Joint Care for Horses

Horses naturally are on the move much the time, and this constant wandering as they find food ensures good circulation of blood in the limbs and hooves. A stabled horse may have just 10% of the blood circulating to the feet compared with an out kept horse. Movement also helps to lubricate the joints and keep them “pumped up”. So, you can see our first line in supporting feet and joints is to enable the horse as much freedom to move as possible.

Nutrition can also play an important role in keeping horses joints healthy. Free living horses are able to browse on a wide variety of plants and will to some extent, self-medicate. The plants on which the horse survives in the natural environment are rich in vitamins, minerals and trace elements as well as essential omega oils. Although the overall oil level is not high, the balance of those oils is crucial, with 4 times as much omega 3 as omega 6. This is worth bearing in mind as omega 3 is the anti-inflammatory omega and 6 is pro-inflammatory. Omega 3 is thus very important to horses and very few plant-derived oils have this balance, with the notable exception of linseed. Horses are obligate herbivores, which means they are Vegan, so we believe it is important that we source their nutrition from plants - not from animals as you can find with glucosamine for example.

In offering support for joints, at Simple System Horse Feeds we respect the horse’s status as an obligate herbivore and to offer this aid to their well-being, look to full fat, cooked linseed and wild rosehips, which have been shown in research to support joints in both humans and equines. To ensure the best possible effects, we use amounts that have been shown to be truly effective, which may mean a little extra cost, but it also means more comfortable horses. Cheaper or animal-sourced ingredients will never appear in a Simple System formulation.

Joint Eclipse offers a top up of linseed and rosehips to offer joint support to the existing feed. Use 20g per 100 kg of ideal weight per day.

FlexiBalance combines the benefits of the above with a good all round forage balancer to support skin, coat, guts, digestion, hooves and general health.  Feeding rate 40g per 100 kg ideal weight per day.

Veteran Balance + has all the benefits of FlexiBalance but with a sainfoin base, salt (electrolytes) and mint (to aid digestion) added, then pelleted.  For good doers, this makes a comprehensive short feed, with water added to make a tasty mash. Use 100g per 100kg ideal weight per day.

Add further forage as required to cover any additional needs for work, condition, growth etc.  As with all Simple System feeds, we do not compromise on quality and always use effective amounts of key, carefully sourced, functional ingredients. For feeding suggestions from our experienced team, contact the Feed Line: 01728 604008 or complete our online form.