![\"Anxiety](\"https:\/\/nouvelleresearch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/shutterstock_146490287-200x300.jpg\" "\\"Anxiety")
Anxiety or anxiousness in the horse shows up in many forms.\u00a0 In one situation, you may have a horse that is more high strung, pacing and running a fence line.\u00a0 In another situation, the horse may be internally anxious, seem less focused and have associated health conditions.\u00a0 In both, you may experience behavioral problems including cribbing or pawing, but also stomach ulcers, hindgut ulcers, recurrent colic, and even loose stools or diarrhea intermittently.\u00a0 Anxiety can impact any horse, but the approach is not always the same with each one. In most of the cases, I tend to classify them as easy-keepers or harder-keepers.\u00a0 Most fall into one class or another.<\/p>\n
What is anxiety in the horse?<\/h3>\n
Anxiety is a state of uncertainty, fear really, which develops as a result of stress or an improper stress response by the body to stimuli or events.\u00a0 This state of mind is very evident in some horses while in others, not so much.\u00a0 Obviously, anxiety is more common in the competitive horse, while less prominent in the horse at pasture with other mates.\u00a0 The stress associated with training, competition, training and housing conditions creates the anxiety or greatly contributes to it.<\/p>\n
Anxiety is the end response, it is a state of mind. Considering that you may have many horses in a training facility, but only one or two have a problem, what makes them that way?\u00a0 Can one horse be more prone to anxiety than another?\u00a0 Absolutely!\u00a0 This is indeed true when we look at people, so it has to be true when it comes to horses as well.\u00a0 Why?<\/p>\n
What is my horse anxious while another is not?<\/h3>\n
That is a good question and really boils down to their particular response to stimuli.\u00a0 Anxiety is really a biochemical response, with variations of neurotransmitters and hormones that create overstimulation of the response mechanism.\u00a0 Just like other health conditions, there are many working parts to this equation. This is where I tend to group horses into the easy-keeper versus ‘normal’ or harder-keeper horse.<\/p>\n
The Harder-Keeper Anxious Horse; Cause and Management<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\nThe harder-keeper horse is one that tends to be more hyperactive, more prone to obvious gastric ulcers and behavioral conditions such as pawing or weaving.\u00a0 We tend to think that this over physical activity is what contributes to their difficulties in maintaining weight and you are correct.\u00a0 Anxiety and ongoing stress in this group leads to a need to release pent up energy.\u00a0 Stress and anxiety are both metabolic burners in this group of horses, leading to a higher calorie burn.\u00a0 The need to release pent up energy leads to things like pawing, weaving and running of fence lines, which then also leads to an increased calorie burn.\u00a0 Just allowing this group of horse more pasture time, to release that energy, can be beneficial.\u00a0 In the end, this group is harder to keep weight on.<\/p>\n
This group of horses needs a different approach.\u00a0 Many will use sedatives in this group, magnesium supplements or other ‘calming’ supplements.\u00a0 In some cases, results are evident but the problem is not well managed.\u00a0 If you step back for a minute and look at this horse, the leaner and stressed horse, think of them as a boiling vat of water.\u00a0 They have so much internal heat building up inside of them, that really it is literally drying them out.\u00a0 The body is composed of 65% water, on average, which decreases as we or they age.\u00a0 If a body produces too much internal heat, stress related or otherwise, it will consume this water mainly through evaporation.\u00a0 This is what then leads to weight issues and also contributes to higher degrees of health problems such as dry joints (arthritis), tendon issues, hoof concerns, and stomach issues such as ulcers.\u00a0 In the case of ulcers, with this group of horses, the stomach is actually on fire to a degree and dry, which creates and contributes to the ulcers.\u00a0 The digestive problems in this group are secondary to the stress response<\/strong>. They are not primary, thus response to ulcer medications is decent but the need for them is ongoing.\u00a0 You are not addressing the primary problem, which is the improper stress response.<\/p>\nWhat is our goal with this group?\u00a0 Ideally, you want to calm them, which seems logical.\u00a0 As you calm them, you reduce that internal fire or heat.\u00a0 There are many options that owners will use, which include sedatives and calming supplements, including magnesium.\u00a0 Again, sometimes these do help.\u00a0 Magnesium can be an issue in some of these horses, be deficient and lead to abnormal nerve firing. Supplementation can help in many, but often the deficiency is not dietary related, but more so it is due to an increased demand for magnesium by the body.\u00a0 This increased demand is due to higher levels of stress.\u00a0 In reality, stress creates an increased need for many macro- and micro-nutrients, magnesium being just one of them.\u00a0 So, if your horse responds to magnesium, the question is what else are they missing?\u00a0 It is vitally important to make sure your horse’s diet is highly enriched, ideally from whole-foods and not synthetic based supplements.<\/p>\n
The diet can actually be contributing to anxiety on many levels.\u00a0 In many of these leaner horses, carbohydrate overload is an issue.\u00a0 The excessive carbohydrates via grains will heat up the body, creating a hotter horse and contribute to many pathological changes at a gut level.\u00a0 Given this, many of these horses’ anxiety is markedly reduced when grain intake is modified.\u00a0 They also tend to respond to a more fat-based diet, so inclusion of healthy fats such as flaxseed or hemp may prove of value. Fats can be used as an energy source in these horses, but are less heating to the body in most cases.\u00a0 Protein is a macronutrient that is also essential in this group, helping to repair damaged tissue and balance cellular function.\u00a0 Supplementing with a high quality protein supplement<\/a> can also benefit many of these horses.<\/p>\nMy approach, other than dietary, is to balance the stress response and also moisturize the body.\u00a0 In my harder-keeper I tend to rely on a few supplements given together:<\/p>\n
\n- Cur-OST EQ Adapt & Calm<\/a><\/span> – an Ashwaghanda extract that aids in balancing the stress response and cortisol levels.\u00a0 It helps to produce a state of calm in mind and body, while maintaining or increasing focus in the horse.<\/li>\n
- Cur-OST EQ Adapt & Recover<\/a><\/span> – this formula takes the original EQ Adapt blend to the next level by including 5 more adaptogen herbs in addition to a concentrated 1.5% Ashwaghanda extract.\u00a0 This powerful blend of 6 adaptogens helps not only to curb anxiety and assist in creating a calming effect, but it reaches much further into the process of inflammation and circulatory support, which assists in recovery of many ailments and injuries.<\/li>\n
- Cur-OST EQ Stomach<\/span><\/a> – a blend of high levels of a concentrated Aloe extract and Marshmallow root powder.\u00a0 This blend aids in soothing and healing of the damaged stomach lining, but both herbs also have moisturizing benefits to the entire body, thus also cooling in nature to a degree.<\/li>\n
- Cur-OST EQ Green <\/span><\/a>– this blend helps to promote a balance inflammatory support, whole food nutritional provision, but also has added Ashwaghanda to aid with stress and Anise to aid in digestion.\u00a0 The EQ Green can often be used alone in many cases, or can be combined with the EQ Stomach in others.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Through this herbal approach combined with dietary modifications, most of these horses respond very readily in a short period of time.<\/p>\n
The Easy-Keeper Anxious Horse; Causes and Management<\/span><\/h3>\nThe easy-keeper horse can present often just the same as the harder-keeper, with all of the same behavioral and structural problems.\u00a0 However, most easy-keepers tend to be more quiet in nature, not as ‘hot’ and are more ‘internal’.\u00a0 They respond to stress in many cases with anxiety, but in most it is more subdued than the other group.\u00a0 The easy-keeper horse also tends to exhibit more head-shaking than the other group and may even have other stress-related issues such as allergies, uveitis, laminitis and ongoing foot issues.<\/p>\n
Easy-keepers are metabolically almost the opposite of the harder-keeper.\u00a0 In the harder-keeper, we have a hotter animal, burning up body fluids.\u00a0 In the easy-keeper, body fluids are often retained in the form of fat or even stocking up conditions or general fluid retention.\u00a0 They get hot internally, but not to the same degree to where it burns up fluids.<\/p>\n
Most easy-keeper horse anxiety problems stem back to a dysfunctional digestive tract.\u00a0 Digestive concerns are a primary concern in this group, not secondary<\/strong>.\u00a0 Things are just not working properly, which then creates inflammatory problems, immune concerns and overall cellular dysfunction.\u00a0 The gastrointestinal issue is the primary problem.\u00a0 The improper response to stress is secondary to this concern.<\/p>\nThe diet is an area that needs to be addressed, much the same as the harder-keeper but with a few exceptions.\u00a0 You need to make sure optimal nutrition is being provided, again in the form of whole-foods rather than synthetic based supplements.\u00a0 Magnesium and other vitamin or mineral deficiencies may be an issue, but more often than not this problem is related to poor gastrointestinal digestion or absorption. It may also be related to poor nutrient provisions in the current diet.\u00a0 Supplementation may help, but in many, if you can correct the underlying gastrointestinal problem and the diet, the deficiency will auto-correct provided the diet is sufficient.\u00a0 Grain and carbohydrate overload can also be an issue in this group, but not so much from a heating perspective, but more one due to direct impact on gut microflora and acidosis, contributing to leaky gut conditions<\/a>. In the easy-keeper, dietary fats can actually work against you.\u00a0 Most of these horses are overweight to begin with and adding fats will likely make matters worse.<\/p>\nIn the easy-keeper, many times we have several issues in that horse with anxiety just being one of them. The anxiety or stress response is many times improper due to added health concerns that are pre-existing.\u00a0 As an example, that horse may have allergies, a tendon problem or ongoing foot pain.\u00a0 This creates and adds to the stress that is being encountered due to training and competition.\u00a0 All of this stems back to inflammation on a gut level.<\/p>\n
My personal approach in the easy-keeper anxious horse is to modify the stress response, but to aim for supporting healthy digestion.\u00a0 If you can accomplish this, most respond quite readily, especially when dietary modifications are taken into account.\u00a0 In these horses, I tend to rely on two supplements:<\/p>\n
What is our goal with this group?\u00a0 Ideally, you want to calm them, which seems logical.\u00a0 As you calm them, you reduce that internal fire or heat.\u00a0 There are many options that owners will use, which include sedatives and calming supplements, including magnesium.\u00a0 Again, sometimes these do help.\u00a0 Magnesium can be an issue in some of these horses, be deficient and lead to abnormal nerve firing. Supplementation can help in many, but often the deficiency is not dietary related, but more so it is due to an increased demand for magnesium by the body.\u00a0 This increased demand is due to higher levels of stress.\u00a0 In reality, stress creates an increased need for many macro- and micro-nutrients, magnesium being just one of them.\u00a0 So, if your horse responds to magnesium, the question is what else are they missing?\u00a0 It is vitally important to make sure your horse’s diet is highly enriched, ideally from whole-foods and not synthetic based supplements.<\/p>\n
The diet can actually be contributing to anxiety on many levels.\u00a0 In many of these leaner horses, carbohydrate overload is an issue.\u00a0 The excessive carbohydrates via grains will heat up the body, creating a hotter horse and contribute to many pathological changes at a gut level.\u00a0 Given this, many of these horses’ anxiety is markedly reduced when grain intake is modified.\u00a0 They also tend to respond to a more fat-based diet, so inclusion of healthy fats such as flaxseed or hemp may prove of value. Fats can be used as an energy source in these horses, but are less heating to the body in most cases.\u00a0 Protein is a macronutrient that is also essential in this group, helping to repair damaged tissue and balance cellular function.\u00a0 Supplementing with a high quality protein supplement<\/a> can also benefit many of these horses.<\/p>\n My approach, other than dietary, is to balance the stress response and also moisturize the body.\u00a0 In my harder-keeper I tend to rely on a few supplements given together:<\/p>\n Through this herbal approach combined with dietary modifications, most of these horses respond very readily in a short period of time.<\/p>\n The easy-keeper horse can present often just the same as the harder-keeper, with all of the same behavioral and structural problems.\u00a0 However, most easy-keepers tend to be more quiet in nature, not as ‘hot’ and are more ‘internal’.\u00a0 They respond to stress in many cases with anxiety, but in most it is more subdued than the other group.\u00a0 The easy-keeper horse also tends to exhibit more head-shaking than the other group and may even have other stress-related issues such as allergies, uveitis, laminitis and ongoing foot issues.<\/p>\n Easy-keepers are metabolically almost the opposite of the harder-keeper.\u00a0 In the harder-keeper, we have a hotter animal, burning up body fluids.\u00a0 In the easy-keeper, body fluids are often retained in the form of fat or even stocking up conditions or general fluid retention.\u00a0 They get hot internally, but not to the same degree to where it burns up fluids.<\/p>\n Most easy-keeper horse anxiety problems stem back to a dysfunctional digestive tract.\u00a0 Digestive concerns are a primary concern in this group, not secondary<\/strong>.\u00a0 Things are just not working properly, which then creates inflammatory problems, immune concerns and overall cellular dysfunction.\u00a0 The gastrointestinal issue is the primary problem.\u00a0 The improper response to stress is secondary to this concern.<\/p>\n The diet is an area that needs to be addressed, much the same as the harder-keeper but with a few exceptions.\u00a0 You need to make sure optimal nutrition is being provided, again in the form of whole-foods rather than synthetic based supplements.\u00a0 Magnesium and other vitamin or mineral deficiencies may be an issue, but more often than not this problem is related to poor gastrointestinal digestion or absorption. It may also be related to poor nutrient provisions in the current diet.\u00a0 Supplementation may help, but in many, if you can correct the underlying gastrointestinal problem and the diet, the deficiency will auto-correct provided the diet is sufficient.\u00a0 Grain and carbohydrate overload can also be an issue in this group, but not so much from a heating perspective, but more one due to direct impact on gut microflora and acidosis, contributing to leaky gut conditions<\/a>. In the easy-keeper, dietary fats can actually work against you.\u00a0 Most of these horses are overweight to begin with and adding fats will likely make matters worse.<\/p>\n In the easy-keeper, many times we have several issues in that horse with anxiety just being one of them. The anxiety or stress response is many times improper due to added health concerns that are pre-existing.\u00a0 As an example, that horse may have allergies, a tendon problem or ongoing foot pain.\u00a0 This creates and adds to the stress that is being encountered due to training and competition.\u00a0 All of this stems back to inflammation on a gut level.<\/p>\n My personal approach in the easy-keeper anxious horse is to modify the stress response, but to aim for supporting healthy digestion.\u00a0 If you can accomplish this, most respond quite readily, especially when dietary modifications are taken into account.\u00a0 In these horses, I tend to rely on two supplements:<\/p>\n\n
The Easy-Keeper Anxious Horse; Causes and Management<\/span><\/h3>\n