Scientific Studies

Supporting a horse’s microbiome with supplements: which option is right for your horse?

There are so many supplements available to horse owners that claim to support the hindgut microbiome. How effective are they? Let’s explore the main types of supplements used and what the scientific literature says.

Supporting a horse’s microbiome with supplements: which option is right for your horse? Read More »

Antibiotics and the Equine Microbiome

“My horse has been on antibiotics and now has soft droppings and seems a bit bloated, do you think there is a connection?”

To try to answer this, I have looked at the scientific literature to gain an understanding of the research surrounding antibiotics and their impact on the equine microbiome.

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Caring for Underweight Horses: Tips and Strategies

Caring for Underweight Horses: Tips and Strategies Caring for underweight horses can be difficult because the horse needs a combination of dietary and management strategies to gain weight and stay healthy. A horse may be underweight for many reasons, such as not getting enough calories, being stressed or in pain, or having a disease. In

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Laminitis and the microbiome- what are the links?

Laminitis is a condition seen in animals with hooves, where there is inflammation of the lamella with ultimate failure of the suspensory apparatus of the distal phalanx. Most studies have been on horses although donkeys, goats and bovines may also be affected. Several factors appear to be involved in the development of the condition which

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Changes in the gut microbiome and colic in horses: Are they causes or consequences?

A useful review which highlights the complexities of understanding the involvement of the microbiome in equine colic. Several different factors are involved in the expression of the gut microbiome in any individual horse and there can be wide variation even in healthy animals. Contributions from the diet and from the environment are known to be important

Changes in the gut microbiome and colic in horses: Are they causes or consequences? Read More »

How gut health affects behaviour and mood in horses, humans and other animals

Dr Rosemary Waring provides the following review looking at the impact of feeding EquiNectar on mood and behaviour. Background Research in both man and animals has suggested that there is a ‘gut/brain’ axis, where the gut microbiome can modulate the expression of mood and behaviour, altering the tendency to depression, anxiety and repetitive behavioural patterns

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EquiNectar – Digestive Support for Horses in Training

Paper discussing the value of EquiNectar to a starch fed horse in training by independent equine nutritionist, Catherine Rudenko. Discusses the impact of starch feeding, optimal starch levels in feed and the method of action of EquiNectar. The use of active enzymes in a horse’s diet have been shown to have an impact on caecal

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IFNM – Modulation of the equine microbiome by pasture and feed supplements: A metabolomics approach

We conducted this study at Redwings Horse Sanctuary. The study was designed to look at the effect on the equine microbiome of pasturing horses on new grass and to determine whether supplementation with EquiNectar would alter the result.

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