FAQ -- Vegetable Oil as a Feed Additive
Frequently asked questions about avoiding EPSM symptoms, and about the added-fat diet used to help an EPSM horse recover.
In Reply to: what to feed yearling posted by jen on August 03, 2003 at 07:05:13:
(The question): I would like to know which grain is best to feed my 15 month old percheron. Should I follow the recommended diet for an average horse or does a draft baby need less protein to avoid growing too quickly. I've had very little luck in my research for the best diet for draft babies, can anyone help??
Dr. Beth replies:
At 15 months he is already past the most rapidly growing phase, which is from weaning to about 1 year.
Make sure he has a good source of clean water. And, most of all, enjoy him!
Dr. Beth
In Reply to: EPSM advice posted by Rachelk on July 24, 2003 at 22:38:55:
(The question):
I have a percheron cross who has been diagnosed with ossifying myopathy in his hind legs. This condition has caused cross lameness which has put him out of work for 8 months in treatment for this the vet prescribed bute and rest however during this time he has also injured his pelvis in the paddock, wee beggar! The chiropractor has said that this problem can be fixed in time but he is still not 100% sound so working him at this point is out of the question, to make matters worse we are heading into drought season here in NZ and without an all weather arena working him in summer is also out of the question.
1. How do you manage to get all this oil into your horses? We don't seem to have a lot of the feeds in NZ which are recommended.
2. Does the oil increase the risk of choke? Watching my horse labour through his feed while it sticks to the roof of his mouth is horrible, I've added more water but this just turns it into a sloppy, unappealing mess.
3. How do you manage their weight when they are on the EPSM diet? My horse has weight problems anyway and he is out 24/7 with other horses. I have never hard fed him other than straw chaff with vit/mineral supplements when needed and ad-lib meadow hay.
At the moment I am feeding chaffage (alfalfa in molasses) because this is the only way I can ensure the quality of the product as its guaranteed dust free and Sugar beet with 1 1/2 cups of oil. He can't get through it all because the consistency is so greasy. I worry that to increase his feed under the circumstances could be dangerous but on his weight (1300 Lbs) he really needs to be get twice that amount. I am so frustrated because he really is a horse who fits the EPSM profile to a T but I am also really concerned about the effect of all this feeding on his general health.
Posted by Mel (from NC) on July 25, 2003 at 06:39:59:
Let me see if I can help. :-)
1. Oil in the horses. I just pour the oil on the feed and split the feed between two feedings, one in the am and one in the pm. I've not had a problem with my horses refusing the oil. They don't care as long as the feed is in front of their faces. Those who have had problems have found that the trick is to start slow and gradually increase the oil by 1/4 cup every week or so till you reach the desired amount. If your horse is already getting 1 1/2 cup. oil, and he's eating it, don't worry. It's messy, yes, but that's life. There may be other fat products available, but I'm not sure whats available in NZ. I'd check w/ your local feed companies and see if they have any suggestions. Some folks have found that soaking the horses hay in the oil also works. That requires a bit of forethought as you have to put the hay in some kind of container and let it set and soak up the oil before you feed, but it is an option.
2. Risk of Choke- Actually, from what Dr. Beth says, the oil should help prevent choke and colic in horses. It helps to slide things though and greases things down. You should have fewer problems w/ this diet instead of more. If your horse is choking, I'd be more concerned that the issue is that he is eating too fast, and an effort to slow down how fast he eats may be in order. You can do that by getting a feeding/grazing muzzle( he can still eat, but just slower). Another option would be to put large walnut or tennis ball sized rocks in his feed bucket. He'll have to slow down to eat around them. It will also give his an excuse to play w/ his food. which can also be good for him.
Managing the weight... Ya, I know that feeling. My mare is in exceedingly good flesh (not quite fat, but dang near). She only gets enough grain to carry the oil and Vit (about 3 cups of grain/vit and 1 cup oil a feeding -the grain/vit mix has a high protein/ high fat content). The rest of her feed is good quality grass (of assorted type) hay. The general rule of thumb for feeding is 1/.5 to 2 % of body weight in grass/forage, and enough grain to keep up condition. For the EPSM diet you need 2 cups of oil per 1000 lbs of horse. If your horse is fat, then maybe what you need to do is soak his hay in the oil and forgo the grain entirely. By the way, the alfalfa mixed w/ molasses is not necessarily the best thing for the EPSM diet. Most horses are quite content to eat the alfalfa pellets mixed w/ the oil/vit. w/out anything else. Your horse doesn't need the extra sugar found in the molasses. You can soak the pellets in a little water if you want it softer for him, but I've not ever had that problem w/ mine. Course I also mix all of my feed/oil the night before so that both the morning and evening feedings have had plenty of time to sop up the oil.
It sounds like you're doing most of this right. Feeding oil to horses is messy. Everything gets covered in oil. Your clothes, the horses face, forelock, and mane. And around our place,even the horses water always as a film of oil on it (actually very helpful in controlling the mosquitoe population). ;-) Keep plugging along. You're doing ok.
Posted by Brad K. on July 25, 2003 at 06:11:30:
A couple of hard questions, and a couple of simple questions.
Generally, the added-oil diet reduces the problem of choke. Sometimes a lot, sometimes just a bit.
Others from down under have mentioned feeding chaff and chaffage, but I don't have any experience with the feed.
When you mention Sugar Beet, is this the remains of the beet after extracting the sugar by a commercial plant, or the whole beet? I feed the shreds, or remains of the sugar beet after processing, by adding about the same volume of water as shreds and leaving to soak for 2-4 minutes in summer, often overnight (in the house) in the winter. This results in a mass that holds oil pretty well, and seems pretty appealing to the four-foots. I didn't notice my horse hesitate at all when I first offered the sugar beets. The shreds are interesting -- the nutrition value is fairly low, but during digestion because a very high quality source of calories.
The classic formula for feeding horses is 1.2%-2% of bodyweight in good quality forage (like meadow hay, beet pulp shreds, alfalfa, etc.) and add calories to maintain bodyweight. To manage weight we reduce food, and increase exercise. If your horse is sound enough to turn out, that exercise will be important in keeping him healthy, and also is *required* for therapy for EPSM. We know you want to get to 2.6 cups of veggie oil per day, usually split into two or three feedings, for a 1300 lb horse. If the horse is still gaining weight, then I would reduce the forage (grazed grass, chaffage, meadow grass, etc.) to be closer to a measured 1.2% of bodyweight (15.5 lbs) than the 2.1% figure (27.3 lbs). Since you cannot weigh the grass he grazes, part of his turnout time could be in a bare-dirt yard, or some of the muzzles out now have been evaluated for restricting grazing -- the horse can get a few blades of grass through the muzzle, but not a full mouthful. The muzzle lets the horse get the exercise of grazing with less grass (calories) eaten. Horse Journal just did a review of several of the US muzzles.
You mentioned the alfalfa/molasses chaffage. I like alfalfa pellets for holding the oil (the weight of the pellets comes out of the day's total forage budget), but the molasses might be an issue. If there is a very small amount of molasses (maybe to control dust) that should not bother, but a lot of molasses for flavor or moisture adds a lot of sugar calories -- something to avoid with EPSM.
I have not had trouble getting oil into my horses. I feed grass hay, and vegetable oil (soy, canola, corn) over enough alfalfa pellets that most of the oil is eaten and not left in the pan (which is usually licked clean anyway!). Actually, I split the alfalfa pellets portion, 1/2 alfalfa pellets, 1/2 12% horse feed pellets. Watch your selenium (per veterinarian recommendations) and Vitamin E (1 IU/lb of horse minimum) as they are also needed for recovering from EPSM, or for avoiding symptoms. Mineral and salt supplements, with lots of fresh water and exercise!
Sorry I am not more help relating our 'midwest USA' version of EPSM symptom avoidance/therapy diets to your chaff-based diet. I know that various visitors to this chat board have gone to commercial feeds and dry fat sources to avoid using salad oil, but I have been satisfied with the cost and degree of ease/mess/difficulty of using vegetable oil. We also have had a couple of visitors from NZ and AU that have had success feeding chaff.
Posted by Brad K. on July 26, 2003 at 06:34:23:
In Reply to: Re: EPSM advice posted by rachelk on July 26, 2003 at 03:46:54:
(The question): ...molasses is a EPSM no no ... feeding lucerne(alfalfa) chaff mixed with oil would be a better option? ... Can I safely soak the sugar beet in the oil instead of water?
: ... no one I know has ever heard of it! ...
Rachel and Minty,
A small amount of molasses added to manage dust will not affect your horse. The problem comes in when there is a lot of molasses added for 'flavor' or to 'moisten' the feed.
For myself I cannot say about feeding the oil on the lucerne chaff, but I doubt it would be 'wrong.'
You might try soaking the beet pulp in water, drain, then add the oil. Whether soaking the sugar beet in oil would be 'better' ... that is for you and Minty to say. It would certainly be safe either way.
There are articles in several scientific journals and horse magazines now about EPSM. You really want your veterinarian to be aware of what you are trying to do, and why you are concerned about Minty. Your vet is a *great* person to consult about your horse's diet. If she/he is unfamiliar with EPSM, point them at some of the information on this site, at the New England Journal of Large Animal Health article from the October 2001 issue (online, see the link from the home page on this site), and on RuralHeritage.com. Pass along Dr. Beth's email address -- she is in contact with many of the prime researchers that identified and established the presence of the EPSM/PSSM condition and identified the diet change that can avoid symptoms, or help horses recover that show symptoms of EPSM. Other visitors here have mentioned that their NZ/AU vet has helped with treating EPSM or learned about it from them, so your vet may have access to others that accept that EPSM is a real condition, and that there is a treatment (change diet to the added-fats diet, exercise, and Selenium/Vitamin E supplement).
Note that the diet change is not instantaneous. While some people see a change in energy level (better endurance, more even temperament since there is no more 'sugar high' and 'sugar low' from the grain, better tolerance of heat, quicker recovery after work, etc.) when removing grain and adding fat in a couple of weeks, recovering from muscle damage and metabolism changes usually takes 4-6 months.
Just a note -- the added fat diet that Dr. Beth found was the first successful therapy for EPSM horses was already advocated for horses. The approach of supplying 20-25% of daily calories as dietary fat (2 c. oil per 1,000 lb per day) meets the needs of EPSM horses, while removing the sugars and starches present in grains supports the different metabolism of EPSM horses who have difficulties digesting grain correctly.
Let your vet know what you are doing, and see if she/he can help evaluate your diet goals.
Dr. Beth A. Valentine Oregon State University Corvallis, OR Phone: 541 737 3261 Fax: 541 737 6817 e-mail: Beth.Valentine@oregonstate.edu