The best feeds for an HYPP Positive horse are oats (as an energy source) grass hay (best if tested to see how much Potassium is in it), beet pulp and wheat midds. They can digest fat OK so it may be added for more weight. Be very careful of Vitamin Supplements.
What is the best diet for HYPP horses?
The big key to diets for HYPP horses is low potassium. This means less than 1% in total (hay + grain) diet and no more than 30g potassium in any given meal. The horse should be turned out as much as possible and/or placed on a regular exercise program. Feed oat grass or grass hay but NOT orchard grass hay, which is high in potassium.
How much potassium should A Hypp horse eat?
Therefore, research results suggest HYPP horses should be fed diets with 1.1% of potassium or less and owners and managers should try to maintain a steady plasma potassium concentration by feeding multiple small meals rather than infrequent large meals.
Should I Feed my HYPP horse a slow feeder?
Therefore, research results suggest HYPP horses should be fed diets with 1.1% of potassium or less and owners and managers should try to maintain a steady plasma potassium concentration by feeding multiple small meals rather than infrequent large meals. As such, slow feeders for hay can be a very useful management tool for these horses.
Can HYPP horses eat alfalfa?
Ideally, HYPP horses should consume forages that have been tested to ensure low potassium levels. However, this is not always practical. Some general guidelines are to avoid feeding legumes such as alfalfa, as these tend to be high—often over 2% potassium.
What do you feed horses with HYPP?
Bermuda grass, prairie grass, and timothy are suitable forage choices for horses diagnosed with HYPP. Soaking hay might leach some of the potassium from hay and constitutes an added layer of safety.
What types of food should be avoided with HYPP?
These horses have defects in how their muscle cells handle sodium and potassium resulting in high levels of potassium in the blood. Horses with HYPP should be fed a low potassium diet and should avoid feeds such as alfalfa hay or soybean meal.
What can I give my horse to help gain weight?
If you aren't feeding any grain, try adding a grain product meant for working or performance horses. These grains will contain higher levels of protein and fat that will aid in body weight gain....Not enough caloriesRice bran.Flax seed.Vegetable oil.Dried granular fats.
What is the fastest way to put weight on a horse?
What is the fastest way to put weight on a horse? High fat, high protein grain combined with a rich alfalfa hay can quickly put weight on a horse, if there is not an underlying medical condition.
How do HYPP horses gain weight?
In order to achieve weight gain, her daily intake will need to increase. Starting with forage, you may want to search for higher quality grass hay that will provide more calories and nutrients per pound. Timothy or bermudagrass hay might fit the bill. Avoid bromegrass and legumes such as alfalfa.
What horse feed is high in potassium?
Hay SelectionHay Selection: Hay makes up the majority of the diet so typically contributes the most potassium.
Does beet pulp help horses gain weight?
Beet pulp can be used to help underweight horses gain weight, as it provides approximately 1,000 kcals per pound (one quart of dry beet pulp shreds weighs approximately 0.5-0.6 pounds).
Will alfalfa pellets put weight on a horse?
Horses in a challenging work program often need a higher protein diet to replace lost calories, and alfalfa cubes or pellets are an excellent way to add this element into their diets. The horse needs to gain weight. It can be very difficult to get underweight horses to put on weight.
Does corn oil help horses gain weight?
Adding fat to your horse's diet is a great way to add calories for weight gain and essential fatty acids to improve the coat....Ask the Vet: The Truth about Feeding Horses Corn Oil.FeedOmega 6:Omega 3Vegetable oils: corn, sunflower87:1, 199:1!Vegetable oils: canola, soybean3:1, 7:1Flax seed1:4, good4 more rows•Jan 6, 2010
Does vegetable oil help horses gain weight?
Adding vegetable oil, such as canola oil, is a useful way to boost the caloric density of your horse's diet without significantly increasing his feed intake. Another fat source to consider is stabilized rice bran, a high-fat supplement that is often pelleted.
How can I put weight on my skinny horse?
I found a mixture of beet pulp, alfalfa, and grass hay is the best mixture to put weight on thin horses. I recommend soaking beet pulp before feeding it to your horse to make it more palatable.
What does sunflower oil do for horses?
The additional fat may help improve coat condition. In addition, sunflower oil is a rich source of vitamin E, a potent antioxidant. For horses that are not allowed to graze fresh pasture, it is always best to supplement with a natural-source vitamin E product, like Nano-E.
What are high acid foods?
High acid food and drinkcertain dairy products, including cheese.fish and seafood.high-sodium processed foods.fresh meats and processed meats, such as corned beef and turkey.certain starchy foods, such as brown rice, oat flakes, or granola.carbonated beverages, such as soda, seltzer, or spritzers.More items...
What is considered a high acid food?
High acid foods are those that have a high concentration of hydrogen ions. Fruits, juices, pickled and fermented foods are all high acid, due to the presence of acetic or citric acid (very high concentration of hydrogen). Fruits, and anything that is derived from fruits are usually high-acid.
What are low acid foods?
Puddings, cucumbers, artichokes, cauliflower, peppers, and fish are examples of low-acid foods which are normally acidified. The addition of an acid or an acid food to such products is a method of preservation designed to prevent bacteria of public health significance from growing.
What are the fruits that contain acid?
The most acidic fruits are lemons, limes, plums, grapes, grapefruits and blueberries. Pineapples, oranges, peaches and tomatoes are also high in acid. It would be a mistake to remove these from our diet – after all, they are really nutritious and our body needs them.
What to feed a hypp horse?
Ideally, HYPP horses should consume forages that have been tested to ensure low potassium levels. However, this is not always practical. Some general guidelines are to avoid feeding legumes such as alfalfa, as these tend to be high—often over 2% potassium. Grass hays can still be high but average less than 2%. As such, it is often necessary to substitute some of an HYPP horse’s forage with a hay stretcher that is guaranteed to have lower potassium levels. There are a number of such feeds available on the market. Otherwise unmolassed beet pulp averages about 0.7% potassium, but rarely comes with a guarantee. There are a number of automatic pellet dispensers on the market than can be used to feed pelleted feeds to again insure consumption occurs throughout the day rather than in large meals. Access to pasture and ability to move might also be beneficial, but, again, it is important to know the pasture’s potassium content.
How long does it take for a horse to adjust to a high potassium diet?
One interesting observation from the research studies was that over a period of being fed the high-potassium diets (1.9% and 2.9% potassium) for two weeks, horses adapted and both plasma potassium levels and signs of HYPP decreased. This suggests that horses can adapt to diets with higher than ideal potassium levels.
What can an equine nutritionist do?
An equine nutritionist can help you find suitable products to stretch forage and can create a suitable feeding plan. Remember: There will always be the risk of your horse developing signs of HYPP, so create a plan with your veterinarian for how to deal with them when they occur.
What happens when a horse's potassium levels are high?
In affected horses high potassium levels cause sodium to leak in to muscle tissue through the defective channels. This causes muscle spasms and other signs, including muscle stiffness, third eyelid prolapse, involuntary recumbency (inability to rise), and sometimes death. When cellular sodium levels rise, cells push out potassium in an attempt ...
Why is my quarter horse leaky?
About 4% of Quarter Horses are thought to be affected. The condition is the result of a single point mutation in the sodium channel gene which causes the channel to become “leaky” when blood potassium levels fluctuate. Therefore, management centers around the horse’s diet in the hopes of maintaining a steady blood plasma potassium concentrations.
Can horses eat potassium?
This suggests that horses can adapt to diets with higher than ideal potassium levels. It also means that care needs to be taken when diet changes are made. Suddenly switching a horse to a higher potassium diet could trigger clinical signs until adaptation has occurred. Every effort should, therefore, be made to avoid diet changes.
Can a HYPP horse be a good fit for a barn?
In conclusion, HYPP horses can be managed and lead healthy, active lives, but they require extremely detailed management and they will not be a good fit for some barn environments that are unable to meet their needs. Take care to read feed labels, test hay, and create a management plan with your veterinarian. ...
What is a horse's HYPP?
Hyperkalemic periodic paralysis (HYPP) is an inherited genetic defect that affects muscle function in horses. Symptoms of HYPP can vary widely among horses, from mild muscle tremors to death from cardiac arrest or respiratory failure.
Why is salt important for a horse?
Salt and water are especially important for HYPP horses, since a lack of salt or water reduces urination, which is how the horse secretes potassium.
How long after a horse's meal does it attack?
A horse is more prone to an attack two to five hours after a meal, when potassium is at its peak in the bloodstream.
Is grass hay good for horses?
It’s important to know hay can have a much higher potassium level than commercial horse feeds or straight grains like oats. Grass hay usually contains a lower potassium level than alfalfa hay, so grass or mixed hay is recommended for HYPP horses.
Which hay has the lowest potassium?
It’s best to have your hay tested if possible, but if you can’t do that, keep in mind the following: Oat hay and grass hay are the lowest in potassium. Orchard grass is high in potassium so stay away from that.
Why not use cane molasses?
Do not use high levels of cane, molasses, or bran mashes because they may be high in potassium.
Do HYPP horses need starch?
Starch Intake: It is a misconception that HYPP horse need low starch. They actually need sufficient starch as a source of glucose, because glucose stimulates the release of insulin and this promotes potassium uptake by the cells.
Should HYPP horses be turned out?
Management : HYPP horses should be turned out as much as possible and/or placed on a regular exercise program.
Can horses eat pellets?
Some pelleted feeds can be a good choice if the horse is N/H and doesn ’t have many episodes, but may not work for horses that are H/H and have severe or many episodes.
Is pelleted feed higher in potassium?
Textured/whole grain based feeds tend to be lower in potassium then pelleted feeds, since whole grains are naturally low in potassium, where some ingredients used in pellets tend to be higher potassium sources.
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About The Author
Sarah Evers Conrad has a bachelor’s of arts in journalism and equine science from Western Kentucky University. As a lifelong horse lover and equestrian, Conrad started her career at The Horse: Your Guide to Equine Health Care magazine.
What to feed an underweight horse?
The best feed for an underweight horse is good quality hay or pasture grass. 1 Give him free choice hay unless there is some medical reason (such as metabolic syndrome, founder (also known as laminitis) or Cushing’s disease) not to. Introduce horses to grass gradually to decrease the possibility of founder, colic, or diarrhea. Many horses do very well on grass or hay alone. More hay in its feeder or longer grazing time may be all it takes to see weight gain.
What to feed a horse with bad teeth?
Rice bran and flax are also popular additions to the diets of underweight horses. Oils such as bran, rice, corn, flax, and other grain oils are often used to boost the energy and calories of a horse’s feed. Some people feel they also help keep the ...
Why do horses eat beet pulp?
Beet pulp is often fed as a supplement because it is high in fiber, which the horse can turn into energy. 2 Some people prefer to give their horses pelleted feed because they feel this is more easily digestible. Older horses might be able to digest "cooked" grains easier than regular grains, so a specially prepared senior feed might be helpful. For horses with bad teeth, smaller pellets or grains are easier to chew than larger pellets or cubes. Rice bran and flax are also popular additions to the diets of underweight horses.
Why is my horse underweight?
Food alone may not be the entire issue—bad teeth can make it painful for the horse to chew, cause the horse to swallow poorly masticated food, or make it chew very slowly. Internal parasites may also be stealing nutrition from your horse as well as damaging the digestive tract.
Can parasites steal nutrition from horses?
Internal parasites may also be stealing nutrition from your horse as well as damaging the digestive tract. If your horse is underweight make sure it has had a recent fecal examination for parasites and had its teeth checked by a veterinarian before simply adding more feed to its diet.
Can horse oil cause diarrhea?
Go carefully when adding these oils to your horse’s diet; too much oil in the diet can cause diarrhea. 3 . Whenever you are changing the number of concentrates, do it gradually to decrease the possibility of problems like founder or colic.
Can horses eat grass hay?
However, some horses, such as growing horses, horses under heavy training, pregnant or nursing mares, or old/sick horses will need more calories than grass hay or pasture can provide. Alfalfa and other legume hays are higher in protein and some minerals such as calcium. Giving these types of hays to an underweight horse may be needed. Go slowly when introducing any new feed to your horse even if it is "only hay."
Can you play a geussing game with HYPP?
I would call a vet and have them place the horse on a feed plan. I would not play a geussing game with HYPP.
Can you consult a vet for feed plans?
But definitely consult a vet for feed plans.
Why does my horse lose weight?
Also, an increase in exercise, rigorous competition, and excessive cold can also lead to horse’s dropping weight faster than we might realize. While we can supplement with grain, we need to occasionally add a little more than sweet feed to keep our horses at healthy weights.
What is fiber for horses?
Fiber is a huge source of energy for equines, and lasts much longer than sugar spikes, thus making it ideal for sport horses or nursing mares.
Why is it so hard to keep horses healthy?
Keeping your horse at a healthy weight can be a constant struggle because generally, horses gain most of their nutrients from grass and hay. Natural feed like beet pulp for horses sources that can fluctuate in their nutritional quality.
Can you soak beet pulp before feeding it to a horse?
Irrespective of how beet pulp comes, be it dried, shredded or pelleted, it will require a soaking process before feeding it to the horse. The significance of this is that it introduces more hydration into your horse’s diet without diluting the nutritional quality of the feed.
Can horses eat beet pulp?
Thus, with what is known as beet pulp, your horse can certainly use it to gain weight. Beet pulp is a wonderful addition to the diets of an equine to help burn high levels of calories or to those who need to put on some pounds.
Can beet pulp be used as a substitute for Alfalfa?
Molasses-free beet pulp is an acceptable forage substitute for Alfalfa in horses with HYPP (hyperkalemic periodic paralysis), a condition that affects the horse´s sodium channels.
Can you replace beet pulp with hay?
Add Don’t Replace. Beet Pulp is not a supplement for other forages or feeds, and only should be added to supplement calories and fiber. It is an excellent additional source but does not contain enough nutrients to replace hay or grain on its own.
