Equine Choice Prebiotic & Probiotic and AFX Ulcer Support for Horses

09/12/2023

ABOUT FREE F***L WATER SYNDROME...
Gut health is so important!

First indepth study into pasture and hay that may bring to light key contributing factors for horses suffering from FFWS.
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There is very little research focussing on FFWS (Free F***l Water Syndrome). However, most researchers agree it has to do with secondary irritation (inflammation) of the intestinal lining and it stands to reason we investigate microbiota health:

Gut microbiota is considered the most significant of the body in maintaining health. The gut bacteria serve several functions, such as fermentation of food, protection against pathogens, stimulating immune response, and vitamin production.

Here are some concerns that may impact FWS:
- WSCs (Fructans)
- Mycotoxins
- Phytoestrogens
- Pesticides and
- Cianogenic Glycoside (plant derived cyanide)
being injested due to the large volume of grass and hay intake.
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This is the First Study that speaks to this and may help discover potential sources contributing to your individual horse's battle with FFWS tied to hay and grass consumption.
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Here's a very quick summary for consideration but I urge you to read the full study results:

1. WSCs which include fructans can cause disruption to gut microbiota and create inflammation of the lining. They are highest in early cut Spring hay and Spring pastures, up until mid May, and also lower in later cuts that contain legumes.

2. Mycotoxins flourish in dryer, hotter temps above 20 deg.C in more mature hays harvested late July/Aug

3. Late cut is highest in CA, P, but all cuts were under minimum daily requirements for Na, Zn and Cu

4. Pesticide levels were low, but present, even in organic fields which indicate air contamination from adjacent spraying activity.

Take home message:

A late first cut will have the benefit of more mature plants with lower WSC content but could mean lower yields due to dry conditions in late summer.
But the higher ADF/NDF ratio in late-cut hay may result in a lower digestibility in the equine gastrointestinal tract, which may negatively impact fibrolytic bacterial populations and may also make it less suitable for horses requiring a highly digestible forage such as performance horses.
A varying number of mycotoxins was always present on pastures. However, forage in late summer showed a higher contamination with mycotoxins and other contaminants.
Regards,
EPC Solutions
Hoovesandhorses.com

Pastures are used for grazing and the production of conserved roughage in horses. Yet, the nutritional profile of the forage varies from spring to lat…

13/11/2023

GOOD SCIENCE IS TIMELESS! No fads, no trends, just good logic.
In 2012, this was EPC Solution's mentoring booth for prospective university students enrolling in Guelph's Vet & Equine Sciences programs.
This 12 year old photo echos a great example of how SOLID science stands up to the test of time:
1. Consistent equine biomechanics- built around the equine digit COR and bony column alignment- still the single most effective biomechanics to support long term soundness today and Dr. Redden's effective "balance rad" podiatry x-ray protocol to aid the farrier/vet.
2. Equine Choice Pre-Probiotic and stomach ulcer support. Look at Equine Choice's old product labels! Little bit of nostalgia there!
Great equine gut microbiota support with exceptional top quality ingredients that outdo the market share for its consistency and effectiveness. Indepth studies in Europe and 3 years intensive study by Agriculture Canada still proves this product to be in my experience, still the most effective product in the market today; and 12 years later, science is continually exploding-proving out the enormous role the equine gut plays in every facet of equine health- Immune system, EMS, PPID, Foot health, body inflammation.
3. Soft ride boots. Still today- proving to be one of the best consistent boot supports for low grade chronic laminitic recovery or thin soled horses with broken bony column alignment or supporting over shod/barefoot hooves during long-haul trailering.
Gotta love the strides we continue to make in Equine science. ❤

13/11/2023

Appreciation 🌹
Thank you to all who enquired about our Equine Podiatry & Nutrition Education modules. Please note we are now fully booked for our 2024 Professioanl Course offerings. Looking forward to our 2024 private-tutored education series with a fantastic group of equine professionals. We appreciate your enthusiasm to learn and grow!
Blessings to you all.
If you would like to know more about our customized offerings, please visit our website education centre at: https://www.hoovesandhorses.com/Education-courses.html

01/09/2022

NEW STUDY- FWS (Equine F***l Water Syndrome) RELEASED TODAY out of Guelph, ON

IMO I believe "fibre types and composition" play a role which is a determinant of types of microbiota that it feeds and proliferates in the hind gut. But as this study eludes to, it's only one of many things that affect the Microbiome and that is the KEY IMO.

So how can we help these horses? It's so multi-factorial. Once thing I recommend as an Equine Nutritionist - I find it helpful to support the microbiota with prebiotic (food for the good probiotic microbes to survive), not just probiotic and a good food enzyme so things that should be digested in the small intestine are, and don't escape into the hind gut to feed the wrong types of microbiota. We use Equine Choice Pre-Probiotic, B-Vitamin, Enzyme Supplement because of its high quality content and patented encapsulated pre-probiotic that makes it to the hind gut without denaturing. Fortunately it is made and available in Canada, but I have been hard pressed to find an equivalent overseas for our international clients.

Then we look at ways to support the body's healing work to regenerate the damaged intestinal lining in the hind gut from detrimental microbes that have run amok, using their L-Glutamine paste.

Further, some horses benefit from even higher supplementation in Thiamine- B1 as B vitamins are quite compromised when the wrong microbe populations no longer synthesize important B vitamin for the horse's immune system. But careful planning should be orchestrated between owner, nutritionist and veterinarian as other things may be underlying, like disease/colon infection.

Meantime, while these are supportive tools to bring about normalized PH and proliferate better microbiome, the search goes on to determine the ROUTE CAUSE(s)...so as to remove it!. Still very elusive to us!

Check out this new study, just released today comparing school horses vs. backyard owned horses from the same geographical area. What exactly is going on? Does regular exercise affect the microbiome? Pro or con? How about stress? Same geographic area doesn't mean same feed/hay/pasture type fed, so it may be just the fibre type involved again?

This is not a very controlled study other than "same geographic area" but regardless, school horses from both Ontario and Florida had simularities in their gut populations compared to backyard horses. Why? We still have little understanding....

The objective of this study was to compare the f***l microbiota of 2 healthy teaching horse herds with that of client-owned horses from the same geogr…

29/10/2021

HAVE INTERNET? WILL TRAVEL...

This great memory popped up on FB from our 2-day education clinic 6 years ago in Alberta, Canada.

For any barns, organizations, groups, vet clinics, interns, alternate modality professionals, podiatrists, horseowners or individuals- if you are interested in latest research and updated knowledge to empower you in areas of equine nutrition, metabolic care, and/or all things podiatry including podiatry radiology and metron specific to the equine digit, please feel free to contact us at EPC Solutions.

We continue to offer one or two-day clinics or private individually tutored courses via a virtual classroom setting, on-line, live and interactive. We no longer travel on-site due to the current world situation, but can easily bring you this empowering experience to your doorstep through technology!

We got this! Have internet? Will travel!🙂

30/09/2021

If you’re wondering what supplements your horses may need to maintain a happy healthy lifestyle we have tons of info for you to learn more about their gut health. Check out the link in our bio to brush up on all the benefits of adding a probiotic supplement to their regular diet.�
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29/09/2021

✨CONTEST ALERT ✨ With the Equine Choice Silver Series playoffs coming up, we’ve decided to put together a “Fall Coziness” package 🍂🍁🧦🧣perfect for this time of year! Head over to https://www.animalproproducts.com/silverseriesgiveaway to enter. Make sure to get your entry in by October 2nd. You don’t want to miss out on this!

06/08/2021

06/08/2021

WHICH PRE-PROBIOTIC should I buy for my horse?

As an Independent Equine Nutritionist focussed on metabolic health, in my experience, Gut Health is often the missing key in diets and is directly linked to long term soundness, hormonal and muscular-skeletal health and resultant years of quality living enjoying your equine companions.

But the market is constantly flooded by products and supplements. How do you know which ones are quality products?

Equine Choice has been a founder in Gut Health, long before other companies jumped on the bandwagon. Extensively studied by Agriculture Canada when they first came out, won agricultural awards for innovation. Their ingredients are of Superior Quality, not bought from 3rd world bulk suppliers that offer poor quality control and do not remove impurities.

Cheaper priced products in the market are a tell-tale sign of this. Yes the labels can all look good. And FB floods us with mass-marketing and strategic campaigns that eat up money that would be better spent to invest into the product itself IMO.

Wesse studies by Guelph OVC revealed most all Probiotic supplements either didn't contain what their labels and marketing campaigns promised, or more concerning - contained many impurities/compounds that should not have been in the product which long term can contribute to devastating negative health effects on your horse.

I have not found an equivalent pre-probiotic product in the market to match both the EFFECTIVENESS and the SAFENESS of Equine Choice products. They first-and-foremost invest their money straight into product quality ingredients. A Canadian company with their own manufacturing facility and extremely high work ethic. As an independent, I use many different feed stuffs according to what the individual horse requires, to balance a diet working with the best available feedstuffs in the area, but my one constant is the use of Equine Choice product.

Their encapsulated live cell yeast probiotic with enhanced prebiotic properties has been heavily tested and approved through EFSA which is a very stringent testing/regulating body in Europe and no other product in Canada or the US uses this expensive patented formula in their supplements.

With so much processed feed, byproducts, mycotoxins, impurities and toxic metabolites, combined with poor quality soils yielding deficient nutritional and unbalanced grass and hay forage, the horse's hind gut takes a beating! One of the best ways to protect our horses today is smart daily gut health assist. But do your homework to ensure you are not adding to the problem by using poor quality products.

Though I am an independent nutritionist, I endorse Equine Choice gut support because, simply, after years of investigation and continual perusual of products and herd testing, I have not found many products that work this effectively in my diet planning, that I can trust with safety and quality control built into the product. So I choose to include Equine choice Pre-Probiotics and Ulcer support into most all of my nutritional consults. Saves a lot of vet bills!

Also being focussed in Equine Podiatry, I have found that I cannot maintain long term, the signifcant hoof improvements made via biomechanically sound trimming/shoeing and therapeutic assists alone, without addressing the gut for long term hoof quality and stable endocrine-metabolic health affecting lamellar integrity of the distal limb!

I am very appreciative to have access to quality gut support products developed by Equine Choice as an important piece to enable me to offer well balanced, safe and optimized nutritional plans for our beloved equine partners. Hence I wanted to reach out and share my experience with those of you looking and learning with a desire to be good stewards for these special equine friends that touch our hearts everyday.

Sylvia Nemeth-Kornherr
EPC Solutions
EQUUS- the balanced equation
hoovesandhorses.com