Hi there, I've now come to the conclusion that my horse has a sensitive digestive system, and if she grazes on weeds she gets diarrhea, she was doing great on grass hay, we were having no problems but I am unable to get any at the moment. I have been feeding her a 50/50 combination of alfalfa (5kg) and oaten chaff (5kg). Once again...we have some sloppy stool problems!! Is there any chance she will get used to this combination? We only have a choice of alfalfa, oaten chaff, grass hay or teff hay here and if I offer her teff she would rather graze on the very overgrazed grazing!

Hi Christine
I am of course no expert, but one of my horses can not have even a tiny bit of alfalfa, not even in a supplement or he will get diarrhea. Also in the past if I switched hay of any kind I have found my horses got diarrhea, even when my hay man brought grass hay that was a different batch then before, but still grass hay. But as I said I am not a expert by any means. Hope you find out soon what to do about your problem.

Carol

Where are you from? California

Hi Christine,

Determining the cause of chronic diarrhea can be very difficult. The best thing to do is to keep track of any changes in the diet that trigger the problem. And, you seem to have figured out that the grass hay keeps her well.

If she is grazing on weeds, she can not only experience digestive upset, but in some cases, toxicity issues. And alfalfa, as Carol mentioned, can be a problem for some horses (though not for most). Oaten chaff is not a good idea -- there is very little nutritional value in it at all. As you know, it is used mainly as a filler to slow down eating.

So, I would start slowly by removing one thing at a time. Start with the oaten chaff and see if that makes a difference. See if you can get some hay cubes or pellets at your feed store, instead.

As soon as you're able, I know you'll go back to the grass hay. In the meantime, see if you can provide her with a strong probiotic to boost her bacterial flora numbers. And, also give her an electrolyte supplement to prevent dehydration.

Keep me posted!

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Colorado

Unfortunately if I take away the oaten chaff, I will only be able to feed her straight alfalfa at the moment, meaning she would take in alot more protein and the ca : ph ratio would be even more out of balance am I not right? Unfortunately we don't get hay pellets here, just alfalfa pellets, oaten chaff, grass hay which is available most of the time, oat hay on occsions, teff hay and alfalfa throughout the year. Most people just feed straight alfalfa. Should I still take away the oaten chaff even though she would then be eating straight alfalfa?

Hi Christine,

Well, I was hoping that you could replace the oat chaff with a grass hay cube or pellet.

When will you be able to get grass hay again? That seems to be the fix for her situation. I would rather you didn't give her straight alfalfa.

So, until you can get her on the grass hay again, I would suggest the probiotic and the electrolytes. As long as she is eating, has a normal temperature, and is drinking water, she'll be ok.

Is her weight good?

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Colorado

I wish :( Unfortunately our country is steps behind the rest of the world!

It may be weeks or months til I can get decent grass hay again. The farmers tend not to cut as it has been raining alot lately and they generally leave the bales out in the pasture. I have her on electrolytes and a strong dose of probiotic, her weight is perfect in my eyes. I think the diarrhea has improved a little, its more consistent cow pats now so I'm not as concerned but I definitely will put her on grass hay when its available again.

Thanks!

Where are you from? SA

Hi Christine,

Well, you're doing the best that you can and she is improving somewhat. Keep me updated.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Colorado

Even more improvement :D A couple of cow pats shortly after consumption and then her faeces goes to slighty wet but formed! I will let you know if she gets completely used to it.

Hi Christine,

That may be all she needs -- a little time to adjust.

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Colorado

We got brilliant perfect quality grass hay today, will let u know how it goes. Please tell me what the difference is between Yea-sacc and probiotics and which is better?

Diarrhea is gone! :D I hope I can get this stuff on a continuous basis, it truly is great.

Excellent news!

Where are you from? Colorado

Hi Christine,

I see that I never answered your question about Yea-Sacc. This is a yeast - saccharomyces cerevisiae - that is a very important component of the hind gut in horses. It is a probiotic. Other probiotic preparations may contain it along with several bacterial species. Probiotics are not all the same.

So, if you are feeding yea-sacc, that is fine -- it sometimes takes trial and error to see what your horse actually needs.

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Colorado

Thanks! I'm going to give it a try.