Archive for It's About The Horse The Free Forum for those Doing Parelli - and a whole lot More! "Anything forced and misunderstood can never be beautiful." Xenophon (430-355 B.C.),
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PasoBaby_CarolU
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Remember our discussion on fat?This article was just published by The Horse. I thought everyone would enjoy reading it.
| Quote: | Is Dietary Fat Really Healthy?
by: Ray Geor, BVSc, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM
November 01 2002, Article # 3895
Marketing claims regarding the virtues of fat in equine diets are plentiful. Statements such as "Added dietary fat for improved performance," "Increased stamina," "Calm energy," or "Improved coat and hoof condition" abound. Indeed, at times it is easy to conclude that an increase in dietary fat is the solution to anything that ails a horse--the proverbial "best thing since sliced bread." Contrast this sentiment with the prevailing attitude toward dietary fat among human nutritionists and physicians. Diets high in saturated fat and cholesterol have long been associated with the development of coronary heart disease (when deposits of fat and cholesterol cause a narrowing of the arteries that supply blood to the heart, resulting in damage to the heart muscle). High-fat diets have also been blamed for the current epidemic in obesity throughout the Western world. However, this issue is hotly debated, and there now is evidence that consumption of excess sugar, rather than fat, underlies the tendency to gain weight.
Should we have similar concerns regarding dietary fat for horses? Current evidence would suggest that there are few, if any, concerns associated with the use of fat in horse diets. On the other hand, it might be argued that there has been insufficient research in horses to allow us to give a definitive yes or no answer to this question.
Sources of Dietary Fat
Unless fat (e.g., some type of vegetable oil) is added to the diet, horse rations are very low in fat, typically less than 3-4% by weight. Some fat is needed to facilitate absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K. The horse also needs small amounts of the essential fatty acids called linoleic and alpha-linolenic acids. In biochemical language, linoleic acid is termed an omega-6 fatty acid whereas alpha-linolenic acid is termed an omega-3 fatty acid. The difference between omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids relates to their chemical structure and the position of the double-bonds in the carbon backbone of the fatty acid. There is considerable interest in the dietary ratio of omega-6:omega-3 fatty acids; in particular, diets that promote an increase in omega-3 relative to omega-6 fatty acids are advocated because of purported health benefits (more on this later).
In the last decade or so, there has been increasing use of supplemental vegetable oil in horse diets. Corn and soya oils are the most commonly used, although canola, linseed, or flaxseed oils can also be safely fed to horses. Flaxseed and linseed oils are both produced from flaxseed; flaxseed oil is cold-pressed whereas linseed oil is extracted under high temperature using petroleum-based solvents. Thus, flaxseed oil is a more "natural" feed ingredient, although rations with 4-8% linseed oil or flaxseed oil have been fed to horses without apparent problems.
Other rich sources of vegetable fat include rice bran and copra meal. Rice bran is 18-22% fat while copra meal (a by-product of coconut processing) is 8-9% fat; both are good sources of highly digestible fiber and are low in starch and sugar, and they are useful when a reduction in dietary starch is desired. Both, however, are naturally high in phosphorus and low in calcium. They should be used in limited amounts, especially if the calcium:phosphorus ratio of the total ration is not balanced. Pure rice bran oil is also available. The vegetable fats (e.g., corn or soy oil, rice bran) are quite palatable for horses. Animal tallows, on the other hand, are generally much less palatable and are not recommended.
The horse's digestive system can manage reasonably large quantities of dietary fat, although there can be digestive upsets (diarrhea) if large amounts of oil are suddenly added to the diet. In general, the quantity of oil added to the diet should be increased gradually over a two- to three-week period.
Providing there has been a gradual increase in dietary fat intake, horses are able to digest and utilize up to 20% of the diet (by weight) as oil. However, most equine rations are considerably lower in fat content, even with the use of so-called high-fat feeds (e.g., a grain concentrate that is 6-10% fat). For example, the total fat content of a ration comprised of 15 pounds (6.8 kg) of hay (less than 3% fat) and eight pounds (3.6 kg) of a 10% fat feed is approximately 5.4% fat ([0.03 x 15 pounds] + [0.1 x 8 pounds] = 1.25 pounds fat and 1.25 ÷ 23 pounds of total feed = 0.054 or 5.4% fat).
One of the main nutritional advantages of fat is its energy density. Vegetable oils have about three times as much digestible energy (DE) as oats and 2.5 times as much as corn. This feature is especially useful when managing a hard keeper or sick horse--adding fat can result in a substantial increase in caloric intake without requiring the horse to consume more food. The horse also can use fat energy in an efficient manner. When a typical hay and grain diet is fed, a horse is only able to utilize 50-60% of the energy in these feedstuffs. On the other hand, horses can utilize more than 90% of the energy contained in a vegetable oil since more of the energy is available to the horse. This is one reason why fat supplementation is useful for fattening thin animals or helping to meet the very high-energy requirements of horses in heavy training.
Healthy or Not?
To evaluate whether or not dietary fat is "healthy," we need to consider the impact of fat on body functions. The first consideration is gastrointestinal function, particularly in performance horses requiring large amounts of high-energy feeds for maintenance of body condition. Traditionally, heavy grain feeding was used to meet these energy requirements. The major concern with this approach is an increased risk of gastrointestinal problems--with large grain intakes (more than 11-15 pounds, or 5-7 kg, per day for a 1,100-pound, or 500-kg, horse) some of the grain passes undigested into the large intestine, where it ferments. Excessive grain fermentation can disrupt the normal microbial population of the hindgut and predispose the horse to colic and other digestive upsets.
Adding fat (and a highly digestible fiber source such as beet pulp) to the ration allows for a substantial reduction in the quantity of grain (and starch) in the diet. This approach can help stabilize the hindgut environment and prevent digestive disturbances. Score 1 for fat.
A higher-fat diet also might favorably alter behavior. Compared to a traditional hay and cereal grain diet, a diet containing a combination of corn oil and soy lecithin has been shown to reduce spontaneous activity and reactivity to noise and sudden visual stimuli.1 Clinical experience also indicates that many horses exhibit a calmer disposition--being less hot-headed--when fed a higher-fat ration compared to a more traditional starch- and sugar-based diet. Score 2 for fat.
Speaking of hot-headed horses, it is well known that a nervous temperament is one of the factors contributing to tying-up episodes in horses with recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis (RER), a condition most common in racing Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds. It is also well established that higher-fat and -fiber feeds (compared to a grain-based ration) help in the management of horses with RER, possibly because of the "calming effect" of the higher fat diet. Score 3 for fat.
A higher-fat, lower-starch and -sugar diet is also crucial in the management of horses with polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM), another form of chronic tying-up. PSSM is associated with abnormal storage of excess glycogen (the body's storage form of glucose) in skeletal muscle, likely because these horses are more sensitive to the effects of insulin, the hormone responsible for the clearance of glucose from the bloodstream. Therefore, the starches present in grain "fuel the fire" by providing the extra glucose necessary for the synthesis of glycogen in muscle. Grain should be removed from the diets of horses with PSSM (and from the diets of draft-breed horses with a similar condition called equine polysaccharide myopathy, or EPSM). An increase in fat intake, together with the restriction in dietary starch and sugar, is also important in the management of horses with PSSM or EPSM, because it can provide the calories normally provided by the grains without stimulating insulin release. Score 4 for fat.
Finally, additional oil in the diet might benefit skin and hoof appearance. Clinically, the coat and hooves take on a shiny, healthy look when horses are fed a fat-supplemented diet. Another point for fat.
Based on our current understanding, there is little to indicate that feeding fat to horses is harmful. In fact, the weight of evidence suggests that a higher-fat diet is a much healthier approach than a more traditional high-grain diet. However, there are no data on the long-term effects of feeding rations containing over 7-10% fat to horses. It is currently recommended to limit the total fat intake to 10% or less.
The Omega Story
As mentioned earlier, all mammals (including horses) have a dietary requirement for the essential fatty acids. The omega-3 essential fatty acids are derived from alpha-linolenic acid, whereas the omega-6 essential fatty acids are derived from linoleic acid. The ratio of omega-6:omega-3 fatty acids varies among the different oils. Flaxseed (or linseed) oil contains approximately 50% alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3) and about 15% linoleic acid (omega-6). Soya oil also has a high omega-3 fatty acid content, whereas the predominant essential fatty acid in corn oil is linoleic acid (omega-6).
Here's where it gets a bit complicated, with way too many unpronounceable words! Once in the body, the essential fatty acids are further metabolized to other types of fatty acids--arachidonic acid (AA) is the predominant product of linoleic acid metabolism (omega-6 fatty acid) whereas eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) is a major product from alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3 fatty acid). In turn, these fatty acids can be metabolized to substances called eicosanoids, which are important mediators of inflammation and blood coagulation.
Most importantly, the eicosanoids produced from EPA are less potent inflammatory mediators than those resulting from the metabolism of AA. Recognition of this fact has generated much interest in the effects of diets high in omega-3 fatty acids. There is some evidence from human and animal studies that dietary manipulation of the omega-6:omega-3 fatty acid ratio (via an increase in dietary omega-3 fatty acids) can dampen the body's response to inflammatory stimuli. This might be useful for a horse with overactive immune system responses, such as horses with heaves, equine recurrent uveitis, etc.
Researchers at the University of Georgia have studied the effects of linseed oil supplementation in horses (8% of the diet, a huge amount of linseed oil) on the response to endotoxin, a bacterial substance that causes severe inflammation and illness during some forms of colic. They found that blood cells collected from horses supplemented with linseed oil produced lower quantities of harmful prostaglandins when exposed to endotoxin in a test tube. However, when the horses themselves were exposed to endotoxin, there was no difference in response between supplemented and control horses.
The jury is still out on the effects of omega-3-rich oils in horses. Marketing pieces from horse feed and supplement manufacturers often make a big deal about the inclusion of omega-3-rich oils in various products, but in reality little is known regarding the effect of this form of fat supplementation. A recent study of high-level supplementation with flaxseed oil (10% of the diet) in horses found no change in the omega-6:omega-3 ratio.2 More research is needed to determine the health benefits (if any) in horses associated with the manipulation of the dietary ratio of omega-6:omega-3 fatty acids.
Feeding Recommendations
What is the best way to add fat to your horse's diet? The three main options are:
* Adding a vegetable oil to the existing diet;
* Feeding a commercial concentrate containing various levels of added oil; or
* Feeding an oil-rich supplement such as rice bran or copra meal.
The simplest approach is to add vegetable oil to the ration, and this is reasonable when small quantities (one cup or less per day) are added. However, nutritional imbalances can occur when feedstuffs such as balanced concentrates are substituted by two more cups of straight vegetable oil. Remember that pure vegetable oils (e.g., corn, soya, or flaxseed oil) contain no minerals or vitamins.
For this reason, the preferred approach is to feed a commercial high-fat concentrate that is properly formulated to ensure that the right balance of nutrients is delivered. If you take the non-commercial approach, then vitamin E should be added to the diet at a rate of 200-250 international units (IU) per cup of oil. This is very important, because higher-fat diets increase the horse's requirements for antioxidant nutrients such as vitamin E. This should not be necessary when commercial high-fat feeds are used, however, as these products contain extra vitamin E fortification. However, vitamin E activity is rapidly destroyed by exposure to air and humidity. If feeds are to be stored for more than a few weeks in hot, humid climates, some supplementation might still be necessary.
What is the ideal amount of fat supplementation? Although there is no clear-cut answer to this question, it has been recommended to feed no more than 3.5 ounces (100 grams) of fat (oil) per 220 pounds (100 kg) body weight per day. For a 1,100-pound (500 kg) horse, this equates to a maximum of 17.5 ounces (500 grams) of oil per day. Of course, oil should be gradually introduced into the diet, and this level of feeding would be reached only after a two- or three-week adaptation period. Also, the daily amount is best divided into two or three feedings.
Note that one standard measuring cup holds about eight fluid ounces or 200 grams of oil. Therefore, 500 grams of oil per day is a little more than two measuring cups. Each cup provides approximately 1.6 Mcal of DE. Therefore, to maintain the same daily calorie intake, at least one pound/day of grain should be removed from the diet for every cup of oil added to the ration (i.e., oats are 1.1-1.2 Mcal DE per pound).
Most commercial high-fat concentrates are between 5-10% fat. Daily fat intake will depend on the amount of concentrate fed. For example, 10 pounds of an 8% fat product will deliver about 365 grams of oil, or the equivalent of almost two cups of vegetable oil. As with the addition of oil to an existing ration, these high-oil feeds should initially be mixed with the current ration, with a gradual increase in the amount of the new feed while decreasing the old over a two- to three-week period.
So, the answer is that yes, fat is safe to feed if done so within certain parameters. Start adding fat slowly to the diet to avoid digestive upset. Increase vitamin E when increasing fat. Use vegetable sources and not animal sources. Beware of adding too much, even of a good thing.
REFERENCES
1 Holland, J.L.; Kronfeld, D.S.; Meacham, T.N. Behavior of horses is affected by soy lecithin and corn oil in the diet. Journal of Animal Science, 74, 1252-1255, 1996.
2 Hansen, R.A.; Savage, C.J.; Reidlinger, K.; et al. Effects of dietary flaxseed oil supplementation on equine plasma fatty acid concentrations and whole blood platelet aggregation. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 16, 457-463, 2002.
5 TIPS: Feeding Fat
1. Vegetable oils have about three times as much digestible energy (DE) as oats and 2.5 times as much as corn.
2. The preferred approach to feeding more fat is to feed a commercial high-fat concentrate that is properly formulated with the right balance of nutrients.
3. It has been recommended to feed no more than 3.5 ounces (100 grams) of fat (oil) per 220 pounds (100 kg) of body weight per day. For an 1,100-pound (500-kg) horse, this is 17.5 ounces (500 grams, or just over two measuring cups) of oil or less per day.
4. If supplementing fats separately (not in a commercial feed), use vegetable sources of fat and not animal sources (they're more palatable).
5. Increase vitamin E when increasing fat. |
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Clarissa
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I found this article very informative Carol, thankyou for posting it.
I have always been of the opinion that oils of those mentioned were actually not good for horses. In nature they wouldn't get anywhere near those quantities & that their systems weren't designed to cope with such large amounts. Also that some oils go rancid very quickly like flax/linseed. To stop the rancidity, a chemical is added which has all manner of bad side effects (as is mentioned in many websites about eating fresh whole foods etc)
When it is fed to horses it can cause fatty deposits like cellulite(I guess that would happen if you fed too much), changed colon activity, & other problems to do with digestion & asymilation.
I thought I might get some human grade soy oil or similar & some vitE capsules from the supermarket. I worked out I would start Sonny on 1/4cup daily & see what happened. That would still workout quite cheap as a test. If I bought a 4lt, that would last several weeks & be a good test time.
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misstux
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Clarissa, get good quality vitamin E. The cheap stuff is almost worthless. I get Scouty's at Costco - the NatureMade in the brown bottle. Vitamin E degrades with exposure to light. The cheaper stuff also isn't as bio-available (I think that's the right word).
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Clarissa
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| misstux wrote: | | Clarissa, get good quality vitamin E. The cheap stuff is almost worthless. |
Yes I got Blackmores Vit E chewable 250IU's which I can cut in half as he will only be having 1/4cup oil daily. The chewable flavor is citrus which he likes anyway.
However when it came to finding the right oil at the supermarket it was Olive Oil, Olive Oil, Olive Oil, Canola oil or Peanut oil!! Everything else seems to be gone.  I did finally find an Australian made oil that is a combo canola & soya athough they don't say the ratio. I could only get it in 2lt clear bottle.  so I will need to keep it in the dark in the feed room as it will last quite a few weeks. 1/8th cup to start him off for several days then 1/4cup daily means it should last a month at least.
So not sure how good canola is for horses but at least it's a vegetable oil. So far if it's Australian made, there shouldn't be any GE'd oils seeds getting into the food chain YET! Thesupermarket shelves held quite a few types of oils made in Indonesia & for sure they would be exculsively GE seeds & grains. That stock would come from all over the world....the cheaper the better.
So tomorrow morning I start giving Sonny a little oil in his soaked pellets. I hope it helps him put on a bit of weight.
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carefreegirl
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| Clarissa wrote: | | So tomorrow morning I start giving Sonny a little oil in his soaked pellets. I hope it helps him put on a bit of weight. |
It should help him to gain weight: that was one thing I did to help Bently when he lost a lot of weight due to a kick, he lost about 200lbs and had lots of muscle wastage. I also used beet pulp pellets (always soaked first) and some oil with his supplements, I actually gave him a little bit of oats to at that time, cause he needed more calories, and he didn't really want to eat the beet pulp with out something to sweeten it. Once he started to be at a better weight then I increased the exercise, though he always was getting exercise, (although Bently didn't need it sometimes you have to increase the calorie intake when you increase the exercise, to help them keep the weight/keep gaining). This was all according to vets recommendation.
Good luck with getting Sonny to gain weight. 
(I have also heard that amino acid/protein supplements can help with building muscles/gaining weight, though have never tried them myself.)
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Clarissa
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I was telling my Mother about feeding Sonny the oil & the Vit E & she asked why I wasn't using wheat bran/germ for it's VitE.
I don't know...... Why aren't I using wheat bran for Vit E instead of the purchased vitamin suplement????
Why do the 'experts' recommend purchased Vit E supplement??
 
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Horse Gypsy
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Dr Kellon told me not to supplement oil-- but she does say to supplement vit E- I stopped the oil and increased forage-- I have been feeding soaked alfalfa pellets to my skinny horse- and that has worked just as well as the oil.
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zag04
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A good source of Vit E and digestable fats is rice bran. I feed my mare Max. E glo
http://www.maxeglo.com/
It is produced by this company and I like their production methods. Keeps the nutrients in tact and is clean human grade.
http://www.nutracea.com/Animal
I feed this for body condition and I can adjust as needed when she need extra weight, less weight, or just maitiance. The nice thing with this product is I can manage body condition without throwing off the rest of the nutrtients in her diet.
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Clarissa
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Here's another article from The Horse.com about Omega 3's.
from The Horse .com
Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Consider the Source
The benefits of omega-3 fatty acids for horses are believed to be numerous: decreased inflammation in various tissues, increased immune response, maintenance of healthy membranes, and an upsurge in sperm production, to name just a few.
Flaxseed and flaxseed oil have been fed to horses for decades, primarily to improve coat condition of sales or show horses. Both flaxseed and flaxseed oil are rich sources of the essential fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which is thought to convert to the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
For many years, the conversion of ALA to EPA and DHA was believed to be efficient. Now, however, a summary of omega-3 research by the International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids (ISSFAL) has questioned the ability of ALA to be changed in the body.
According to the summary, "conversion of ALA to EPA is very low, and to DHA is even less--essentially negligible. These very low conversion rates mean that ALA cannot meet the body's need for DHA."
Tom Brenna, MS, PhD, professor of nutritional sciences at Cornell University and chairman of the ISSFAL committee that assembled the summary, said, "Each type of omega-3 has distinct functional properties. Seafood/algal omega-3s, also known as long-chain omega-3s, are more potent than terrestrial plant sources of omega-3s and boast certain functions that terrestrial plant-based omega-3s simply cannot perform."
The summary reported that DHA levels in the body were raised most markedly by consuming "preformed" DHA, such as that found in marine-derived oils.
Although the aforementioned summary included studies involving primarily humans, what impact does this research have on supplementation of omega-3 fatty acids to horses? Foremost, horsemen might look beyond flaxseed for an effective omega-3 supplement. One alternative is oil derived from certain cold-water fish. Fish oil is a direct source of EPA and DHA, so the question of whether or not ALA can efficiently be converted to EPA and DHA becomes obsolete.
Raw fish oils are typically not palatable to horses. Recent advances in deodorization and flavoring technology have made fish oils acceptable to most horses.
In two-choice preference trials with Thoroughbreds, horses showed no significant preference for either fish oil or soybean oil after four days of side-by-side supplementation. Similar rates of grain intake were noted, so addition of the fish oil had little effect on consumption of meals.
The ability of horses to efficiently convert ALA to EPA and DHA is not known, and thus requires more research. What is known, however, is that oil obtained from certain fish provides horses with EPA and DHA, thereby foregoing the need for conversion at all.
Kentucky Equine Research (KER) has written extensively about the advantages of omega-3 fatty acids in the diets of horses. The KER Web site contains a searchable library that includes numerous documents related to this topic. Of particular interest is an Equine Review article.
I have stopped using so much oil in Sonny's daily diet as he started getting protein lumps. 2 appeared on his tail butt & are very itchy. I am putting a desensitizing cream on them until they go away. I was giving him up to a cup daily along with Vit E but now he gets less than 1/4 cup daily. The smaller amount is still enough to keep his coat in good condition.
But I have changed his commercial pelleted feed to Coprice AllRounder which seems to be more suited to his needs. He still isn't putting on weight like they say he should but he is looking a bit better.
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whisperingwindfarms
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Please don't feed your horse (or yourself or any other animal) off the shelf vegetable oil. Most of the time it's already rancid by the time it leaves the factory. Ick!
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Clarissa
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| whisperingwindfarms wrote: | | Please don't feed your horse (or yourself or any other animal) off the shelf vegetable oil. Most of the time it's already rancid by the time it leaves the factory. Ick! |
I do understand your reasoning WWF. But where would I get 'fresh' oil for any use, horse or human? Other than feeding whole sunflower seeds that is. Even then, I have heard that much of the seeds sold here are already rancid because it's the damaged seeds that are sold for stock feeds.
When thinking about oil for Sonny, I felt it better to get human consumption oil from the supermarket as it would have a higher turnover rate, therefore fresher. I chose a salad oil mix pressed in my state's capital city not too far from me & using Australian grown non GMO seed. Oil at the feed merchant can be from anywhere in the world & sits on the shelf in the hot shed for months (the bottle get covered in dust- a dead give away!)
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Blue Flame
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Just a comment on the human consumption thing - when we were discussing puppy food with the breeders we got our labs from, they said to get pet mince - not mince for humans. They said it is because the human stuff has preservatives in it.
So I got to thinking - we eat stuff we wouldn't feed to our dogs
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Clarissa
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| Blue Flame wrote: | | So I got to thinking - we eat stuff we wouldn't feed to our dogs |
I think all oil would have to have preservative in it surely?
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