subject: Is Your Horse Getting the Proper Amount of Minerals and Nutrients? [print this page] Is Your Horse Getting the Proper Amount of Minerals and Nutrients?
Mineral deficiencies in horses are not common. Good quality hay or pasture will have all the minerals a horse needs. Growing foals may need extra feed that contains calcium and phosphorus if they do not have access to high quality pasture. Sometimes your horse needs to take equine supplements to make up for the nutrients they are missing out on.
These nutritional horse supplements work in the same way they work for us; they are a perfectly natural way to provide the body what it needs most. Many equine supplement products include lots of the same types of nutrients we as humans need everyday, too.
Is your horse getting the right amount of nutrients? You first must figure out what nutrients your horse is getting already. You can do this by looking at the nutritional information on your horse's feed bag, finding what nutrients it is getting from the grass it eats out on pasture, or seeing what nutrients are in the hay it is eating. Nearly all of major feed manufacturers employ nutritionists who can assist you in determining all of this information out and what is the best amount for your horse.
If you have discovered there is a deficiency in your horse's diet, then you can begin your search for the right equine supplement. There are numerous horse supplements to pick from. Some are expensive vitamin and mineral concoctions, while others are organic and herbal remedies. You can even use straightforward home supplements such as garlic powder or coconut oil. Read the labels carefully before you choose one, and always look for an equine supplement which meets your horse's specific needs.
You'll find there are times when your horse may require extra vitamins and minerals. Broodmares with foals, for example, often benefit from extra doses of calcium. Horses that labor hard in warm weather might require extra electrolytes in order to avoid dehydration. A horse under stress could need nutrients like iron or B-vitamins. Many horse owners feed these supplements to horses recovering from illness or injury as a way of speeding up their recovery.
Remember to never over do it. Picking out an incorrect supplement, or using one your horse doesn't need, can harm your horse sometimes seriously. Some vitamin and mineral ingredients can be very dangerous when given in large quantities. Fat soluble vitamins like A, D, E and K, are stored by the horse's body and can cause illness if overfed.
