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Equine gut health and probiotics: Does your horse need them?

Equine-probiotic-gut-health

14 Mar Equine gut health and probiotics: Does your horse need them?

Posted at 09:50h in Animal Care by

Maintaining optimal gut health is crucial for the well-being of horses, as their digestive system plays a pivotal role in nutrient absorption, energy production, and immune function.

A key component of gut health is the intricate balance of microorganisms living within the digestive tract. This is known as the gut microbiome. Disruptions to this delicate balance can lead to various health issues, including digestive upset, decreased performance, and susceptibility to illness.

In recent years, probiotics have emerged as a potential solution for restoring and supporting a healthy gut microbiome in horses.

What you need to know about probiotics and horse health

While researchers are keen to do more research on the benefits of equine probiotics for horse health, we’ve summarised some of the key things1,2 we do know:

  1. The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in a horse’s digestive and overall health, aiding in nutrient absorption and digestion.
  2. Probiotics contain beneficial microorganisms designed to restore balance to the gut microbiome when disrupted.
  3. While there’s limited scientific evidence demonstrating the efficacy of probiotics in horses, they are generally considered safe to use.
  4. Certain types of horses may benefit from probiotic therapy, including those with diarrhoea, leaky gut, high stress levels, high energy needs, or those undergoing medication treatments.
  5. Young foals need special care as their gut microbiota is still developing. Research suggests avoiding probiotics at least during their first month.
  6. Ongoing research is being conducted to better understand the effects of probiotics on horse health, including their potential impact on behaviour.
  7. Despite the lack of conclusive evidence, probiotics may be worth considering as a supplement for horses experiencing intestinal upset or to optimise fibre digestion and energy utilisation.

Probiotics for your horse – worth a try?

While more research is needed, probiotics may offer a promising avenue for supporting horse health, particularly in gut imbalance or stress cases.

We’ve received excellent feedback from horse owners who gave their horses our probiotic supplement, Opti-Gut for Horses.

Our unique probiotic formula contains natural microbials, humic and fulvic acids, and activated zeolite. Combining these three main ingredients helps stabilise a horse’s intestinal flora.

Opti-Gut is safe, easy to administer, and palatable, and It is very affordable, especially compared with other probiotic products on the market.

For horse owners interested in trying it, our 1.5kg pack is $42.50—that certainly won’t stretch the budget too far!

And being so economical means owners can use Opti-Gut every day without hurting their budget.

Don’t take our word for it! Here’s some excellent feedback about Opti-Gut for Horses

The response we’ve had to Opti-Gut has been overwhelming!

Lynda Field, accomplished horse rider and owner of The Tack Room in SA, said:

“I love the pellet idea. You can feed it to your horses out of your hand. I’m 150% behind it.”

Here are a few more comments from other horse owners* who have tried Opti-Gut:

“It’s the best stuff  We’ve run out and need to order more” – DAWN

“I love it! Sorted a sinus issue with one of mine and now I have everyone on it!” – DOLLY

“I swear by it and so does Harry. Literally a lifesaver – JOANNE

Brilliant product I now use it on all of them even the foals creep feed” – DONNA

“As you know, I love this product! Such a positive change in Diesel, and we can’t be more thankful to you for helping us and showing it to us!” – BREE

* Comments were left on the Performance Horse Therapies Facebook Page – Kelley Walker is a horse owner and director of Performance Horse Therapies and is now one of our enthusiastic distributors of Opti-Gut for Horse

REFERENCES:

1. Chaucheyras-Durand F, Sacy A, Karges K, Apper E. Gastro-Intestinal Microbiota in Equines and Its Role in Health and Disease: The Black Box Opens. Microorganisms. 2022 Dec 19;10(12):2517. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms10122517. PMID: 36557769; PMCID: PMC9783266.

2. Kauter, A., Epping, L., Semmler, T. et al. The gut microbiome of horses: current research on equine enteral microbiota and future perspectives. Animal Microbiome 1, 14 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-019-0013-3

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