Hoof Trim

12/21/2022

Horses and sweet potatoes?

Ulcers, 60-90% of show/performance horses have ulcers. Humans created stall confinement, grain and commercialized feeding. Horses are meant to spend all day, outside free grazing. “In a natural grazing situation, a steady flow of acid is required for digestion, so a horse's stomach produces acid 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – up to 9 gallons of acidic fluid per day, even when not eating.”

So what happens to that acid when there’s no roughage to break down, ulcers. How do we treat and prevent ulcers in our barn? We preventatively treat each horse with omeprazole paste the week before and during each showing. It’s cheap, easy and effective!! Want further benefits? It’s in the common grocery store sweet potato! Why?

“On top of protein and dietary fiber sweet potatoes also have a very good selection of vitamins and minerals:
* Vitamin A – As well as boosting your horse’s immune system and strengthening his bones, Vitamin A can also help to reduce the risk of cataracts.
* Vitamin C – Like Vitamin A, Vitamin C can help to improve your horse’s immune system but it can also help to heal wounds and keep your horse’s teeth, bones, and cartilage healthy.
* Vitamin B5 – Part of the B complex vitamin group, Vitamin B5 can help to keep your horse’s coat in good condition. It also works to aid digestion, especially in the digestive tract.
* Vitamin B6 – Another B complex vitamin, it’s known for its ability to reduce the symptoms of some forms of arthritis as well as keeping the eyes healthy. If your horse suffers from depression then Vitamin B6 can help with this.
* Vitamin E – Known for its ability to fight infection, Vitamin E also works to maintain healthy skin, eyes, and even a healthy coat.
* Potassium – You might not realize it but potassium is actually one of the most important minerals in the body, it works to keep a horse’s muscles working properly and will also help to reduce tiredness after exercise.
* Manganese – Not only does manganese help to keep your horse’s bones strong and healthy but it can also reduce inflammation. In my opinion, though the biggest role that manganese plays is in the regulation of blood sugar, this means that it may be good for horses that suffer from conditions such as Equine Cushings Disease.”

Maybe you will consider adding sweet potatoes to your show horses regimen, we have, and we have seen outstanding results! Our biggest sweet tater eater in the barn is 17+ hand gentle giant He’s Forrest Gump! They helped him gain over 300lbs and help to curb his proneness to colic. Thank you to Dr Mendenhall at Equine Services for your recommendation!

Source horsefactbook.com

10/07/2022

Did you know....

In medieval England people consumed two to three pounds of bread every day. But their appetite for bread was likely nothing compared to that of medieval horses who, after a day spent lugging cargo at high speeds across the British Isles, would often devour coarse loaves of horse bread.

Today, feeding bread to a horse might seem like the whimsy of a sentimental pet owner. But in pre-industrial England, it was the best technology available for powering the horses on which English society relied.

Horse bread, typically a flat, brown bread baked alongside human bread, fueled England’s equine transport system from the Middle Ages up until the early 1800s. It was so logistically important that it was more highly regulated than its human counterpart, with commercial bakers adhering to laws dictating who could bake horse bread, as well as the bread’s price, size, and occasionally even its composition. The ubiquitous bread was made from a dough of bran, bean flour, or a combination of the two, and typically was flat, coarse, and brown.

According to some estimates, medieval horses consumed about 20 pounds of food per day. These huge animals were responsible for hauling people and cargo across England at high speeds. After a long haul, exhausted horses had to rebound quickly for another trip, so they needed carbohydrates and protein, fast.

Bread solved this problem in two ways. First, it saved time and energy because it was “pre-digested,” says William Rubel, author of English Horse-bread, 1590-1800 and a leading historian—and baker—of this functional bread. “Bread, where you’ve ground the food and baked it, pre-digests it, so you get more calories released more quickly.”

Second, horse bread concentrated, in a travel-friendly object, nutrients that owners would otherwise have to gather from vast quantities of grain and grass. “I am convinced that horse bread is a very reasonable solution for the ongoing problem of how do you feed your horses. They require a massive amount of feed and in a medieval economy, it must have been a logistical nightmare, especially while traveling,” writes Madonna Contessa Ilaria Veltri degli Ansari, a medieval reenactor who baked horse bread for her own modern-day horse based on ancient English recipes, in a paper on the topic. “I consider that horse bread is the period analogue for the pellets we use today.”

10/03/2022

The magic cross of Doc’s Starlight and Peppy San Badger produced three undeniably successful stallions: Grays Starlight, Gallo Del Cielo and Paddys Irish Whiskey. Read more about these three of a kind ➡ www.aqha.com/-/three-of-a-kind

10/03/2022

What do horse owners know, and perhaps more importantly, don’t know about gastric ulcers in horses?

10/03/2022

10/03/2022

So true

https://carsonjames.com

09/30/2022

Chick is here to tell you some exciting things -
📦 We JUST started another free box! Hoof boots, blankets, hay-nets, polos, and more! Come check it out!
🦄 While you’re at it, check out the donation jar sitting on our counter for Ascutney Mtn Horse Farm. The horses there provide healing and help to people of all ages struggling with addiction, PTSD, depression, anxiety, and much more! Your generous donation goes directly to the farm to help feed their healing horses that have made positive impacts on many people’s lives ❤️‍🩹 If you wish to learn more, ask Katrina or Becky.
🥶 NEW Winter Blankets are in-stock! Come check out the durability and functionality of these cool new medium, heavyweight, and combo blankets. They’re Katrina’s favorite brand (Shires!)
🎁 LOTS of new-to-you consignment inventory added today! Come check out our lightly used items at unbeatable prices! We even added to our $5 & Under Box of Treasures (now located upstairs.)
😇 Make it a win-win! Snag some free stuff, and drop a donation in the jar for someone local that could really use it 🙂 We love to see the horse community helping each other!