Diet Planning

Watch Out 4 Laminitis

The spring and early summer months can be a real worry for owners of laminitis-prone horses and ponies. The main priority in managing laminitis is to monitor grazing intake. If grass is abundant consider bringing the horse in, strip grazing or using a muzzle. What you put into your horse’s feed bucket is also crucial. A high fibre diet providing slow release energy is required and Dengie now has four Laminitis Trust-approved fibre feeds to choose from.

Recent research by the Waltham Equine Studies Group indicates that horses predisposed to laminitis, for example by breed or those fed on a long term diet of sugar and starch-rich grain may be at a higher risk of developing laminitis. It is therefore wise to try to minimise cereal intake or, if possible, avoid them altogether, especially for overweight horses.

Dengie is the leading grower and manufacturer of fibre-feed for horses and has developed a range of products suitable for those who are prone to weight-gain and or laminitis at this time of year.

Feeds such as Dengie Hi-Fi Lite and Alfa-A Lite are ideal low sugar and starch alternatives to cereal based feeds. When fed alongside a broad-spectrum vitamin and mineral supplement such as Dengie Natural Vitality Leisure Vits & Mins, they provide a balanced diet and sufficient energy to meet the needs of most horses and ponies in moderate work.

Hi-Fi Lite is a blend of alfalfa and oat straw with a low sugar coating. It can literally be fed by the bucketful which is really useful for keeping stabled horses and ponies occupied.

For laminitis-prone horses and ponies that struggle to maintain condition or who are back in work, Alfa-A Lite will provide that little bit more. Combining alfalfa with a low sugar coating and palatable mint flavouring, Alfa-A Lite has a calorie level similar to high fibre mixes and cubes. As it takes a lot longer to eat it will also help to keep your horse occupied and promote healthy gut function.

In the past six months we at Dengie have launched two new products, Alfa-Beet and Healthy Hooves both of which have been given approval by the Laminitis Trust.

In the course of her research at the Royal Dick Veterinary School, Dr JoAnne Murray discovered that combining sugar beet with alfalfa improves the digestibility of the anti-oxidant and protein-rich alfalfa, allowing the horse to derive greater nutritional value from its diet; thereby providing the energy required for strenuous or prolonged work. Combining these ingredients has an efficacy beyond the nutritional value of the constituent parts.

We have improved our long-time favourite, Alfa-Beet reducing its soak time to 15 minutes warm soak or 2 hours cold soak making it even easier to use. Alfa-Beet is a 50:50 blend of alfalfa and sugar beet, without any additives, molasses or binders - just 100% natural ingredients - making it one of the most versatile feeds around for horses and ponies. All horses from the racing thoroughbred to native breeds can benefit from Alfa-Beet in their diet owing to its natural simplicity, nutritional value and slow release energy that can be harnessed for work or weight gain or the veteran with dental problems to name but a few.

Healthy Hooves is a new alfalfa-blend fibre feed packed with Biotin which is proven to maintain healthy hooves. In humans Biotin is often recommended for strengthening hair and nails. In Healthy Hooves this, combined with chelated trace minerals, other B-group vitamins and garlic, helps to create good skin and coat condition as well as to support the body’s immune system.

The Laminitis Trust states that common causes of laminitis are obesity and overeating foods rich in carbohydrate or rapidly fermentable fibre i.e. cereals, coarse mixes, rapidly growing or fertilised grass. Healthy Hooves, like Dengie’s other approved feeds, has all the ‘anti-laminitis’ health benefits of feeding Alfalfa – a high protein, very low-carbohydrate, slow-release energy source, rich in anti-oxidents – plus all the nutrients required to support healthy hooves.