Elim-a-Net™ Benefits
Did you know?
A horses diet is based mainly on fibre and in its natural state a horse will eat ‘little and often’ grazing throughout the day. This fulfils its innate need to chew and maintains a healthy digestive system. The digestive system requires constant passage of food through it to maintain its efficiency. Lack of fibre in a horse’s diet can result in health related problems such as the onset of gastric ulcers.
Domesticated horses are taken out of their ‘natural environment’, often stabled for prolonged periods of time without access to forage. This can have a detrimental effect on a horse’s health as their digestive system will not be working efficiently. It is likely in this situation a horse will become bored very quickly meaning it can lead to the development of vices such as cribbing, box walking, wind sucking etc.
In an ideal situation we would provide a horse 24/7 access to forage so that they can eat ‘little and often’ meaning the horse is healthy and happy. However this would soon lead to a horse becoming overweight which could have serious implications on its health causing illnesses such as laminitis to develop.
Vets classify horses on a scale of 1-5 with 1 being underweight through to 5 being morbidly obese. ILPH (International League for the Protection of Horses) stated the average horse a decade ago was rated a 2 or 3 but today the average is 4 with a 5 not being uncommon. This had lead to a rise in obesity related illnesses which include:
- Heart and lung diseases
- A form of equine diabetes
- Laminitis
- Digestive disorders e.g. colic
- Respiratory problems
- Strain on joints
- Reduced performance levels
Obese horses are not to be starved though as this can cause them to develop hyperlipemia, a condition where a horse’s fat reserves rapidly enter the bloodstream causing the liver to over-stress, often causing death. They need to be placed on a restricted, controlled diet.
World Horse Welfare states that “the long-term health impact of a horse being overweight is potentially more serious than being underweight”. It is vital that horse owners are aware of the dangers of overfeeding and realise that they can still love their horse without putting their health at risk.
Elim-a-Net™ has been designed with your horse’s health in mind allowing forage consumption to be regulated. Therefore feeding time is prolonged meaning your horse’s digestive system is working efficiently with the chance of overfeeding being significantly reduced.
For a healthy, happy horse the solution is simple...
feed the efficient way... feed the Elim-a-Net™ Way!