Ask the Nutritionist: Dr. Getty's Forum for Equine Nutrition
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All the best,
Dr. Getty
Greetings Heather,
By now you have likely received my book and it will provide a very basic answer to your horse's situation... give him all the grass hay he wants -- free choice -- never runs out. You mentioned that he is an easy keeper and it is perfectly natural to assume that his hay should be restricted in order for him to lose weight. But in actuality, he is staying overweight due to the stress of not having forage flowing through his digestive tract 24/7.
Horses' stomachs, unlike our own, produce acid all the time. This is because they are designed to eat all the time -- small amounts of forage virtually 24 hours a day. If the stomach is empty, acid still flows and travels down to the hindgut where it destroys the microbial population, leading to endotoxins, gas, and, you guessed it... Colic.
The digestive tract is made of muscles and needs to exercise. Forage provides exercise to these muscles, keeping them moving properly and therefore, impactions are less likely to occur.
Oh... back to the weight thing. I have been doing this for two decades and have literally seen hundreds of cases of overweight horses lose weight once they are allowed to have all the hay they want. What happens is, they overeat for a few days, but once they see that they have all they want, they calm down, walk away, visit a friend, and slow down their eating. In other words, they self-regulate their intake and eat only what their body needs. If they run out of hay, they overeat the next batch and eat it very quickly. While they wait for more, they suffer physical and mental stress. Stress leads to cortisol (stress hormone) production, which leads to insulin resistance, which leads to fat storage. So, the horse never loses weight and ends up with all sorts of health problems, including repeated colic episodes and even laminitis.
If you do this one thing, you will notice a tremendous difference and there is no need to throw more supplements at him to "fix" the problem. The fix is to allow him to be a horse and to eat the way he is designed.
About dehydration... horses frequently colic this time of year because they do not like cold water and will not usually drink enough. The only way to solve this is to heat the water to 50 degrees F. Adding salt is not a good idea if the water is still too cold to drink. Your horse instinctively knows this and therefore, will not eat more salt because he will not want to drink the water. In his mind, there is a water shortage. If you heat the water with a heated water bucket or heating unit designed for water troughs, you will notice that he will drink enough to keep him healthy.
So, bottom line... the key is not MORE hay; the key is that he NEVER RUNS OUT of hay. Give him a large amount -- a bale at a time -- and you will see him eat less and less and leave more and more over in the morning. Eventually, he'll eat only what he needs to maintain condition, he'll lose weight, he'll feel better, and he'll be the horse he was meant to be.
All the best,
Dr. Getty 
In the past, he would gas colic around May or June, just once a year - banamine and walking relieved the symptoms. Then last year he mildy impacted and then 6 months later gas coliced (this colic lasted on and off for 3 days -I had 2 vets working with me and neither one could find anything wrong upon rectal exam, an abdominal tap revealed high lactic acid, but no damage to intestines). Now this year he mildy gas coliced in Jan and just recently had another mild impaction - luckily I caught it very early.
Where are you from? Bayfield, CO
Hi Heather,
Your message made me smile -- I'm so pleased to hear that he is now getting all the hay he wants and it's wonderful how it only took 5 days for him to self-regulate his intake.
Your water situation sounds fine. As far as TractGard is concerned, this is an antacid and really should not be used on a daily basis. I prefer to use it when a horse is going to be undergoing a stressful situation such as traveling or training. If you suspect any problem with his stomach or his digestive tract, in general, consider Amiquell. It is not an antacid, but rather a combination of ingredients to heal and soothe. Antacids neutralize acid, which can be harmful since your horse needs acid to eliminate the vast array of microbes he picks up while eating off the ground. Therefore acid is important for his immune function.
Finally, about the deworming... yes, you can use a daily wormer the day after you use the ivermectin/praziquantel paste.
All the best,
Dr. Getty
Since my original post I did order the Tractguard and have been feeding him a 1/2 dose for the past 3 days (wasn't sure if I should start with a full dose right away). Is it okay to keep him on the Tractguard?
I do have heated water buckets as well as a tank heater. I do not know if it is 50 degrees, but it is not cold. He's just always been a lousy drinker, my other two drink well though.
One more question....since his last colic episode he has been off the daily dewormer so I thought now would be the time to de-worm with the ivermectrin with praziquantal. My question is if I paste deworm him one day, can I begin the daily dewormer the following day or do I need to wait a few days in between?
Thank you for your time and knowledge!
Where are you from? Bayfield, CO
Greetings Heather,
Thank you for your patience.
If you are finding that TractGard is making a significant improvement in his water intake, you can continue using it at the smallest dosage necessary to get the effect you need. It is designed to bring more water into the digestive tract, which is your goal.
About gas formation... this is generally an indication of excessive fermentation in the hindgut. It can be due to poor quality forage or if sugar and starch are reaching these microbes. AmiQuell will not assist with gas formation. I have found Ration Plus effective in this regard simply because it keeps these microbes healthy.
So examine his diet to see if there is anything that is reaching the hindgut that is not appropriate or if his hay is too high in indigestible fiber (indicated by a high %NDF).
All the best,
Dr. Getty
Will the Amiquell help with gas build-up?
Where are you from? Bayfield, CO
Hi Heather,
D Carb Balance is an excellent supplement for the IR horse but it would require additional magnesium to treat the cresty neck that your horse has developed. And, since it is has other ingredients, it would not go well with any other vitamin/mineral supplementation.
Carb X is a better choice if you're already providing vitamins and minerals, because two ounces would provide 12,000 mg of magnesium and it also contains a herb known as gymnema sylvestri, which helps lower circulating insulin levels. To bring the magnesium up to a therapeutic dosage, you could add one rounded scoop of Quiessence.
Yes, the human supplementation is fine, in the meantime.
If we haven't already discussed it, be sure to have your hay tested for a low percent non-structural carbohydrates (NSC) -- less than 12%.
And no carrots or apples. Skode's treats are a wonderful option.
Keep me posted.
Dr. Getty
Author of Feed Your Horse Like A Horse
Where are you from? Bayfield, CO
Thank you Dr. Getty. I ended up ordering the Quiessence, but oddly enough, before even giving him it, his crest seems to be down. Maybe I'm losing it 
, but it does seem better, still there, but not that noticeable. At any rate, I gave him 4oz of the Quiessence today, his first dose.
The problem with testing my hay is that I am currently feeding from 3 different suppliers. The growing season was very poor last summer and thus I needed to go to different farmers in order to have enough. I'm hoping that won't be the case this year, I'd like to test the hay that I buy in June and if it is good, then buy all I need for the year. Crossing my fingers....
Thank you for all your time and input!
Where are you from? WI
How did you locate this forum? internet
Hi Heather,
I agree with you -- if you don't have two to three months worth of hay supply, it really isn't feasible to have it analyzed. Sometimes, feedstores have a hay analysis report available. The hay provider may offer the report with the supply, which often gets filed in a file cabinet and forgotten. So, ask the manager if such a report exists.
And soon we'll have a new season, so I like your plan to have enough hay to make it worth your while to have it analyzed.
Regarding Quiessence -- if your horse's crestiness is subsiding, it may not be necessary to give a full 4-scooop dose. The maintenance dose is 1 scoop per 500 lbs. The treatment dose is 1 scoop per 250 lbs. So, somewhere in between may be more appropriate.
All the best,
Dr. Getty
Author of Feed Your Horse Like A Horse
, but it does seem better, still there, but not that noticeable. At any rate, I gave him 4oz of the Quiessence today, his first dose. The problem with testing my hay is that I am currently feeding from 3 different suppliers. The growing season was very poor last summer and thus I needed to go to different farmers in order to have enough. I'm hoping that won't be the case this year, I'd like to test the hay that I buy in June and if it is good, then buy all I need for the year. Crossing my fingers....
Thank you for all your time and input!
Where are you from? Bayfield
How did you locate this forum? CO