04
Sep
The typical horse eats between 1 to 2 of his body weight in forage. How owners manage pastures and seasonal consumption of grass carbohydrates can significantly affect horses with Cushings disease according to.
If you have a Cushings horse that is also a harder keeper this can be a challenge.
Can horses with cushings eat oats. A simple grain mix of corn oats or barley can be used. One possible combination is coarse cracked corn about 25 barley about 35 and oats about 45. Barley may be one of the best foods to use with horses who have laminitis.
Even though oats are the grain lowest in sugar and starch at around 45 to 50 starch they are still far too high in starch for horses on a low sugar and starch diet eg insulin resistant horses horses prone to laminitis those with disorders like Cushings or PSSM etc as well as many horses who are prone to ulcers colic and hindgut issues. You can also use a hay steamer and reduce the sugars and NSC value. If you have a Cushings horse that is also a harder keeper this can be a challenge.
Concentrates and cereal grains such as oats corn and barley can be very risky as. The need for supplementary feed will depend upon the individual horses metabolism and available pasture or hay. If extra energy is needed feeds with moderate carbohydrate content fed in small meals are acceptable.
Some horses may do well. This gives people the impression that oats are high in glycemic index therefore not a good food to feed EMS horses. However in humans oats are around 58-69 all in the low to medium range indicating a good food to use.
And oats are highly recommended as a source of safe carbohydrates. Cushings disease more properly termed pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction PPID is a neurodegenerative disorder that leads to the enlargement of a portion of the pituitary gland in the brain of the horse which results in excess production of certain peptides and hormones that have a direct effect on the adrenal glands. 2 Apr 12 2017.
The majority of Cushings horses cant be on a lot of pasture. Thats because insulin resistance is often seen in the same horses that have Cushings. However some horses with Cushings do not have insulin resistance and those horses can.
The goal in feeding a horse with Cushings is to limit the intake of nonstructural carbohydrates NSC feeds such as the sugars and starches found in grains. In many cases feeds that are labeled as senior feeds are also high in NSC content and should be avoided when feeding a horse with Cushings disease. Horses may lose weight on such a long trip so when you arrive you will know if anything has changed.
If weight loss occurs you can adjust the diet accordingly by adding a low-carbohydrate grain concentrate or fat supplement. On the other hand it will also help you ensure your horse doesnt gain too much weight either. Avoid too many grains Things such as oats corn and barley are extremely high in starch so shouldnt be fed in large amounts to horses with Equine Cushings Disease.
Soak hay Soaking hay for 12 to 16 hours or 6 hours in warm weather will cut the number of water-soluble carbohydrates in half. How owners manage pastures and seasonal consumption of grass carbohydrates can significantly affect horses with Cushings disease according to. Horses can safely eat a wide variety of different foods that humans regularly consume although the biggest difference is obviously that horses are strictly vegetarian and shouldnt be fed meat or animal byproducts.
Yes weve all heard the funny stories of peculiar horses who like to eat. Since a Cushing horse is predisposed to laminitis it is very important to limit his NSC non-structural carbohydrates to 10-20 of his total diet. Hay and other fibrous feedstuffs should make up the majority of the horses diet.
The typical horse eats between 1 to 2 of his body weight in forage. Horses with PPID and good BCS score without evidence of insulin resistance can essentially be fed as a normal horse to maintain body condition and prevent obesity. Senior-type feeds sweet feed or oats with hay can be fed if additional dietary energy is needed.
So what is bad about oats. Oats like ALL grains are mineral and vitamin deficient. Horses simply cant get the overall nutrition that they need from any grain UNLESS they are fortified.
Oats corn barley etc etc. Are all are deficient. Today what farmers essentially use to fertilize is chemical fertilizer.
Horses and ponies also need to be on a good quality diet of fresh grassy hay with some lucerne alfalfa and depending on the work load some oats and cracked corn. Pelleted feeds that have been heat processed or steam extruded should be kept to an absolutel minimum as such feeds normally use wheat as the grain to form a binding agent. Cushings syndrome horses require a hay or pasture source that is low in non-structural carbohydrates NSC so you might want to have your forage tested.
They do well on senior feeds that are fortified with lysine methionine biotin vitamin E and organic trace minerals copper zinc manganese and selenium to help maintain muscle mass. Certain feeding strategies can help your horse weather equine Cushings disease. Your horse has equine Cushings disease for which theres no cure.