HERBS FOR HORSES

Vet Stephen Ashdown explains how and when herbs and other supplements can help your horse.

Few people realise that 80% of humans rely on herbs as their chief means of staying healthy. Reasons for this include poverty, war and lack of access to a pharmacy; but surely herbs work don’t they? And if they do work, how do we know which plants to use?

Herb research is getting increasingly sophisticated. Some plants are strong, like raw garlic which can have as good an antibiotic effect as an antibiotic such as Erythromycin, whilst also tackling parasites and fungi. Some plants are weaker and gentle like good old chamomile which relaxes me at night. Another effective herb is dandelion leaves which have a safer diuretic action (eliminating excess water from the body) than that available via modern drugs.

CHOICES, CHOICES
To help you choose the right herbs, the best option is to get helpline numbers from different companies and ask experienced people what they think. Compare the different responses and then weigh up what you think is best for your horse. Advice from your local vet can be frustrating because even vets like me get a bit dismissive of the huge variety of products available. Every company in the horse world seems to be bringing out its own range!

MINERAL MAGIC
Minerals, in particular, are often the most important supplements for good health. Many diseases are linked to inadequate minerals in the horse’s body. Often the best forms are those that are bound to proteins – known as chelated – which means that the minerals are absorbed more efficiently into the body like normal food. Much of the mineral content of cheap mineral products shoot straight through your horses body into the droppings.

Seaweed is a great source of minerals, but more balanced formulae are better for long term use. It is worth noting that most nutritional recommendations for the correct level of minerals to feed your horse are based on minimum levels necessary to avoid disease – RDA ( recommended daily allowance). These are very different to levels necessary to keep your horse in the best possible health.

No man-made feed will have exactly what your horse needs all he time. Requirements vary between individual horses, the time of the year and whether your horse is healthy or not. Giving access to a variety iof mineral sources is the only way of getting it just right.

WHICH HERBS?
This is a huge subject. In general, skilfully designed mixes of herbs work best, but the quality of the constituent herbs also needs to be of the highest quality and to be assessed for safety and effectiveness using scientific finger-printing techniques – spectrophotometry and colorimetry, etc. For example take the commonly used plant echinacea for the immune system. Poor quality Echinacea leaf is almost completely useless for the purposes that you want, but high-quality root material can make a huge difference to your horses wellbeing. Garlic is potent when fresh – in dried form it loses all its antibacterial action. In summary, try advice lines and weigh up what you are told carefully.

NEUTRACEUTICAL KNOW-HOW
Neutraceuticals are chemicals used for nutritional purposes to improve the way your horse’s body is working. These are perhaps easier to understand as they’re often of standardised quality. Some of the most common neutraceuticals are glucosamine, chondroitin, and MSM , used for joint health, and tryptophan which is an amino acid (what proteins are made from and useful for calming).

In general, sensible use of neutraceuticals is very valuable for health care – and combined with herbs can be very useful – but all these supplements need to be used in the correct way as part of a comprehensive approach to your horse’s health problems.

For simple problems such as ‘my horse keeps eating earth’ it is quite easy to say ‘feed seaweed, as there’s obviously a mineral deficiency’ but, for a more serious problem such as ongoing lameness, you will need to consult your veterinary surgeon. Get his advice on using neutraceuticals along with nutritional advice from a manufacturer’s helpline.

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