Oak Hill Farm

06/11/2026

Always a concern! Grass or No Grass?

It is widely believed that strip grazing or a bare paddock is the safest option for a metabolically challenged horse… but is it really?

Many owners assume that short grass equals low sugar and therefore must be the safest choice.

In reality, the opposite can often be true.

Grass stores energy as fructans – long-chain carbohydrates that act as its energy reserve. When grass is growing under ideal conditions, the energy produced through photosynthesis is used to build structural fibre (cellulose), allowing the plant to grow taller.

However, when grass is under constant stress from repeated grazing, drought or poor growing conditions, growth slows or stops. Rather than being used primarily for new growth, more of the energy produced through photosynthesis is stored as fructans, particularly in the lower part of the plant. What looks like a safe bare paddock with only a few tufts of grass can therefore become an invisible carbohydrate trap.

Unlike simple sugars, horses cannot digest fructans in the small intestine because they lack the necessary enzymes. These carbohydrates pass into the hindgut, where they become a readily available food source for lactic acid-producing bacteria such as Streptococcus species and Lactobacilli.

If large amounts arrive at once, these bacteria can multiply rapidly and produce significant quantities of lactic acid. As a result, the hindgut environment can become more acidic, disrupting the normal microbial balance.

Fibre-digesting bacteria, which are essential for healthy fermentation, may decline, compromising fibre digestion and overall hindgut function.

For some horses, this imbalance may contribute to digestive upset, metabolic stress and, in susceptible individuals, increase the risk of pasture-associated footiness. Many owners also report periods of intense itching or skin flare-ups during times of hindgut imbalance, although individual responses vary and multiple factors may be involved.

Not every horse reacts the same way.

Think of metabolically challenged horses on a scale from 1 to 10. Some may happily cope with a certain amount of stressed pasture, while others react dramatically to exactly the same conditions. Gut health, metabolic status, stress levels, mineral balance and previous history all influence that individual threshold.

So perhaps the question isn’t:

“How short can I keep the grass?”

but rather:

“Is the grass constantly stressed, or has it been allowed to mature into a fibre-rich forage?”

As grass matures and reaches its full growth potential, a greater proportion of its carbohydrates is incorporated into structural fibre. Fructan levels are generally more stable than in constantly grazed, stressed pasture, and the plant is no longer under continuous pressure to regrow. For many metabolically challenged horses, long, mature, stemmy grass can therefore be a more suitable grazing option than a permanently grazed, stressed paddock.

Food for thought: Every horse is an individual, and so is every pasture. What works brilliantly for one horse may not work for another. Looking beyond grass height and understanding what is happening inside the plant – and inside the horse’s hindgut – can make all the difference.

If you need help to tie up the dots give me a shout happy to assist 💚🌿

This post is intended for educational purposes and should not replace individual nutritional or veterinary advice.

06/10/2026

Makes sense!

06/07/2026

Sharing this post , Good Insight!!

One aspect of horse management that I believe is often underestimated is the effect that insect pressure can have on a horse’s overall health, comfort, and quality of life.
We spend a great deal of time discussing nutrition, hoof care, movement, saddle fit, supplements, turnout schedules, and training. Yet during certain times of the year, many horses spend every waking hour dealing with flies, mosquitoes, gnats, black flies, deer flies, horseflies (the worst!!), and other biting insects.
Watch a horse closely during bug season and you’ll see the signs.
The constant tail swishing, skin twitching, foot stomping, head shaking, pacing.
The inability to stand quietly and relax. 😰
Some horses become so uncomfortable that they seek shelter long before they would otherwise choose to come inside. They stand under fans, crowd together in shaded areas, or position themselves wherever they can find relief. In many cases, they are telling us exactly what they need.
I think it’s important to remember that every horse is an individual. Some are highly sensitive to insect bites, while others appear relatively unaffected. Some tolerate fly sprays, masks, sheets, and management routines easily, while others require more patience and training. Regardless of the method chosen, the goal should be the same: finding practical ways to reduce the burden that insects place on the horse. Sheets don’t work well for us here. If the horses are masked and sprayed heavily they can make it a bit longer but the stalling works best.
Insects are not simply an inconvenience.
They interfere with grazing.
They interrupt rest.
They disrupt sleep.
They increase physical activity through constant stomping, swishing, pacing, and movement but not in a good way.
They create irritation, inflammation, and ongoing stress.
That stress has physiological consequences.
When a horse is repeatedly exposed to stressors, the body responds by releasing hormones such as cortisol. Cortisol is an important survival hormone designed to help an animal cope with challenges. The problem arises when the challenge is present day after day, week after week, for 2-3-4 months at a time.
Elevated cortisol can influence metabolism in numerous ways. It promotes the release of glucose into the bloodstream, alters insulin function, and can contribute to a state where tissues become less responsive to insulin over time. In susceptible horses, particularly easy keepers and those already prone to metabolic dysfunction, chronic stress may add another layer of challenge to an already delicate metabolic balance.
Cortisol can also affect immune function, healing, inflammation, muscle maintenance, and overall resilience. While insect pressure is rarely discussed in the same breath as metabolic health, the body does not separate physical stress from emotional stress. The horse simply experiences stress. 😰
From the horse’s perspective, being bitten hundreds or thousands of times per day is not a minor annoyance. It is a continual environmental challenge that demands a response.
This is why I view insect management as a welfare issue rather than a cosmetic one.
Providing relief from insects is not about keeping a horse perfectly comfortable every moment of every day. It is about reducing an unnecessary source of chronic stress and allowing the horse to spend more time engaging in normal behaviors—grazing peacefully, resting deeply, socializing, and simply existing without constant irritation.
Sometimes the most valuable things we provide are also the simplest.
A shaded shelter that can remain fairly bug free, a barn, a fan, a fly mask, a fly sheet.
Basically just a management program that helps the horse find relief.
Comfort matters.
Rest matters.
Stress matters.
And during bug season, reducing insect pressure may have a far greater impact on a horse’s well-being than many people even realize.

06/06/2026

FYI Advancing northward into the USA

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency implements disease control measures to prevent spread of New World screwworm
From: Canadian Food Inspection Agency

News release
Following a confirmed finding of New World screwworm in a calf in Texas, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) announced today that it will implement temporary import restrictions on livestock, including horses, from entering Canada from affected areas. Animals that originate from or were present in the State of Texas within 21 days prior to border crossing will not be accepted into Canada. Several U.S. states have also taken precautionary actions to mitigate the risk of spread. The CFIA will continue to work closely with U.S. counterparts to assess developments and adjust measures as needed.

The flesh-eating larvae of this parasitic fly threatens the lives of its host animals. While our colder climate is not hospitable for the long-term establishment of the fly in Canada, they can survive shorter periods of time in the summer months. Taking this action now is an appropriate risk mitigation measure to prevent its introduction and protect animal health.

Animals owners and veterinarians are encouraged to be on the look out for signs of screwworm infestations in livestock. A wound that worsens over time and is accompanied by discharge or foul odour is also usually observed. For Canadians travelling to Texas with their companion pets, they are encouraged to remain vigilant and inspect their pets regularly for any signs.

In Canada, New World screwworm is an immediately notifiable disease under the Health of Animals Act. Owners should contact their veterinarian if they suspect signs of New World screwworm as identification of the fly can be confirmed only with laboratory testing. Laboratories are required to contact the CFIA regarding the suspicion or confirmation of infestation.

https://www.canada.ca/en/food-inspection-agency/news/2026/06/the-canadian-food-inspection-agency-implements-disease-control-measures-to-prevent-spread-of-new-world-screwworm.html

06/01/2026

Another very good article about Grass!!

As we are heading into haymaking season, the grass is growing rapidly with the combination of sunshine and rain now reaching much of the UK.

Over the coming weeks, the grass will begin to mature and produce more stalk and fibre, becoming richer in cellulose. This is exactly the type of fibre our horses’ hindguts are designed to process.

Many horses with metabolic issues often appear to stabilise at this time of year. Symptoms may become less obvious, horses seem happier, and they can often cope much better with grazing once the grass has matured.

However, this can create a false sense of security.

The underlying metabolic imbalances have not suddenly disappeared. They are still there; they are simply less visible. The horse’s nutritional demands are different during this period, and the mature grass is supplying a wider range of nutrients than many horses receive during the winter months.

As we move towards late August and September, horses will begin preparing for their winter coat. This is when we often see familiar problems reappear. Not because anything new has happened, but because the underlying imbalances were never fully resolved — they had simply faded into the background.

This is why summer can be an excellent time to start working on hindgut restoration and supporting your horse’s mineral balance. By addressing these foundations now, you can help your horse enter the autumn coat change in a much stronger position and be better prepared for the challenges of winter.

If you need help understanding your horse’s symptoms, mineral balance, or where to start with supporting hindgut health, please feel free to drop me a message 💚🌿

06/01/2026

Very informative!!

Have We Accidentally Bred Horses More Susceptible to Ulcers?

When people think about equine gastric ulcers, the conversation usually focuses on management:
diet, turnout, feeding frequency, stress, travel, confinement, and training intensity.

And rightly so. These factors absolutely matter.

But research showing gastric lesions even in pre-weaning foals raises an interesting question:

Could some horses be inherently more susceptible to ulcers than others?

One study found that prior to weaning, 21% of foals already had gastric ulcers. Following weaning, lesion prevalence increased dramatically to 98%.

Weaning itself is clearly a major physiological stressor. But the pre-weaning numbers are particularly interesting because these foals were still nursing, living socially, and had not yet experienced separation from the mare.

So why were ulcers already present?

The answer is likely complex.

Ulcer development probably involves an interaction between:

* management
* stress physiology
* temperament
* nervous system sensitivity
* feeding behavior
* microbiome health
* inflammation
* genetics
* and individual resilience

Some horses naturally appear more stress-reactive, vigilant, sensitive, or sympathetic-driven than others. These same horses may also show tendencies toward:

* chronic muscle tension
* anxiety
* difficulty maintaining weight
* stereotypic behaviors
* body tension
* or recurrent digestive issues

Selective breeding has already shaped many traits in modern horses:
speed, athleticism, responsiveness, sensitivity, flexibility, reactivity, and even connective tissue characteristics.

So it may be worth asking whether some physiological traits associated with performance and sensitivity could also indirectly influence ulcer susceptibility.

That does not mean ulcers are “genetic” in a simple sense.
And it certainly does not mean management is unimportant.

Ulcers are probably best understood as a multifactorial condition where biology and environment constantly interact.

Wild horses likely experience ulcers too. Life in the wild includes predators, drought, injury, competition, and environmental stress.

But horses also evolved under conditions of:

* near-constant forage intake
* continuous movement
* stable social structures
* and freedom to regulate behavior naturally

Modern horses may experience fewer survival threats overall, but often face a very different kind of stress:
confinement, intermittent feeding, transport, social disruption, training pressure, and chronic low-grade sympathetic activation.

Perhaps the better question is not:
“Do humans cause ulcers?”

But rather:
“How do genetics, nervous system regulation, evolution, and modern management interact to influence which horses become ulcer-prone?”

In case you think foals are too young to develop digestive issues:

“Prior to weaning, 21% of foals had gastric ulcers, with 9% glandular and 7% squamous lesions. Following weaning, 98% of foals had gastric lesions with 97% squamous and 59% glandular. Severity of lesions was more pronounced after weaning.”
— Nancy S. Loving, DVM

Even young horses who have “never had a stressful day in their life” can develop ulcers.

Talk with your veterinarian about ways to help support your foals gut health during the weaning process.

https://equimanagement.com/articles/blood-sucrose-as-a-diagnostic-tool-for-foal-gastric-ulcer-syndrome

https://koperequine.com/groundbreaking-study-links-gut-bacteria-in-foals-to-long-term-health-performance/

https://koperequine.com/a-guide-to-understanding-biotics-prebiotics-probiotics-and-postbiotics/

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06/01/2026

Feeling Safe transforms a horse’s biology.
It raises oxytocin, boosts vagal tone, reduces stress hormones, softens the fascia, and shifts the entire body out of defensive tension.

When a horse feels safe — in their environment, with their handler, in their work — the nervous system no longer braces for threat.
The topline releases.
Breathing slows.
The gut begins to move again.
Movement becomes more fluid, coordinated, and effortless.

Safety is not an emotion for a horse — it is a physiological state.

And that state reshapes the body from the inside out.

A regulated, safe horse is a horse whose nervous system can finally rest, repair, reorganize, and reconnect with healthy patterns of movement and behavior.

https://koperequine.com/social-learning-in-horses-connection-safety-and-the-wisdom-of-observation/

06/01/2026

👍

THE SYMPTOM IS IN THE FOOT. THE CAUSE IS OFTEN SOMEWHERE ELSE.

A horse becomes footsore.

The natural assumption is that the problem must be in the foot.

Sometimes that's exactly what's happened.

An abscess is in the foot.

A puncture wound is in the foot.

A crack is in the foot.

The problem and the symptom occupy the same place.

But not always.

A horse lands toe-first.

What you see is in the foot.

The cause may be hock arthritis.

A horse starts wearing one foot faster than the others.

The symptom is in the foot.

The cause may be a change in how the horse is loading its limbs.

A horse repeatedly loses a shoe from the same foot.

The symptom is in the foot.

The cause may be a movement pattern that has changed because the horse is uncomfortable elsewhere.

A horse develops bruising in the same area over and over again.

The symptom is in the foot.

The cause may be altered movement from joint disease higher up.

A horse develops contracted heels.

The symptom is in the foot.

The cause may be persistent avoidance of loading part of the limb because something else hurts.

A horse grows noticeably uneven feet.

The symptom is in the feet.

The cause may be asymmetry elsewhere in the body changing how those feet are loaded.

A horse struggles on hard ground.

The pain shows in the feet.

The cause may be endocrine disease affecting the lamellae.

A horse develops laminitis.

The pain is in the feet.

The damage is in the feet.

Yet the process often begins with insulin dysregulation or other hormonal disturbance long before the foot shows it.

A horse develops recurrent abscesses.

The symptom is in the foot.

The cause may be chronic lamellar damage that has been present for months or years.

A horse struggles to turn.

The symptom may look like foot pain.

The cause may be the hocks.

Or the stifles.

Or somewhere else entirely.

A horse doesn't want to go forward.

The feet may be blamed.

The cause could be orthopaedic pain.

It could be gastric disease.

It could be respiratory disease.

It could be something else altogether.

The point is not that the feet are unimportant.

Quite the opposite.

The feet are often the first place the horse reveals that something is wrong.

But they are not always telling us where the problem started.

One of the most valuable habits in equine healthcare is learning not to stop at the first thing you can see.

The foot matters.

But it is attached to a whole horse.

And sometimes the foot is not the problem.

It's the messenger.

05/28/2026

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Mr. G. 🥰

11/22/2025

Excellent review! Well worth a read