My 13yr old Arab Has had 2x colic attacks in a week there was blood test taken and he was found to be anemic at 5.1 do you know of any iron supplement for horses and would this have anything to do with him having garlic daily - as i read your answer about Heinz-body anemia, could you please give me more evidential info.

Many Thanks Amanda

Where are you from? Plymouth England

How did you locate this forum? Search engine

Hello Amanda,

Yes, garlic can induce anemia in horses, so I generally do not recommend it on a daily basis or in high quantities.

For an iron supplement, I recommend Max Plus by Vita Flex. This is also high in B vitamins, which are important for the health of red blood cells (particularly vitamin B12, B6, and Folic acid).

Dr. Karen Hays has written an excellent article on feeding garlic to horses and the potential risk of Heinz-body anemia. Here is a link to that article: http://www.equisearch.com/care/nutrition/eqgarlic528/ index.html"

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Thank you for your reply and can I say what an excellant site lots of good info.

Could I also ask about corn oil as this is something I have given my horses for a long time.

After my horses recent colic attack we went through every thing to try to find the cause but nothing in his routine or feed has changed, he is in a fenced off paddock so he cant eat anything from the hedges. His blood results have come back and as i said previous he was slightly anemic, there was slight inflamation of the gut, which would be obvious as he had just coliced.
But I have fed garlic and corn oil in his morning feeds for a long time.
I have now stopped these and replaced it with the iron supplement, but in humans there is a question over whether they actually work, is this the same for equines.

And thanks again for providing such great information,
as i would of carryied on using both and certaintly not put it down to them. Fingers crossed.

Where are you from? Plymouth England

How did you locate this forum? Search engine

Hi Amanda,

I do not recommend feeding corn oil, except in the case of an ulcer, because corn oil can increase the inflammation response in the body. However, have you ruled out an ulcer? Anemia can be caused by an ulcer because of stomach bleeding. And, ulcers can cause colic. So, before you treat his anemia with an iron supplement, I would rule out any medical conditions.

Also, if you are feeding an iron supplement, it should also contain other minerals and the B vitamins. It takes time for the red blood cells to improve, so patience is necessary. But, you will want to have his blood checked again within 6 months to make sure that it is working. And, you won’t want to have him on an iron supplement indefinitely. It is meant to be a short term treatment.

Bottom line – see if you can find out the cause of his anemia before treating with supplements.

Hope this helps!

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Thank- you for your reply, I have already looked into the fact that he might have an ulcer which has not yet been confirmed/unconfirmed but we are trying to find the cause of his colic and anemia.
Do you any info on equine ulcers there prognosis and treatment.
The iron supplement was advised by my vet and treatment is still under going, a repeat blood test is happening in a while, it was curiosity and investigation which led me this forum and the question asked.
thank-you for time, and great web site.
Amanda.x

Where are you from? Plymouth England

How did you locate this forum? Search engine

Hi Amanda,

Well, if your vet suggested an iron supplement, I would go with MaxPlus because it is also high in B vitamins.

If an ulcer is confirmed, your vet will likely prescribe Gastrogard. There are many causes of ulcers, including stalling for many hours, especially without hay, stress, and intensive exercise.

Thank you for the kind words!

Dr. Getty