Ask the Nutritionist: Dr. Getty's Forum for Equine Nutrition
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I have a 19 yr old mare, breed probably arab-Tenn Walker cross, who has Cushings, (or Metabolic or Cushinoid syndrome)--is still sound,teeth are good, no laminitis; I am trying to manage her condition with diet for as long as possible--can you recommend a daily feeding regimen--she currently is on 3lbs/day TDI (12% protein) pelleted feed, and a nice quality orchard grass hay, am and pm, with daily pasture turnout, weather permitting. Her weight is Ok so far, but I am considering switching her feed to a Nutrena brand feed, trying to keep it to a 10 or 12 % protein, with a slightly higher fat percentage, (like 6 or 7%), with better fiber, and lower starches. Would this be advisable? I realize you may not be able to recommend specific brand names, but can you offer any guideline on percentages, amounts per day, etc. for feeding Cushings horses? Thanks very much!
Where are you from? Dayton, Ohio
How did you locate this forum? Equisearch
Hello Monica,
You are very wise indeed to take preventive action so her condition does not worsen.
Yes, I would definitely switch her feed to one that is lower in starch and higher in fiber. Nutrena makes an excellent feed called, “Safe Choice” and I would recommend that you feed this to her. Try feeding her 3 lbs/day along with some alfalfa cubes or pellets.
You’ll also want to round out her vitamin and mineral profile with a good supplement. I would suggest Select II since it is good for grass diets and also contains probiotics, which she will benefit from due to her age and condition.
I’m pleased that she is turned out – she needs the exercise and an outlet to metabolize the excess cortisol in her system.
Hope this is helpful! Keep me up to date on how she is doing.
All the best,
Dr. Getty
THANK YOU Dr. Getty for the feedback to my inquiry--I just accessed your site again today and read your answer-I had gone ahead and switched my mare to SafeChoice by Nutrena, a few days after I had asked the question about feeding her I feed her approx. 1 to 1.5 lbs or so of it am and pm, along with 2 nice-sized flakes of a primarily orchard grass hay. (She gets extra hay if it's really cold weather to help her keep warm, even if she is in her stall.) I haven't added any other vitamin supplements yet, as I didn't think you needed to if feeding SafeChoice--I'll look into the Select II you mentioned-and get some alfalfa pellets-how much of the alfalfa pellets should I add to her SafeChoice pellets-like maybe 6 to 8 ounces am and pm? I want to make sure she stays as healthy as possible via diet control and that I do everything I can to keep other problems from starting that are associated with metabolic disorders or Cushings. I'm curious to see how/if she sheds out this Spring--I groomed her the other day, and removed HUGE amounts of winter hair--a lot more so than in the past at this time of year--don't know if it's related to the change in diet-- so perhaps she'll have a more normal shed-out this year and I won't have to clip her as I usually do. Anyway, I'll keep you posted as to how she comes along.
Thanks again for your help, Dr. Getty!
Monica Gase
Where are you from? Dayton, Ohio
How did you locate this forum? just searching on line for Cushings info
Hi Monica,
I am very encouraged to hear about her increased shedding. This is great news.
I would suggest that you feed her ½ to ¾ pounds of alfalfa pellets at each meal. See how she does with this. And, it is a good idea to give her a multiple vitamin/mineral supplement because you are not feeding as much Safe Choice as the recommended amount, so she is not getting enough of these other nutrients. Select II was one recommendation – but there are others that are also good. I like Accel and I also like Platinum Performance.
Keep me posted! Thank you so much for the update.
Dr. Getty