Hope you and your horse are enjoying the weather!
Its hot hot hot now which is great. However, most of NZ and some of Aus is also wet wet wet and humid!
Meaning skin issues rear up at this time of year, like rain scald and irritating allergies. These conditions can be caused by the same bacteria as mud fever. However, scabs form in places along the horse’s neck, back, and hindquarters rather than the lower legs like we can see on horses in the winter.
We often see this when horses are over-rugged, then they sweat and get more irritated.
Skin reactions to biting insects can also happen more at this time of year with the humid wet weather. Strategies to aid skin reactions to biting insects rely on mitigating the inflammatory and immune response to the insect’s saliva, which is the actual allergen.
In order to get your horses immune system in top working order we need to provide the horse with key nutrition for the skin and the anti inflammatory immune response.
KEY NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS:
Dry matter/ Vitamins and Minerals/ Omega Fatty Acids
We know forage should make up the majority of your horse’s diet. Feed hay and a number of different fibres and grasses. The equine digestive system is designed for an almost constant, slow intake of forage, which helps to maintain proper hindgut pH levels. 🌿🦠
This is critical to influencing the abundance of good gut microbes, such as fiber-fermenting bacteria. A healthy balanced microbiome will in turn enhance immune functions by helping to neutralize potential toxins and protect the horse from an overgrowth of pathogenic organisms. The horse’s gut controls over 70% of the horse’s immune system!
Feed the microbes = feed the immune system!
After taking care of good forage, help the horse by providing supplements that support a balanced immune response.
At the most basic level this includes key nutrients of;
- copper, zinc, selenium, vitamin E and omega-3 fatty acids. (Marine + Flaxseed oil)
These are indispensable building blocks for the body’s own antioxidant defences such as glutathione, EPA, DHA and the superoxide dismutase enzymes.
Copper is essential for making melanin, the pigment responsible for hair colour, and for producing keratin, the main protein in hair.
Zinc is a component of many metalloenzymes in the body that are involved in the metabolism of protein and carbohydrates. Along with copper it helps build keratin, the structural protein of hair, making the coat strong, resilient, and less brittle.
Skin health suffers with copper and zinc deficiency. Deficiencies of either copper or zinc have been linked to rain scald and mud fever because their immune cells are unable to protect against overgrowth of skin bacteria in wet muddy conditions. What is important is that copper should be fed in a specific ratio with zinc. The NRC recommendation of 10 mg of copper/kg of diet DM consumed/day still appears to be adequate for mature horses.
The exact dietary requirement of zinc for horses is not well defined, however, the optimum dietary zinc intake appears to be between 40 mg of zinc/kg of DM consumed/day and 80 mg of zinc/kg of DM consumed/day.
Vitamin C is a key antioxidant both in its own right and by virtue of its ability to regenerate other antioxidants, like vitamin E, to an active form. It is necessary for collagen production, which keeps skin nourished, and acts as a powerful antioxidant, protecting skin cells from damage, It is abundant in fresh grass but activity is lost rapidly in hays. Vitamin C is also particularly important in the respiratory system and the eyes.
Flavonoids (e.g. quercetin) are plant compounds which work synergistically with vitamin C. They support a healthy coat primarily through their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties so can soothe irritated skin and support strong hair follicles, promoting healthy hair growth.
Spirulina is an edible algae which is a fresh water, nontoxic, blue-green algae with some unique properties. In addition to excellent antioxidant capacity, Spirulina helps maintain balanced immune function and antibody production. Specifically, it promotes normal balance between the arms of the immune system including supporting the production of IgG and IgA antibodies as well as stability of the mast cells which store histamine. 🌱
Make sure your horse has adequate Vitamin B6, B7 and amino acids in their diet.
Specifically, Biotin (B7) is essential for keratin formation, making hair strong and healthy. It supports skin health and can prevent issues like alopecia (hair loss). While Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) works with biotin for keratin production, again vital for hair and hooves.
Amino acids are crucial building blocks of keratin protein. Cool season grasses and lucerne are generally higher in in amino acids than say meadow so get to know your grass species and if your paddocks are more rye or warm season grasses like teff (if you are in Australia) then you could potentially add a supplement for these to the diet or alternatively feed a chaff or hay of lucerne, or feeds such as soybean and lupins.
Feed Omega Fatty Acids
The horse is capable of synthesizing all the fats except essential fatty acids. Supplemental fat often noticeably contributes to coat and hoof quality. This promotes a glossy, smooth coat by improving skin barrier function, sealing in moisture, protecting against irritation and inflammation, and providing essential nutrients for hair structure, leading to healthier, more resilient skin and coat. So, the addition of a good oil (esp a good Omega 3 to 6 ratio) can help.
Omega 3 play a primary role as in anti-inflammatory processes.
Fish oil or plant oil?🐟
Long-chain fatty acids EPA and DHA (as found in fish oil as a direct source) may be more effective than shorter-chain fatty acids such as ALA (as found in flax).
This is due to the necessary breakdown of ALA and its rebuild in the horses gut to make EPA. Unfortunately, this process can be fairly inefficient in the horse gut which is why feeding direct sources of EPA from marine oil may be desirable as it does not rely on the conversion of ALA.
Another wonderful source of EPA can be found in a plant the Ahi flower, unfortunately not available in NZ, but can be purchased in Australia, UK and USA.
To help your horses with preventing the dreaded skin issues this summer remember the horses’ gut changes and their resultant health can change with every season and event. Your horses’ diet needs to be adjusted to suit, (as much as we would like) nothing stays the same and diets are always a balancing act of the correct nutrients needed by the individual horse.
Happy Feeding!
