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Ask the Nutritionist: Dr. Getty's Forum for Equine Nutrition
Welcome to my forum. Feel free to post a comment or question. I will be happy to address your concerns regarding your horses' health. It may take as long as a week to get back to you, but I will respond to your question. Thank you for your patience.
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| Viewing Page 1 of 1 (Total Posts: 4) |
| Author | Comment |
Melissa
 IP: 64.12.116.11 Jan 20, 08 - 7:42 PM |
Older horse with allergies & copd
Hello! I have an oder (20 ish)draft cross who suffers from what appear to be seasonal allergies/COPD. Throughout the warm weather he will cough and at times his nostrils are flared and red at rest. The vet has examined him twice and doesn't find it to be extreme, but there are days when he just can't be worked. (Coughing, wheezing upon light exertion.)This winter weather is GREAT--he seems 10 years younger! He is stalled at night, on pasture all day if he chooses. I feed beet pulp & local grass hay. He does tend to be overweight and I'm working hard to condition him as best I can, but if he can't breathe that compromises the goal! It seems like he just has good days and bad days, and I can't figure out the triggers. Heat definitely aggravates it, but this fall when the wet leaves were down he had some trouble, too. I have tried steriods and bronchodialors with some moderate success, but I don't feel those are good long term choices and they didn't really give him total comfort. I've tried several herbal supplements, spirulina, and DMG. All with little to no results. I typically keep him on a commercial hoof supplement and I recently added Source to his diet. I'd appreciate any other suggestions or tips. Thank you very much! Melissa |
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Dr. Getty
IP: 66.118.192.138 Jan 25th, 2008 - 5:03 PM |
Re: Older horse with allergies & copd
Hi Melissa, Thank you for writing and I'm sorry to hear about your horse's respiratory problems. They do sound like allergies since they are seasonal. Allergy testing may be a good idea because there are situations where horses are allergic to common feedstuffs such as alfalfa or flaxseeds. And, if that happens to be the case, your commercial ration may contain these things (or something else that he is allergic to) and you may be continually causing him to have a reaction, without ever intending to. Regarding supplementation, additional antioxidants are extremely helpful for this type of situation, in particular vitamin C, which acts as a natural antihistamine. PreOx is worth considering for this situation in the meantime while you have his alleric responses tested. I hope this is helpful. Keep me posted, Dr. Getty 
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Melissa
IP: 205.188.116.11 Feb 28th, 2008 - 10:18 AM |
Re: Older horse with allergies & copd
Ok, I'm getting ready to order Pre Ox but I also need a hoof supplement for this guy. Do I need to be concerned about 'overdosing' on things like Methionine and Lysine. I know to be careful of Selenium. I'm looking at Master's Hoof Blend since I'd also get the probiotics there. Would Reitsport or any of the Glanzens give him the same antioxidents ast Pre-Ox. (Since they also address hoof, etc would they be a better, though more expensive choice?) In short, my concerns for him are 1.) Allergies. 2.) Hoof--he has BAD feet but a basic supplement has helped tons. 3.) Maybe some joint support, though he never seems lame, I figure as a preventative measure, why not? Thanks. Melissa |
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Dr. Getty
IP: 66.118.192.138 Feb 28th, 2008 - 3:13 PM |
Re: Older horse with allergies & copd
Hi Melissa, I see that you ordered the Master's Hoof Blend and PreOx, along with Ration Plus. All of these are fine and go well together. The Glanzen products are not as high in antioxidants as PreOx but close. For his joints, I would highly recommend Actiflex Senior. I give this to my older fellow and it works very, very well. The only thing I would add, if necessary, is extra Vitamin C -- but try what you have first and see how his respiratory situation does. All the best, Dr. Getty
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