Hi Vicky and Sherry,

I'll answer both of your questions here.

First, Vicky... An older horse does well on 10,000 to 15,000 mg of Vitamin C per day. If the horse has access to fresh pasture, then the lower end of the dosage is fine (there's vitamin C in fresh grass). If on hay, they supplement more. One scoop of Pure C has approximately 8,000 mg of vitamin C. The important thing to remember with supplementing vitamin C is that once you start, you should not abruptly stop. This is because the horse becomes accustomed to a higher intake of vitamin C and will develop deficiency symptoms if it is no longer provided. Vitamin C is very important for older horses because they no longer produce enough, so a daily supply is important to their health.

Sherry... I understand how hard it must be to watch your horse suffer like this. I have two recommendations... First, give her Flaxseed Meal -- plenty of it -- to provide omega 3 fatty acids. If she's not already getting a complete vitamin/mineral supplement, consider Glanzen Complete to meet this need and give her 3 full scoops per day. If she is already getting a vitamin/mineral supplement and it's a good one, then simply provide Nutra Flax.

The second thing is Spirulina. This blue-green algae is an excellent food that is highly effective against any allergens in the environment. It has typically been difficult to feed since it generally comes in a powdered form. I now offer Spirulina Wafers on my website. I am delighted to finally have found a palatable way to give spirulina to horses. Feed 10 wafers per day.

I hope this is helpful. Please keep me posted.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO