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I currently feed my horse a coconut/soybean oil blend for weight maintenance. Would EO-3 be a comparable replacement? He currently gets 6 oz spread over two feedings to maintain weight. He had colic surgery 18 months ago and receives 2.5 lb (1 kg) of high-fiber concentrate each day in addition to hay.

Question

Eddie is my 10-year-old Thoroughbred gelding that does some low-level eventing. He’s in moderate body condition—I’d say a 5 on the 1-9 Henneke scale—but I think he needs to gain a little weight. He has allergies and a panoply of gastrointestinal problems: gastric ulcers, hindgut acidosis, leaky gut syndrome, and occasional colic. He is jazzed mentally when under saddle—lots of energy! He spends 15 hours each day in a stall and the remainder turned out. Eddie has round-baled grass hay when he’s outside and timothy hay in a slow-feed haynet when stalled. He also gets timothy pellets (1 lb or 0.5 kg) and rice bran pellets (0.5 lb or 0.25 kg) daily. With this diet, however, he has an ongoing issue with ulcers and gas colic. The vet blood-tested him for allergies, revealing he is allergic to oats, soy, flax, sunflower, and cottonseed. His ulcers are problematic at all times, it seems, and he is itchy right now with the addition of rice bran. Looking for any feeding suggestions.

Question

Robber is my 10-year-old Thoroughbred mare (14.2 hands; 1,030 lb or 470 kg) that is in moderate body condition. She has thin soles and crushed heels, typical of many of her breed. She’s stalled half the day and turned out half the day. Pasture quality depends on the season. In the summer, it’s great; in the winter, it’s not. She is fed 10-15 lb (4.5-9 kg) of grass hay every day, plus 2-4 lb (1-2 kg) of alfalfa hay daily in the winter. In the summer, she gets a few flakes of grass hay in addition to her pasture intake. As far as concentrates, she receives 2 cups of crimped oats, 1 cup of timothy pellets, and 1 cup of rice bran in the morning and evening. I also feed her a trace mineral supplement and supplemental vitamin E in the evening. She doesn’t love the trace mineral supplement, so I often add molasses. I feel as though her coat is drab this year, too, so I want to make sure I am hitting all the key nutrients. I plan to start riding her again in a few weeks.

Question

Why can’t I just feed my horse sodium bicarbonate to help with hindgut problems?

Question

My mare has been diagnosed with polysaccharide storage myopathy type 1 (PSSM1). I am working through her diet now, and I came across an ingredient called dried distillers grains with solubles. Can a horse with PSSM consume this ingredient without agitating the muscle disease?

Question

I’ve been reading more and more about feeding omega fatty acids recently. Can you give me some more information on them, please?

Question

My horse has free fecal water syndrome (FFWS). Right now, his FFWS is severe, but I found improvement with EquiShure at three doses daily. Is there any problem with feeding EquiShure in more than two meals per day? The total amount fed per day is still within the recommended amount.

Question

I have an older gelding doing very well on EquiShure. I’ve relocated to Aiken, South Carolina, and will add powdered psyllium to my gelding’s diet to reduce the risk of sand colic. Are there any potential issues with feeding EquiShure and psyllium together? Other than his forage, he is fed only a ration balancer.

Question

I had a lot of problems with my mare for the past couple of years and through a process of elimination, including working with my vet and a nutrition specialist, determined this spring that the problem was related to her hindgut. I initially started her on EquiShure®, as that was all my feed store had in stock. Within a day of feeding EquiShure, her signs improved dramatically. I switched her to RiteTrac® in April, and she continued to do well. In August, I started reducing the amount of RiteTrac in hopes of removing it entirely from her diet one day. In October, I reduced the RiteTrac to about a quarter of the recommended dosage. Boom! All of the signs she experienced in the past were back within a few days. I am in the process of increasing her intake of RiteTrac and considering switching her to EquiShure. The initial plan was to eventually wean her off the supplement. Based on the recent relapse, I'm not sure if that is possible. Is there any harm in horses being on either EquiShure or RiteTrac for extended periods of time, as in years and years?

Question

I am looking for a product to improve my Thoroughbred/Quarter Horse mare's hooves. She grows little hoof between farrier visits, and the hoof wall she does grow is extremely weak. She is currently in glue-on shoes. I was about to purchase Bio-Bloom PS but then became intrigued by Total Wellness. Does Total Wellness have enough "good stuff" to potentially improve hoof strength? Should I consider both products? Cost is a factor, but I also want to give her the best I can afford.
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