In addition to providing honest advice, we at AskHELTIE believe it's important to have a wealth of information available for horse owners. This way, you can expand your knowledge and help your horse to the best of your ability. Together, we ensure that horses come a little closer to nature.
Joints
Magnesium
Silicon
Supporting Joints: continuous supplementation or as a short course?
When your horse comes out of a heavy competition season or has just been broken in, you may want to provide some extra support for his joints. Even if your horse is a bit older and sometimes stiffer, it can be a good idea. When do you use which supplement and do you continue to give it or opt for a short course? We will explain it to you!. To combat stiffness and joint pain in a horse, there are various supplements available. It depends on the horse and the situation what you can give and how to best use these supplements. Magnesium: important ingredient A sport horse needs magnesium. This mineral is essential for the nervous system, bones, and muscles. A horse that performs a lot of work and experiences above-average stress needs extra magnesium. Because Dutch roughage contains relatively little magnesium, it is good for most hor...
Behaviour
Magnesium
Others
Silicon
Is rearing the best place for foals to grow up?
Most foals go to a special place for rearing after weaning. Here they usually spend about two to two and a half years. But does a foal actually have to be in rearing? What does good rearing look like? And what are the alternatives?. Because we don't have a lot of space everywhere in the Netherlands, you often find affordable rearing locations for foals in the more rural provinces, or even abroad. As the owner of a young horse, you usually don't have daily visibility. This makes choosing a good rearing location quite difficult. Important aspects to consider in your choice are herd composition, feeding policy, and exercise. Behavior specialist chooses mixed herd Dr. Machteld van Dierendonck of the Faculty of Veterinary Medici...
Magnesium
Silicon
Vitamin E
Which supplement is suitable for muscle building in horses?
Many horse owners would like to help their horse build muscle. For example, with young horses or animals that have been out of training for a while. Others are mainly looking to prevent muscle breakdown. This is more common with older horses or horses that have a condition or injury. How do you support your horse's muscles?. Muscles consist of muscle fibers, which are fed and maintained by the body. You can build and grow muscles through targeted training and providing the right nutrition and supplements. Both of these factors are important! One cannot do without the other. Vitamins and minerals Some vitamins and minerals are essential for healthy muscle tissue. If your horse doesn't get enough of these minerals and vitamins, it can lead to stiffness or a less effective training effect. Magnesium ensures a good tran...
Magnesium
Silicon
Vitamin E
How do you support a horse with muscle binding?
Muscle binding, also called 'tying up' or Monday disease, is a disease. It is not just a bit of stiffness. The muscle metabolism of the horse is out of control with muscle binding. You must treat muscle binding immediately. How do you recognize muscle binding, what can you do about it, and how do you prevent this serious condition?. Muscle binding usually occurs about ten to fifteen minutes after a horse has been in motion. It is a total acidification of the muscles, especially the muscles of the topline (back, loins, buttocks). The symptoms sometimes resemble colic. Muscle binding is not always easy to recognize. An important indication is that muscle binding mainly occurs after a heavy effort, preceded by several days of rest during which the same feed was given. Muscle binding starts with stiffness, hard muscles, and not...
Joints
Magnesium
Vitamin E
Why is my horse stiff?
A healthy horse, without problems in the joints, tendons, muscles, and ligaments, moves rhythmically, regularly, smoothly, and with body usage. If you let such a horse move freely or lunge it, you will see ample steps of equal size, a pulsating rhythm in the movement, and swaying muscles throughout the body, including the topline. Unfortunately, this is not always the reality and horses are sometimes stiff, short in movement, irregular, or lock up their back. The question then is: why?. There are many possible causes of stiffness in horses. Older horses often take a little longer to get going, and a heavy training session and the accompanying muscle soreness from the day before can result in it taking a while before your horse warms up. This type of stiffness is relatively easy to remedy by warming up properly, providing some extra supplements, or adjusting your training schedule a bit. It becomes more troublesome if the cause of the stiffness is not so easily determined. Evalu...
Cannabinoids
Clove
Magnesium
Stress
Is magnesium the miracle cure for horses with stress?
Horses can experience stress for various reasons. This can be due to moving, incorrect (feeding) management or a traumatic experience, for example. Some horses are more sensitive to stress than others. There are also horses who are a bit spooky during work and often struggle with the so-called "arena ghosts". Many horse owners then turn to a magnesium supplement, as this is believed to be the solution. But is it really? Is magnesium the miracle cure for stress?. Different types of stress Horses can experience different types of stress. These forms can be divided into 2 groups: acute stress & chronic stress. If the horse is startled by an unexpected situation, found a trailer ride stressful, or was tense during a competition, then it is acute stress. The horse has experienced stress, but can quickly let it flow away and continue with "normal" life without long-lasting effects. In chronic stress, the body experiences prolonged stress causing...
Behaviour
Magnesium
Stress
Vitamin E
How do you prevent mental overload in a young horse in training?
When a horse comes out of rearing and starts working, it brings a lot of changes. Not only because suddenly everything is expected of him, but also because the circumstances in which the animal lives change. The horse often spends fewer hours in the herd, sometimes in a stall at night, and comes into contact with people and 'strange' situations much more than before.. Most people know that in the training of a young horse, you should take it easy to allow the tendons, muscles, ligaments, and joints to adapt to the work. Short training sessions and sufficient (active) rest days in between are important to start a horse in work properly. Mental burden Training a young horse is not only about physical challenges. There is also a lot happening mentally. It's like a toddler going to school for the first time, they receive a lot of impressions which can be exhausti...
Magnesium
Stress
To compete or not when your horse finds it stressful?
If you ride dressage or show jumping with your horse, it can be quite enjoyable to compete. At least, for you as a rider. Competitions are a good opportunity to see where you are in your training and to compete against other combinations. But does your horse enjoy it as much? And what can you do to make the experience as positive as possible for him? A few tips and tricks, even if your horse may not enjoy it that much yet.. Resilient horse Before competing, it is important that your horse can handle everything that will come his way. In other words, your horse must be resilient enough. There are several things you can do to increase the chances of your horse being mentally prepared for a competition. Firstly, make sure that not everything is unfamiliar to him. Do you braid your horse's mane often? Practice that and then ride in your own familiar arena. Without stress. Make sure that other preparations for a competi...
Cannabinoids
Behaviour
Clove
Magnesium
Stress
Black cumin
Do you know if your horse is in pain?
If only they could talk" is something that horse owners often say to each other. Because sometimes there is something wrong with your horse, but it is not immediately clear what exactly. Is he just having a bad day? Or is there something more going on? How easy would it be sometimes to just ask! Horses don't talk, but they do give off signals about how they feel. We humans just have to learn to understand those signals.... Researchers have been studying for years to find out what signals can be read in different animal species, such as behavior, eyes, and facial muscles. They have discovered that horses in pain tighten certain facial muscles. You can see if there is discomfort or pain in six areas on the horse's head. If your horse shows one of these signs, it might not be a big deal. But if he tightens the facial muscles in four or more places, then you really need to investigate further. In addition to his facia...
Magnesium
Stress
How long before the competition do you start giving a stress product to your horse?
Many horses experience tension during competitions. As a result, there is little focus from the horse on the rider or even dangerous situations can arise. There are many supplements available to combat stress and tension, but how long before the competition should you start using them? Read on in this blog.. A supplement is not always the solution It is important to realize that a supplement is never a miracle cure. Supplements are a part of training support and can help in creating a positive experience. Horses are flight animals that are taken out of their familiar environment for competitions and have to perform in a place they do not know, with a lot of hustle and bustle around them. Horses need to learn this with the right guidance in relaxation and peace. There are also many horses that take o...
Joints
Magnesium
Minerals
Silicon
Feeding
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How can you strengthen the physique of your young horse?
Horse owners are always looking for what is best for their horse. Often this concerns adult horses or even seniors. The young horse is often "forgotten", while with the right guidance it can make an extra good start. Therefore, read in this blog how you can support the physique of your young horse.. What is a young horse? Actually, horses are late bloomers, all growth plates are only fully closed around the age of 6/8 years. Therefore, you can say that up to the age of 7 years, the horse can be considered young. Especially the first 5 years are important for the development of the physique. The horse then goes through many growth spurts, which challenges the skeleton. But even after this age, horses continue to grow. Many horses are only fully grown around their 7th year. Movement, movement...
Magnesium
Do you give your horse magnesium continuously or only in periods?
A frequently asked question at our customer service is: should I always give magnesium? And that is a very good question! But there is no one-size-fits-all answer, as it depends on multiple factors. Therefore, read more in this blog about how to feed magnesium to your horse.. You can always give magnesium to your horse Magnesium is a mineral that is involved in many processes in the body. Most horse owners know it for relaxing muscles or reducing stress. But magnesium is also involved in bone formation, nerves, cell division, and protein synthesis. A very versatile mineral that is essential for the horse. Some horses require more magnesium than others. Horses that are a bit "explosive" or easily startled have an increased magnesium requirement. During a str...