Those who feed vitamin E

[Dustygirl]

After recommendations on here I’ve been feeding my mare vitamin E over the winter.

Well it’s been a game changer - winter is normally stressful especially when trying to school her. This winter she’s been great, only occasional spooks and so much happier in her work.

So do you feed all year round? She’s been on 4,000 iu of natural vitamin E.
Just not sure if I should continue all year?

 

[paddy555]

vit e is a game changer for one of mine and the others get it as a matter of course. I continue all year round. If they are getting a reasonable amount of grass I can see a case to reduce the quantity over the summer but if they are on restricted grass due to either lami or weight issues then it may be necessary to maintain a higher level.

 

[ycbm]

I nearly wrecked mine by letting the vitamin E get low this winter! He'll be on 2k iu a day all the time from now on, maybe 4 in winter.
.

 

[paddy555]

sorry to interrupt your thread OP but it just reminded me

YCBM I think there was a post on here this morning about vit E/PSSM from someone who worked in the US and something about feeding vit e from when young. Bookmarked it in my mind to study later and now I can't find it. Do you remember it? thanks

 

[ycbm]

It was Bunnydog and a recent post if you search her profile. Very, very interesting especially with so many quality youngsters being barn raised in Europe. It was a vit E deficiency induced encephalopathy..
.

 

[Dustygirl]

I nearly wrecked mine by letting the vitamin E get low this winter! He'll be on 2k iu a day all the time from now on, maybe 4 in winter.
.

Was thinking I might try her on 2000 over summer - she’s been like a different horse so I’m a little wary of reducing it!!

 

[paddy555]

It was Bunnydog and a recent post if you search her profile. Very, very interesting especially with so many quality youngsters being barn raised in Europe. It was a vit E deficiency induced encephalopathy..
.

thanks

 

[Zuzan]

I feed year round .. simply as I tend to limit grass intake a in Summer and the grazing we are on isn't terribly good.. also as we are almost 18 I think it helps as a general anti inflamatory which is always an issue as beings get a bit older .. also as we are in work which is another factor. Off to look at that thread by Bunnydog.

 

[PapaverFollis]

I would continue. Maybe drop the dose to 2000 or 3000iU and see how you get on.

 

[ycbm]

Was thinking I might try her on 2000 over summer - she’s been like a different horse so I’m a little wary of reducing it!!

Me too. Mine has gained so much strength and muscle I'm really embarrassed I missed that he was lacking it! Now I'm afraid to drop it down, but the grass is here and it starts tomorrow.
.

 

[skint1]

Based on some previous discussions on there I bought some for my mare but was afraid to feed it in case it made her more moody, does it really help them chill out? It's been interesting to read the dosages as well, as I couldn't figure it out... I am wondering whether to give it a whirl now, I have nothing to lose as she is being such a mardy madam and her Moody Mare supplement is not helping

 

[Dexter]

I feed it to mine all year round, but thats due to PSSM and living on a track so no real access to growing grass. If they did, and they didnt have any other issues I'd drop it down over spring and summer as the grass grows.

 

[SEL]

I feed all year round. Drop it slightly for the one that gets more grass.

 

[Dustygirl]

Based on some previous discussions on there I bought some for my mare but was afraid to feed it in case it made her more moody, does it really help them chill out? It's been interesting to read the dosages as well, as I couldn't figure it out... I am wondering whether to give it a whirl now, I have nothing to lose as she is being such a mardy madam and her Moody Mare supplement is not helping

My mare isn’t moody but just very spooky & a bit too opinionated to be schooled during the winter particularly. She’s been a different horse this winter. I’d say it’s definitely worth a try.

 

[ownedbyaconnie]

I keep seeing threads on vit e and an blissfully ignorant on its benefits. What are the signs of vit e deficiency and what benefits do people see of their horses being on it?

ETA just checked and she is on 40g of Equimins advance complete a day which has 20,000ui of vit e per kg. So is she getting enough?

 

[ycbm]

I keep seeing threads on vit e and an blissfully ignorant on its benefits. What are the signs of vit e deficiency and what benefits do people see of their horses being on it?

ETA just checked and she is on 40g of Equimins advance complete a day which has 20,000ui of vit e per kg. So is she getting enough?

The vitamin E in that supplement is probably synthetic, and because of that you would have to halve the figure stated as the horse can only use half. You would need to ask them if the website doesn't say, but that company has recent history of not actually knowing whether their vitamin E is synthetic or not!

So 40g will give 800 iu and if synthetic only 400 iu, neither of which would be considered enough for a horse not getting fresh grass, but yours is out full time so I think it's probably plenty.

It is toxic in high doses long term, it's not a case of more is better for every horse.

The symptoms, in a horse without a vitamin E muscle myopathy, just an ordinary horse, include losing weight or needing more food than they should, loss of muscle bulk, muscular weakness, but it all creeps up over time so it's difficult to spot it.

I advised a friend of mine to give it to a quarter horse she owns giving some signs of PSSM, and she gave it to the whole yard of 5. They all put on weight and looked brighter but nobody had realised any of them except the one with work issues needed it.

I'm coming to the conclusion that all horses that don't get much grass in winter, and perhaps even all horses, need vitamin E supplemented in winter. Mine will be getting it from this winter onwards.
.

 

[ownedbyaconnie]

Thanks YCBM. So she’s out 7-6ish in the winter but tbh on pretty crap grass so not sure how much grass she’s actually getting. Our new Yorkshire yard is individual paddocks so I hopefully will be able to manage it better and in summer there she can be out 24/7 whereas now she’s just on night turnout.

She definitely never looks poor though ? I’ll see what her new field is like when we move going into winter. Read a few articles and saw it can help those with allergies so it has peaked my interest! Her pollen allergies haven’t flared up yet and the only thing that has changed is me putting her on Equimins...

 

[scats]

I’ve just started Mill on vitamin e (forage plus) as a bit of an experiment. How much would you feed initially?
She is quite a stuffy horse who takes a bit of time to loosen off but is checked by vet chiro every 3 months and is totally sound but prone to getting generally tight through her muscles.

 

[ycbm]

I’ve just started Mill on vitamin e (forage plus) as a bit of an experiment. How much would you feed initially?

At this point I would say 2k and see if you can drop to 1 in summer.

She is quite a stuffy horse who takes a bit of time to loosen off but is checked by vet chiro every 3 months and is totally sound but prone to getting generally tight through her muscles.

But at this point I'd say 8k and see whether you can drop it at all.

I'm not a vitamin E myopathy expert. Don't leave her on 8k long term, it's toxic unless she has a problem absorbing it.

 

[lynz88]

Quite late to this forum but thought I'd give my 2 cents! Last Nov my guy started doing some weird things and also looked dull/depressed/lethargic and just generally weak. We also had muscle fasciculations almost all over - I thought it might be an EPM/neuro flare up so while waiting for the vet, decided to give the FP natural vitamin e a try and see where that landed us - figured it didn't hurt (turned out it was his arthritis in the end). Began at around 8,000 IU (eventually dropped it to around 4K which he seemed to do well with over the winter) and the results were quick - within a week my horse perked up and at the 2 week mark, several people had made comments about how well he was looking (they did not know I had started him on the vit e). Several months following with just long lining work, he began putting muscle on - something he's never been able to do and although was bothered by his arthritis, looked stronger and happier. Even the vet had commented about how well he was looking and she's not easily impressed. I forgot to get him some more a few months back but figured since he was going onto full day turnout, he should in theory, be fine.

Oh how wrong I think I was on that....I noticed a huge change in him and now several months off the vit e, he's back to looking how he did back in Nov. We've also had quite a few other problems even when he was on the vit e such as very little hoof growth (apart from this last round)/brittle feet so I spoke with FP about a month ago and they advised the Winter Hoof and Skin Balancer. A month on, he's starting to show a turnaround - even has pigmentation back around his lips but is still dull/depressed/lethargic (though he has "moments" that he perks up). Although the balancer has vit e in it, FP advised that it is the synthetic version so am thinking on a whim, I will stick him back on the natural vit e and see if it makes any difference.

 

[jessss1993]

Where do people find is the best place to get natural Vitamin E? For the most economical price?

 

[lynz88]

I get mine from Forage Plus in powder form. It's £38 for a 0.5kg pouch. I was initially leaning towards the Equimins oil but figured the girls at the yard would kill me, especially in winter!

 

[I'm Dun]

Forage plus is the cheapest place to buy natural vitamin e oil

 

[HBB]

I buy it from Progressive Earth on eBay - £35.49 which includes p&p

 

[Dustygirl]

Just by way of an update - I have reduced her to 2,000 and I still have a sane horse!!
I use forage plus .

 

[Tiddlypom]

Forageplus natural vit E is more economical in use than Pro Earth vit E - I've used both.

 

[Sossigpoker]

Where does the horse get vitamin E unless supplemented? From grass mainly?

 

[I'm Dun]

Where does the horse get vitamin E unless supplemented? From grass mainly?

From fresh growing grass. Thats why everyone should supplement in the winter.

 

[Sossigpoker]

From fresh growing grass. Thats why everyone should supplement in the winter.

We have little to no grass turn out in the winter so that's good to know. I've never done this before but will definitely look into it for this winter.

 

[HBB]

Forageplus natural vit E is more economical in use than Pro Earth vit E - I've used both.

I didn't even notice Forageplus Vit E was double the iu of PE's. I'll buy from FP from now on, thanks.