The Natural Equine Diet: Balanced Nutrition For Horse Health

At Excel Supplements, we’re committed to helping you optimize your horse’s health with a well-balanced diet. Understanding and implementing "The Natural Diet" is essential for achieving this goal.

Understanding the Natural Equine Diet

Before domestication, horses thrived on a natural diet while grazing in grasslands. This diet primarily consisted of fresh grass, browse, and other vegetation, offering a balanced mix of nutrients. Key benefits included:

• Rich Source of Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Wild horses consumed a diet with up to five times more omega-3 fatty acids than omega-6 fatty acids, leading to reduced inflammatory mediators and better overall health (Horses and Their Natural Diet, Horse and Hound, 2020).
• Essential Fat-Soluble Vitamins: Fresh grass is also rich in fat-soluble vitamins, crucial for maintaining various health functions.

The Shift in Modern Feeding Practices

Modern feeding practices have altered the traditional equine diet. While some horses still graze on pasture, many are fed:

• Grain-Based Diets: A combination of hay and grain or commercial grain-based feeds has become common. This shift has led to a higher intake of omega-6 fatty acids and a reduced intake of omega-3 fatty acids.
• Nutritional Imbalance: Contemporary diets can provide up to 18 times more omega-6 fatty acids compared to omega-3s, potentially leading to health complications (Equine Nutrition and Feeding Practices, The Horse, 2022).

Health Risks of High Grain Diets for Horses

Feeding horses excessive amounts of grain can result in various health issues, including:

• Digestive Problems: Conditions such as colic, enteritis, and colitis are more prevalent with high-grain diets (Grain-Related Health Issues in Horses, Equus Magazine, 2021).
• Inflammatory Conditions: High grain intake can exacerbate inflammatory conditions like osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) and laminitis.
• Muscle Disorders: Muscle diseases, including equine polysaccharide storage myopathy and recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis, can worsen with excessive grain (Muscle Disorders in Horses, Journal of Equine Veterinary Science, 2023).
• Developmental Issues in Foals: Overfeeding foals with grain can lead to developmental orthopedic diseases (Developmental Orthopedic Disease in Foals, Veterinary Clinics of North America: Equine Practice, 2022).
• Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome: Increased grain consumption is linked to obesity and equine metabolic syndrome, affecting overall health (Equine Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity, The Horse, 2023).

Adopting a Healthier Diet for Your Horse

To improve your horse’s health, consider transitioning to a diet that more closely resembles their natural intake:

• Reduce Grain-Based Feeds: Opt for diets that minimize grain and focus on high-quality, natural forage. Read more about quality over quantity of grain here.
• Implement More Forage: On average, horses should receive 1.5-3% of their body weight in forage. Read more about the importance of hay quality here.
• Incorporate Omega-3 Supplements: Address omega-3 fatty acid deficiencies with targeted supplements. Learn more about Excel Supplements Camelina Oil here.

At Excel Supplements, we offer a range of products designed to support a balanced diet and fill nutritional gaps caused by modern feeding practices.

Enhance Your Horse’s Health with Excel Supplements

Adopting a more natural equine diet can significantly benefit your horse's well-being.Not only does Excel's Camelina Oil offer all the health benefits you expect from omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin E, but it’s also a plant based product produced with minimal environmental impact. This makes it a smart choice for the conscious horse owner looking to support their horses natural diet. Explore Excel Supplements’ products to provide your horse with a diet that aligns with their natural needs and promotes optimal health.

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Sources:

• Horses and Their Natural Diet. Horse and Hound. 2020.
• Equine Nutrition and Feeding Practices. The Horse. 2022.
• Grain-Related Health Issues in Horses. Equus Magazine. 2021.
• Muscle Disorders in Horses. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science. 2023.
• Developmental Orthopedic Disease in Foals. Veterinary Clinics of North America: Equine Practice. 2022.
• Equine Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity. The Horse. 2023.