Are there any non-allergenic horse feeds?

[nelliefinellie]

As the title really!

My 4 yr old seems hyper sensitive. At the beginning of the summer she got a bad fly reaction, she also gets runny eyes, runny nose and her muzzle burns easily. She is now wearing a rambo hoody and crusader long nose mask which seems to have solved the problem in the field. However when in the stable as soon as i take the rug off she is desperate to bite her side, also tries to bite her chest when ridden, and gets very irritated by flies.

I am wondering if she has a feed intolerance thats making her hyper sensitive - at the moment she has some alfa-a, a handful of mix and sugar beet to mix, but I would like to change this in case she has a grain and / or sugar intolerance. She is a very good doer and doesnt really need anything, but the grass looks pretty brown so she has a broad spectrum supplement and other bits and pieces so I just need something to mix this in with. Can someone suggest non-allergenic feed I could substitute?

 

[spaniel]

Anything is potentially an allergen Im afraid. If you want to rule in or rule out feed then Id suggest you take her off all the things you are feeding at the moment (all of which can cause a reaction in a horse) and put her solely on Hi Fi and a vitamin and mineral supplement (measure exactly the correct recommended amounts of each). No sugarbeet, just water to mix leave her on this for two weeks and see if you get a result.

Personally Id like to have the vet out for a full blood work up and check over, this may be a sweetitch or fungal problem that has no bearing on the feed you are giving at all.

 

[Happytohack]

I would certainly try her on a cereal and sugar free diet. Simple System feeds (www.simplesystem.co.uk) do a range of feeds all of which are cereal and sugar free. Is the sugar beet you are feeding molassed or unmolassed and what mix are you feeding? Even Hi-fi lite has some molasses in it and a lot of mineral and vitamin supplements have wheat flour in them. You could try feeding garlic to help repel the flies, but my big horse is allergic to it, so you have to be careful.

 

[nelliefinellie]

I don't think she warrants a vets vistit - her coat and skin are good - no scurf or bald patches, and no bumps or swelling since she's been wearing the hoody. She just seems very itchy, and more bothered by flies than other horses.She's also a very hot horse, sweats easily which I think doesnt help. Obviously if it gets worse I will, but at the moment not much for vet to see, and I didn't think a straight forward blood gave that much useful info about allergies?

I had her on garlic but took her off it after reading it may make some itchy horses worse. She is on Dengie alfa a, D & H pasture mix and speedy beet (which I think is unmolassed). She doesnt really need any of it, its just a token feed, and I want her to get the additives as the fields are pretty bare and I think shes still growing. Can easily switch to hi-fi . As you say, may not be an allergy, just thought I'd explore that 1st - we had another horse on the yard that comes out in spots if it has molassed feed .

Will check out the website, thanks for the link

 

[Louby]

Hi, my horse has been very itchy too, hes rubbed his hocks, itches his sides etc but I wouldnt say hes a classic sweet itch case. Your vet can do allergy tests from taking bloods as Im considering it. They then de sensitise by adding bits of whatever your horse is allergic too by injection every few days and then weeks if need be. I have currently removed any barley from his feed as thats a well known allergy causer but its in almost every feed, especially mixes. Ive contacted the manufacturers so I know what its not in. If this doesnt improve things Im gonna treat him as if its sweet itch (this and Barley is what my vet first suggested) but my boy has been itching during the winter months too. Im not well up on sweet itch so maybe this can happen.
Good luck with your horse.

 

[coedcae]

Allen & Page's Ride and Relax is good for horses with food intolarences. I had exactly the same thing with my youngster last year, she became incredibly itchy through the winter and would bite at herself constantly. I did have the vet for her and he did all the skin scrapings etc and couldnt find anything. I put her on Ride & relax and she did improve. I cut out anything with molasses and alfa. So no sugar beet. Also invested in a fly mask for this year and this has stopped the runny eyes, but basically I think she just had a severe reaction to fly bites. She's a chestnut and I think they have more sensitive skin, like red headed people. Also, she came to me as a yearling and it was her first exposure to a different set of biting insects

 

[piebaldsparkle]

Allen & Page Sugar and Cereal Intollerance Mix

- My mare does really well on this. She is sugar intollerant, wouldn't dare feed her sugarbeet, even haylage upsets her.