New Jersey evaluated cool-season grass pastures and compared short, continuously grazed pasture (2.9 to 4.1 inches/7.3 to 10.5 cm) to a taller, rotationally grazed pasture (5 to 9.5 inches/12.4 to 24.1 cm). This study found that the โ€˜sugarsโ€™ in the grass, as well as the glucose and insulin responses in grazing horses, were the same regardless of grass height. Rather, season and time of day were two important variables capable of altering these carbohydrate concentrations.
๐Ÿ“š Williams et al., 2019

A separate study in North Carolina evaluated horses grazing tall fescue pasture mowed down to 5.9 inches (15 cm) 11 days prior to grazing horses compared to taller grass (11.8 to 15.8 inches/30 to 40 cm). This study found that the shorter, mowed pasture resulted in less simple sugars and a subsequent decrease in the insulin response of grazing horses compared to taller grass.
๐Ÿ“š Siciliano et al., 2017

๐๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐ก๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐›๐ž?

๐Ÿƒ Short or overgrazed grass may lack sufficient leafy surface to produce and store sugars effectively.

๐ŸŒฑ Under stress, plants may move sugars into the rootsโ€”where grazing horses can't reach them.

๐ŸŒพ Shorter grass that is actively growing is more likely to utilize the NSC to contribute to growth whereas a taller, more mature grass will accumulate and store more NSCs.

๐Ÿด Horses can consume more grass per bite when eating tall grass (Eduoard et al., 2009) which could result in greater sugar intake as well as an increased glucose and insulin response.

๐’๐จ ๐ฐ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐ž๐š๐ง?

These findings suggest that short grass may not be as concerning as we originally thought. With that said, there are a few things to keep in mind:

โš ๏ธ There will always be a risk when allowing sugar-sensitive horses to graze fresh forage due to regular fluctuations in the NSCs in pasture.

โœ‚๏ธ Managing pastures is important, and while shorter grasses may be beneficial, it is important not to overgraze pastures (less than 4 inches).

๐Ÿงช The only way to truly know the NSCs in the forage is by sending a sample to a lab for analysis. While this is trickier to do with fresh forage (since it constantly changes), it can create a baseline to guide decisions.

๐Ÿ—บ๏ธ There are many factors that may influence these findings so it should not be applied broadly and should be considered within the context of your horses, location, species, and management style.

๐Ÿ“Œ ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐ญ๐š๐ค๐ž๐š๐ฐ๐š๐ฒ

Grass height alone is not a reliable measure of pasture safety. For metabolically sensitive horses, effective management, not grass length, is what truly matters.

Cheers,
Dr. DeBoer

Siciliano PD, Gill JC, Bowman MA. Effect of sward height on pasture nonstructural carbohydrate concentrations and blood glucose/insulin profiles in grazing horses. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science. 2017 Oct 1;57:29-34.

Williams CA, Kenny LB, Burk AO. Effects of grazing system, season, and forage carbohydrates on glucose and insulin dynamics of the grazing horse. Journal of animal science. 2019 May 30;97(6):2541-54.

Edouard N, Fleurance G, Dumont B, Baumont R, Duncan P. Does sward height affect feeding patch choice and voluntary intake in horses?. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 2009 Jul 1;119(3-4):219-28.

06/06/2025

Did you know that horses have special sweat? Most mammals don't sweat (very much). But horses have a special protein in their sweat called latherin, which acts like a detergent and makes their sweat foam. This helps sweat spread across their bodies for more optimal cooling.

03/06/2025

Here is a nice summary of neurological equine herpes from the AAEP:

What is Equine Herpesvirus (EHV)?

You've probably heard it called Rhinopneumonitis, a respiratory tract disease that results in "snotty noses," but EHV is more than that. Depending on the strain, this virus can also cause abortion in broodmares, and equine herpesvirus myeloencephalopathy (EHM) โ€” the often deadly neurologic form of the disease.

Because EHV is endemic in many equine populations, most mature horses have developed some immunity through repeated natural infection. However, they remain a source of infection for other susceptible horses, like weaned foals and yearlings, who usually display symptoms of the respiratory form of the disease in autumn and winter. Performance and show horses are also more vulnerable to the disease, as they commingle with unfamiliar equines in close quarters while under stress from travel and competition.

Proper biosecurity protocols can help reduce EHV outbreaks and other disease transmission. A variety of vaccines are also available for protection against both the respiratory and abortive form of the disease, but there is no equine licensed vaccine at this time that has a label claim for protection against the neurologic form (EHM).

Ocd
22/05/2025

Ocd

26/04/2025
22/04/2025
19/04/2025

Equine dental care is an essential component of your equine companion's routine healthcare. Poor dental health can lead to severe issues that can consequently negatively affect your horse's health beyond just their mouth, teeth, and gums.

This graphic shows some common signs that your animal needs to be seen for dental care. Please note that this is not an exhaustive list of signs. However, if your equine does display any of these signs, it's a good idea to call your veterinarian out to do a full dental exam in order to discern if dental work or treatment is needed.

For more equine dental health information, visit the resources on our website: https://aaep.org/resource/introduction-to-equine-dentistry/

As always, if you have questions or concerns about your horse's dental health, consult your veterinarian.

Articolo molto semplice e conciso dove il Dr. O'Grady spiega la giusta ferratura del cavallo. Lettura consigliata
10/03/2025

Articolo molto semplice e conciso dove il Dr. O'Grady spiega la giusta ferratura del cavallo. Lettura consigliata

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