HorseSource discuss optimum gastric health for the horse
10/04/2012

 http://www.horsesourceltd.co.uk/

EGUS – Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome

What are equine gastric ulcers?

EGUS describes the erosion of the horse’s stomach lining due to prolonged exposure to stomach acid. This can lead to widespread internal damage, bleeding and even perforation.

All horses are at risk but horses in training are most likely to have them.

Why are racehorses most likely to have them?

• Ulcers occur when acid and digestive enzymes overpower the protective factors in the stomach lining. When horses in training are denied free access to fibre or fail to eat regularly, ulcers develop rapidly.

• Traditional concentrated high carbohydrate racing feeds contribute to ulcer risk by reducing actual feeding (chewing) time and increasing gastrin levels.

• Long term use of non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs has also been shown to contribute to this disease.

• Blood flow to the stomach decreases with intense exercise

• Increased pressure on the abdomen when exercising pushes acid into the most sensitive area of stomach

• Ulcers can also occur in response to stress, shock, respiratory disease and traumatic injury.

How can I tell if my horses have gastric ulcers?

Look for these signs – they may indicate EGUS

• Poor appetite or eating intermittently; takes a few mouthfuls then stops for a while?

• Weight loss or not able to put weight on and then maintain it

• Wind sucking / cribbing and box walking

• Poor performance, lack of energy

• Poor condition and dull coat, grinding of teeth

• Behavioural changes when being handled / ridden out

• Mild or recurrent colic attacks

Can gastric ulcers be easily treated?

You can reduce the potential for gastric ulcers developing by:

• Allowing free choice access to hay or haylage & split into several smaller nets

• Feeding more frequently (4-5 smaller hard feeds per day)

• Allow access to other horses to alleviate psychological stress of 24/7 stabling

• Add some alfalfa into their feed to help buffer the acid*

• Cut down on high carbohydrate feeds and replace with high oil feed for more energy*

• Following treatment with Gastrogard stomach ulcers can recur – in as little as 5 days. (ref Merial Ltd)

• Use preventative natural medicine continuously throughout the year instead of intermittent and expensive drug treatment when at crisis point*

*Natural Alfalfa, Alfalfa Gold and Seabuck Complete are available to order from HorseSource along with a free nutritional assessment for your horse as part of our service.

Gastrointestinal Health – Why feeding the right forage is so essential

Since horses are designed to live on forages, any feeding programme that neglects fibre will certainly result in undesirable physical and mental consequences which can have lifelong repercussions.

Despite the common knowledge that horses are ‘hindgut fermenters’ or ‘nonruminant herbivores’ many horse owners still overlook the importance of feeding not only an adequate quantity of fibre, but also the right quality. Why is it that when the hard feed is considered, the levels of protein and other nutrients are very closely examined but rarely do we test our forages or pasture for nutrient content – even when fibre is known to be the most essential component of a horses’ diet?

Forage Composition

Forages are made of two components, cell contents and cell walls. Cell contents contain most of the protein and all of the starch, sugars, lipids, organic acids and soluble ash found in the plant. These components are broken down by enzymes produced by the horse and are highly digestible. The cell wall contains the fibrous part of the plant, which is the part resistant to the digestive enzymes.

The nutritional value of fibre is determined by two factors; fibre content and fibre quality. These factors are important because the horse can digest nearly all of the cell contents, but bacterial fermentation can only digest 50% of most plant cell wall. 

Forage Quality

There are many factors that affect the quality of forage; the most important of these are the species of plant, the stage of maturity and also the location where the plant was grown. We recognise most plants for horses as either grasses or legumes – grasses include timothy, fescue, rye and contain most structural matter in their leaves and leaf sheaths, whereas the most common legumes are alfalfa and clover and their leaves have little structural function and tend to be on woody stems. At maturity legumes tend to be higher in protein energy and calcium than grasses. Legumes also tend to contain 20-25% more digestible fibre than grasses at the same level of maturity so horses fed on legume hay can put condition on quite quickly. There are some concerns in different parts of the world about the high protein levels that can occur in legumes such as alfalfa, however most of the alfalfa grown in the UK is much lower in protein than that grown in the USA or other parts of Europe and definitely bears no resemblance at all in nutritional analysis to those dangerously high protein plants that are cultivated under irrigation in very hot countries such as the Middle East.

The stage of maturity at harvest also plays a vital role in the quality of the fibre, and as a general rule as plants mature they become less digestible. Alfalfa leaves maintain the same level of digestibility throughout their growth, but their stems become dramatically less digestible as they mature. Since the stems of grasses serve as a ‘reserve’ they may actually be more digestible than the leaves of these grasses as they mature.

When forage is grazed as pasture its nutrient quality is almost always higher than hay, and new spring pasture can be quite low in fibre content and high in soluble carbohydrates so it is a good management practice to continue to offer horses on pasture additional hay or haylage even if the pasture appears thick and lush. If the horses are getting enough fibre from the grass alone - they will ignore the hay.

Forage also provides essential ‘buffering’ against the effects of gastric acid which in the horse is continuously produced whether they are fed or not and can very quickly lead to the formation of gastric ulcers. It is well known that gastric ulcers are very common in performance horses and the usual site of these ulcers is in the upper portion of the horse’s stomach which does not have any protective mucous layer and does not secrete bicarbonate onto its surface. Therefore the only naturally occurring protection this area has comes from saliva production and the buffering capacity of the feed provided. The high incidence of ulcers in our horses is a man-made problem resulting from the way we feed and manage our horses, as ulcers are extremely rare in non exercised horses maintained solely on pasture. Meals of grain or extended periods where no feed is made available lead to excess gastric acid, however when forage is provided ‘ad-lib’ the horse has a natural source of buffering fibre and extended chewing encourages them to produce saliva. When fed hay, horses produce twice as much saliva compared to when they are fed hard or grain based feed. The type of hay fed can also affect the buffering capacity; it is well known that the buffering capacity of alfalfa is greater than grass hay.

Buffering capacity among feed types has actually been measured in vitro (Jasaitis et al 1987) and it was found that it was lowest for energy feeds, intermediate for low protein feeds and grass forages and highest for high protein and legume forages.

It is a simple fact that we seem to have forgotten – all horses have evolved over millions of years as grazers, with specialised digestive tracts adapted to digest and use diets containing high levels of plant fibre. They are capable of processing large quantities of forage to meet their nutrient demands. In an attempt to maximise growth or productivity we often feed horses diets that contain high levels of grains and supplements. Unfortunately this type of grain based feeding often overshadows the vital contribution that forages make and can lead to serious gastrointestinal problems. So let’s try to think like a horse – feed fibre first!

HorseSource has a new product for gastric health - Gastric Health Formula 

100% Natural Health & Performance Product available via the HorseSource Facebook store currently https://www.facebook.com/pages/HorseSource-Feeds/155358661152033

Great for		Analysis
Horses in training , racing & showing		Himalayan Seabuckthorn
Horses with gastric ulcer issues		Natural Omega Complex
Helping with stress during travel		Blended plant extracts
Boosting immunity in youngsters		Full analysis on request
Maintaining peak performance
Healthy skin & coat

• Helps prevent ulcers forming

• Continuous natural support for horses with gastric ulceration

• Provides protection of respiratory, digestive and also urogenital tracts

• Aids recovery after ulcer drug treatments (e.g GastroGard)

• Rich natural source of all Omegas 3,6,7,& 9

• Powerful supply of antioxidants, very high in Vit C and E

• High level of phytonutrients which control inflammation

• Full of bioactive ingredients to promote and support digestive health

• Reduces negative effects of stress when travelling & competing

• Protects against free radicals, supports healthy cell structure & repair

• No prohibited substances have been used in the preparation of any HorseSource products as defined by the BHA and the FEI

• NO WITHDRAWAL TIME REQUIRED – continuous treatment and support

FEEDING INSTRUCTIONS

After an initial loading dose of 180mls per horse per day for 5 days;

Add 90mls per day to the usual feed ration. 

The 5L container provides approx 56 days normal supply for one horse.

General feed advice:

All horses should be fed between 1-2% of their bodyweight in fibre every day to maintain a natural healthy gut action i.e. a 500kg horse should be fed a minimum of 5kg of fibre per day. When stabled 24/7 ensure they have ad lib access to one or ideally two sources of different fibre and clean water. A horse in hard work needs to drink between 10-15 gallons of water per day to ensure adequate hydration is maintained. 

For advice on Natural Feeding please contact;

Jo Bower ~ MSc Eq S

Independent Equine Nutritionist

HorseSource – Natural Feed Specialists

Made by Nature, Proven by Science

+ 44 (0) 1977 646312 or + 44 (0) 7970 165479

horsesource@btconnect.com

Gastric Health Formula available at https://www.facebook.com/pages/HorseSource-Feeds/155358661152033

http://www.horsesourceltd.co.uk/

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