August 2019
Holistic Horsekeeping
How to have a healthy happy horse.
Volume 24, Number 8
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In This Issue:
- Horse Joint Care in 3 Simple Steps
- More Help For Your Horse
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1. Horse Joint Care in 3 Simple Steps
When it comes to horse health care, joint care can be one of the most confusing issues for horse owners. It can be difficult to decide how best to prevent joint problems, cope with existing joint issues, and provide pain relief when needed.
When it comes to holistic horse health, I follow a three step process. I like to focus first on a solid nutritional foundation and preventative care. If a horse does develop joint issues, either because of age or lifestyle, the next step is to provide conservative care for pain relief and prevention of further damage. Finally, for the most advanced stages, I will consider joint injections and more aggressive methods of pain relief.
Learn more about or order the supplements or treatments mentioned below here:
http://www.holistichorsekeeping.com/joint-muscle-tendon-support.html
Step #1 in Joint Care: Preventative Supplements
At the basis of healthy horse joints is a strong nutritional foundation that provides plenty of digestive and antioxidant support. To build this nutritional foundation, I most often use the powdered blend of algae and probiotics, and then add supplements as needed to address the horse’s specific joint care issues.
Specifically, I have found feeding naturally-occurring antioxidants as well as components of joint cartilage to be effective.
- Antioxidants: blue-green algae, noni juice, mangosteen juice, super oxide dismutase (in wheat sprouts), vitamin C (in Citrus C/Q), vitamin E, coenzyme Q10, grape seed extract, omega-3 fatty acids (in chia seeds), and certain minerals such as sulphur.
- Components of Joint Cartilage: chondroitin sulphate, glucosamine, and MSM (products that combine some of these components include Equine Mobility by Standard Process or Cosequin ASU).
Step #2 in Joint Care: Pain Relief Supplements
Two natural herbs have proven very effective for pain relief and are also non-invasive. These are Devil’s Claw and Yucca. Devil’s Claw reduces inflammation without being as irritating to the horse as the non-steroidal anti-inflammatories. Yucca contains organic steroidal saponins, which can limit inflammation. Be wary of feeding Devil’s Claw to horses with ulcers, and feed Yucca to performance horses only after ensuring that this herb is not against medication rules in performance situations. You can get both Devil’s Claw and Yucca as well as other herbs for joint support in Ani-Motion.
Step #3 in Joint Care: Pain Relief Injections
If both the above joint care steps do not provide total relief, injectable solutions can help. These solutions included non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), as well as joint components.
• NSAIDs: Bute or Banamine
• Joint Components Injected into the Joint: Adequan or Hyaluronic Acid
• Joint Components Injected Intravenously: Legend
For a more natural method of pain relief, I have found this brand of hemp extract to be effective. You will also find my video there explaining how the hemp oil works.
Learn More
For more information about the supplements or treatments mentioned in this article, or to order, click below:
http://www.holistichorsekeeping.com/joint-muscle-tendon-support.html
Get One-on-One Help with Joint Care
If you have specific questions about joint care or other horse health issues, find me on Facebook.
2. More Help For Your Horse
Need more individualized help for your horse? Consider a nutritional or homeopathic consult with Dr. Ward.
Then if you are ready to really get serious increasing your knowledge of holistic horse care, the Mentoring Program with one-on-one instruction with Dr. Ward may be just what you are looking for. We also have lots of resources on holistic horse care on our blog, articles library on our website, and ebooks, books, DVDs, and audios.
And since we know it’s not always easy to travel with your horse, we have a solution if you will be going through Colorado. Dr. Ward is offering short term self-care boarding for travelers or for horses that just need a temporary shelter. You’ll find more details at http://www.holistichorsekeeping.com/boarding.html
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