Home > Horse Care > Large Animal Handling and Behavior > Alaska Icelandic Horse Club (AIHA) Feed Additives, Nutritional Supplements, and Nutraceuticals for Horses Having this article on hand to read was good timing. As the writer intended, it somewhat clarified things. The writer well knows that for many of us, that coming up with a balanced equine diet is problematic. Van Saun is right to say “With so many different choices and marketing propaganda, the horse owner often becomes disillusioned and uncertain about what should be fed.” He also rightly ads “Often times products are fed more in line with the owner’s perception of feeding practices rather than product-based feeding directions. This approach can often lead to nutritional problems.” With this in mind Van Saun states that he has two objectives in writing this paper. The first is to “clarify roles of feed supplements for horses and provide guidance on how to make objective comparisons between products .” The second is to provide an overview of feed additives and nutraceutical products relative to horse nutrition and summarize available information applicable to making a decision for their use.” These objectives are in line with his intent, to make us more knowledgeable consumers. Some important points that support the above follow: • Match supplement nutrient content to forage
nutrient deficiencies. Van Saun also writes about feed additives, and in this way makes things a bit clearer for this horse owner. There are, he says “two general categories of feed additives that may be incorporated into horse foods. The first is ”non nutritive food constituents that impart some technical effect on feed characteristics. “ The second is “true feed additives or those substances, nutritive or non-nutritive, that are or become incorporated into the feed and are expected to impart some effect on animal health, structure, or performance.” Very important, the four R’s. The author writes
“a number of studies have shown many nutritional supplements not
to contain as much active ingredient as was listed on their label. In
evaluating these nutritional supplements use the 4R’s criteria as
follows: This is a good guide for the backyard horse owner
because if we pay attention to it, we’ll become more aware and informed
consumers. I’m planning on keeping this article on hand and reviewing
it from time to time.
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Horse Behavior: Books consulted Feed Additives |