Tag: grass affected

Head Flicking in Horses

5 August, 2024

Head flicking in horses (or head shaking) is characterized by some or all of the following: There are a variety of conditions that will ‘trigger’ head-shaking episodes: Important: Head-shaking/flicking is not ‘naughty’ behavior. Forget trying to physically restrict the horse with any kind of ‘tie-down’or trying to ‘school’ him out of it. It is a debilitating, painful condition, see below. The Trigeminal Nerve It has been established that head-shaking/flicking involves the malfunctioning of the trigeminal nerve in the horses head. The trigeminal nerve originates behind the horse’s eye and has branches down to the mouth, nostrils and up to the…

Horses on Pasture

18 March, 2024

If you’ve been fortunate enough to encounter no issues with your horses grazing on your lush pastures, you may skip ahead. However, if your horse is among the numerous experiencing any of the following problems or similar variations, then this is essential reading. Problems Caused by Lush Pasture If any of these issues resonate with you, please read on… The notion that allowing horses to freely roam lush meadows, selecting vegetation to balance their diet instinctively by day’s end is ideal, is far from reality. In our experience, such thinking often contributes significantly to the aforementioned list of issues. Conversely,…

Grass Affected Horse – How do you know if it is the grass?

17 May, 2016

If its Autumn or Spring, the risk is highest, however certain grasses, supplements and feeds can affect some horses all year long. A ‘Grass Affected’ horse is one where one or multiple aspects of their diet are adversely affecting their health and behaviour. This usually originates from the forage (grass) but can be further exacerbated by the addition of other potassium rich feeds to their diet. The fastest way to create a ‘Grass Affected’ horse is to graze them on dairy pasture or other pasture that has been fertilized with potash, super-phosphate, DAP, Urea, NPK etc. This is enough to create a…

Calm Healthy Horses Plan

8 September, 2015

Tick off any symptoms that you find from the Horse Symptom Checklist. Make the recommended diet changes in the CalmHealthyHorses Plan for one month, then, revisit the Checklist. If necessary continue the process for another month or until your horse is completely back to normal. This may take several months for more serious problems such as Head-Flicking. The Calm Healthy Horses Plan will help eliminate digestive flora problems, mineral imbalances, mycotoxin overload and correct the natural buffering system. Your horse will be calm and healthy and riding will be enjoyable again. Introduce any new feeds or supplements slowly, over a period of…

Laminitis Solutions

8 September, 2015

Equine Laminitis Solutions – Click here for information about the difference between laminitis and founder. There are several potential causes of laminitis Any major infection such as a retained placenta Some medications Any injury which causes constant weight-bearing on the other ‘good’ limb Standing on poisonous substances Gorging on grain from the feed bin Fructans in cool season grasses like rye-grass The sort of laminitis we are talking about here is that which is most common, especially in spring and autumn, and is caused by the mineral imbalances inherent in the grass the horse is consuming, referred to here as ‘Grass-Induced…