Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
How many here feed electrolytes? Or electro salts? ?
and do you think it is a beneficial supplement?
and do you think it is a beneficial supplement?
Electrolytes
- Thread starter Barton Bounty
- Start date
SEL
Well-Known Member
I just do straight salt - although I was told recently that straight salt and a banana after heavy work was the electrolyte equivalent.
Mine won't eat banana though!
Mine won't eat banana though!
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
An average size horse should have about 2 table spoons of salt added to feed per day , more if sweating a lot
You only really need electrolytes after serious exertion like going around a big XC on a warm day.
You only really need electrolytes after serious exertion like going around a big XC on a warm day.
Starzaan
Well-Known Member
Ok, I always get shot down for this, but it is in fact actual veterinary fact.
Plain salt is NOT good to feed. Apart from the fact it is ineffective to replace salts lost in work as it only one of the balance of six minerals needed, it is also an irritant and can cause problems. ALL horses need electrolytes, all of my liveries, rehabs and personal horses are fed electrolytes after every single time they work.
The best thing to do, is feed a recovery feed after work. The best combination on the market is Saracen Recovery Mash with Science Supplements Complete Electrolytes added in, 20 mins after work. The mash is highly palatable and replaced lost sugars and water, but doesn’t have the correct electrolyte balance, and the electrolytes are the only truly balanced ones on the market, and are microencapsulated so they will make it through the stomach, to the hind gut where they are absorbed properly.
Many many years running rehab yards, and working with a veterinary nutritionist to offer personalised nutrition plans for every horse coming through the doors qualifies me to say this. The nutritionist I work with is a practicing vet, and independent so isn’t working with a particular feed company.
Plain salt is NOT good to feed. Apart from the fact it is ineffective to replace salts lost in work as it only one of the balance of six minerals needed, it is also an irritant and can cause problems. ALL horses need electrolytes, all of my liveries, rehabs and personal horses are fed electrolytes after every single time they work.
The best thing to do, is feed a recovery feed after work. The best combination on the market is Saracen Recovery Mash with Science Supplements Complete Electrolytes added in, 20 mins after work. The mash is highly palatable and replaced lost sugars and water, but doesn’t have the correct electrolyte balance, and the electrolytes are the only truly balanced ones on the market, and are microencapsulated so they will make it through the stomach, to the hind gut where they are absorbed properly.
Many many years running rehab yards, and working with a veterinary nutritionist to offer personalised nutrition plans for every horse coming through the doors qualifies me to say this. The nutritionist I work with is a practicing vet, and independent so isn’t working with a particular feed company.
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
My horse cant have those ingredients unfortunately, hes allergic to soya and alfalfa ?
Starzaan
Well-Known Member
In that case, some nice sloppy sugarbeet with the Complete Electrolytes added should be a good replacement recovery feed ?
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
Ill have a look for just electrolytes, i dont feed sugar beet, i feed copra or veteran light, nothing with molasses either ?
Its a nightmare , honestly ?
Starzaan
Well-Known Member
So I would go for the Science Supplements Complete Electrolytes (they’re the only fully balanced ones on the market that are microencapsulated).
I would try a little copra, nice and sloppy, with the electrolytes added, as a recovery feed 20 mins after work ?
Don’t worry, so many years of doing rehab work mean I’ve seen all the most nightmarish horses for feeding. It’s sometimes sob inducing! ?
Birker2020
Well-Known Member
I do but only because his previous owner said she fed electrolytes to him. This was in October!!
And as everything else that she has told me to do with him has been for a reason, which I have later found out to be true, I decided to just do it as it can do no harm and I bought them on special offer at the time.
I suspect that there is something that affects him that electrolytes counteract, although I don't know what for definite, I am speculating that magnesium might have something to do with it and I'm happy to grasp at straws.
CanteringCarrot
Well-Known Member
I feed electrolytes. The supplement I use contains sodium chloride, dextrose, lactose, potassium chloride, sodium citrate, magnesium, vitamin e, and vitamin c.
My horse can sweat a lot when he's worked, so I add this to his feed. He does get the occasional banana as a treat and he loves them.
I know that I feel a lot better when I take electrolytes when I've done or am about to do some heavy sweating.
My horse can sweat a lot when he's worked, so I add this to his feed. He does get the occasional banana as a treat and he loves them.
I know that I feel a lot better when I take electrolytes when I've done or am about to do some heavy sweating.
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
Thank you ?
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Qualified nutritionists recommend feeding salt over expensive electrolytes unless the horse has truly exerted itself .
Starzaan
Well-Known Member
I know there are nutritionists who advise feeding salt, but I have worked closely with numerous vets who specialise in nutrition, all of whom advise strongly against it.
dominobrown
Well-Known Member
Oooo interesting… do you have any reasons why/ know the science behind it as all I have seen is that we normally Don’t feed Enough salt.
Starzaan
Well-Known Member
I’ve mentioned it slightly further up the thread, but, in a nutshell, salt on its own can’t be absorbed correctly as the minerals lost through exercise are a balance of six minerals in very specific quantities. Salt is also an irritant, so not only is it not correctly absorbed, it can also cause problems with horses prone to ulcers. ?
Sussexbythesea
Well-Known Member
I feed electrolytes and some plain salt all summer. I could never feed 2 tablespoons a day of plain salt a day as they just wouldn’t eat it.
I probably underfeed it according to recommended amounts but it’s what they will tolerate. If they’ve done some especially sweaty work I’ll do an extra wet feed with a dollop of electrolytes for post exercise.
I probably underfeed it according to recommended amounts but it’s what they will tolerate. If they’ve done some especially sweaty work I’ll do an extra wet feed with a dollop of electrolytes for post exercise.
Follysmum
Well-Known Member
Clare MacLeod offers good advice
She is an independent nutritionist I have been to a few of her talks and always find her to talk a lot of sense
She recommends using 45g of plain salt to 5 litres of water to make your own Rehydration
She is an independent nutritionist I have been to a few of her talks and always find her to talk a lot of sense
She recommends using 45g of plain salt to 5 litres of water to make your own Rehydration
Last edited:
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Starzaan
Well-Known Member
Interesting read, but I will stick with banning salt on my yard. Having been lucky enough to work alongside vets who specialise in nutrition and have been kind enough to demonstrate the difference (we did a sample with horses who had arrived having been fed salt, scoped them, noted findings, then re scoped after 60 days with proper recovery feeds and no salt, all showed a noticeable difference) I’ve been lucky to see first hand the impact salt can have. Microencapsulated and fully balanced electrolytes are so much better, I’ll definitely stick to them. And they smell yummy and remind me to drink ?
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Salt does not cause ulcers. Letting the stomach be empty for too long and pain and stress cause ulcers. That sounds like a very unscientific and expensive way just to confirm your bias.
By feeding electrolytes you don't even know how much salt you're giving.
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
So I have stuck with the salt, I did think maybe one 30ml scoop wasnt enough and tried to up it but he wouldnt eat his dinner ?
rabatsa
Confuddled
I was led to believe that salt alone was no good for rehydration after exercise for me, I have to mix low sodium salt with it, in order for it to work.
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
I dare say he wont suffer, he isnt hard pushed ?
Starzaan
Well-Known Member
I am not for a minute suggesting salt causes ulcers. I run a rehab yard, I know what causes ulcers. I said they can exacerbate and irritate the stomach lining of horses prone to ulcers. In fact, all of my own horses and my liveries have salt licks in their boxes.
I only feed one brand of electrolytes, and all my feeds are worked out by weight, so I know exactly how much sodium they are getting.
It’s not perfect and there is always more to learn, but I’m proud to have done extremely well and be recommended by some of the best vets in the country for my rehab skills.
Last edited:
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Start with a tiny amount and mix it with something wet ,.like sugarbeet , so he won't get clumps of salt in his mouth.
An average size horse should have about 2 tablespoons of salt per day , more if in hard work of they sweat a lot. Mine gets this plus uses his salt lick on top.
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
He has had 30ml scoop for years now but more and he wont eat it! Same with apple cider vinegar, wont eat that or garlic.
he is allergic to several things ?nightmare
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Well at least you're getting some into him, better than nothing !
Barton Bounty
If you heard the rumours it is probably true 😂
Yeah ?ty
Fieldlife
Well-Known Member
Which brand of electrolytes do you feed. thanks