Poor Gut Health in the Horse; The Top 5 Contributors

Gut health in the horse is one of the key components when it comes to overall health and soundness.  The ‘gut’ is the doorway to all other organ systems and when it is not happy, your horse is not healthy on one level or another.  There are many contributors to poor gut health but here are the top 5.  All of which you can control.

Out of 10 consultation cases, 10 of them are linked back to digestive health and the impact of the digestive system on other organ systems in the horse.  This can be a joint, a foot, a tendon and lack of repair, or it could be anxiety, lack of energy, allergies, laminitis, metabolic concerns, Cushing’s syndrome, colic or even just poor performance.  One way or the other, the gut is the main area of concern and it needs to be adjusted and supported.  Modern scientific research is pointing the way when it comes to the connection between health and the digestive microbiome but sadly, we tend to look the other way.

Gut health in the horse is one of our main focuses here at Nouvelle Research and Secondvet.  It is the bottom line problem.  We have many articles on gut health, dampness, and other concepts.  There is even one on ‘what is your horse’s poop telling you‘, which gives us a more visual demonstration.  If you wish to get more serious, then we recommend a fecal culture to evaluate your horse’s digestive microbiome.

So, what factors contribute to poor gut health in your horse?

In truth, there are many factors, some seen and some unseen.  Based on my consultations, here is a run down of the top 5 contributors.

1. Diet – the digestive microbiome is dependent upon ‘food’ to fuel their growth and instill balance and harmony in the bacterial population.  Fiber is their food of choice and includes both soluble and insoluble fiber, not to mention more complex carbohydrates, lignans, and other beneficial substances.  The diet also contains many other phytochemicals, including antioxidants and polyphenols, which can help to reduce harmful bacteria and encourage balance and harmony.  In today’s equine world, our choice of forage is often very poor and the quality is low, which impacts nutrition and the beneficial substances mentioned above.  Then, many will try to add back in those lost nutrients with ration balancers or vitamin-mineral blends, which are full of artificial ingredients and synthetic nutrients.  Additionally, we feel the need to give a grain to our horse, which just adds more problems to the equation. Your horse was not designed to be fed this way and the gut function will reflect it, as will their health.
2. Medications – Many horses are on routine or daily medications, which could be medications for allergies, Cushing’s syndrome, joint pain, laminitis, or other conditions.  These medications do and will negatively impact the digestive microbiome, either indirectly or directly.  Side effects are very common and many times these side effects are a reflection of the changing digestive microbiome.  Then, instead of remedying the problem, we are instructed to instead just add another medication to combat the side effects.  Most horses do not need these medications.  It is just a matter of the approach you choose.
3. Stress – both physical and mental stress are huge ‘killers’ to the equine gut and their overall health.  This could be physical stress from too much training and competing, but it could also be mental stress induced by dry lot confinement, being stalled excessively, no turnout, no socialization, or constant trailering and training.  The stress response in the horse is the same as that found in you and I.  If activated for a prolonged period, the body will suffer on many levels, and repair is very difficult unless radical changes are made.
4. Exercise – exercise is one of the keys to health and longevity and has been proven for many decades.  Exercise helps to quench inflammation in the body and also improves mood and cellular health, including the digestive microbiome.  When the horse is happy, so is the gut in most cases.  It is interesting that a large percentage of horses do not get proper exercise, even if turned out.  Then, we like to complain when problems develop such as metabolic issues or other concerns.
5. Supplements – Supplements will either help or harm your horse.  They should be used in a specific fashion, to target a specific issue, and used with wisdom.  Many if not most horses are on various joint supplements, mood supplements, ration balancers, vitamin-mineral blends, or otherwise.  If you look at the labels on these blends, most of the ingredients are synthetic and created in a laboratory.  Then, because of the bitterness of these ingredients, synthetic flavors are added to make them more palatable, often in very high levels.  All of these impact your horse’s gut negatively, even the ‘probiotic’ blends on the market to support gut health.  It is an illusion for the most part.  Some horses have no problem, but do not benefit.  Others have negative effects, but are continually supplemented.  A supplement should be whole-food based, which includes herbs, with a specific purpose.

These are the top 5 reasons for poor gut health in the horse.  All of them are in your control.  Change them and you can change your horse’s life, performance, health, and longevity.

Author:  Tom Schell, D.V.M, CVCH, CHN