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YOUR EQUESTRIAN QUESTIONS ANSWERED

Is it enough to just give my horse a salt block or lick?

Answered by Hannah Botha, MSc Equine Science, Epol Nutritional Advisor Many people rely on salt blocks to supply their horse's daily salt requirements. However, while some horses have a craving for sodium, which will cause them to use a block, few horses lick a block enough to consume their daily salt requirement.

Of the five main electrolytes (calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium and chloride), sodium, chloride, and potassium are the three most important, with sodium often considered the principal one as it's the main regulator of thirst. When sodium and chloride combine, they produce sodium chloride. Sodium chloride is more commonly known as salt. It thus makes sense to add salt to the horse's daily diet to provide two of the most important electrolytes, sodium and chloride.

A 500kg horse, in no work at cool temperatures, has a daily requirement of 10 grams of sodium and 40 grams of chloride (NRC, 2007). However, a 500kg horse in medium work has a requirement of 17.8 grams and 53.3 grams, respectively, and this does not allow for any work in high temperatures, such as those we experience here in South Africa.

To give some idea, a 500kg horse in no work, at cool temperatures, would need to consume a 1kg block of salt per month to consume their daily maintenance requirements. They would need even more if they worked hard and in hot temperatures.

If your horse is consuming 1kg of salt in the form of a salt block per month and doesn't work, you are absolutely fine to keep providing a salt block as a sole source of sodium and chloride. However, for those with higher daily requirements, or where the horse tends to consume less salt than is necessary from a salt block, it's worthwhile to provide 15 grams (1 tablespoon) per 250kg of body weight to their ration every day as a minimum. In the case of a 500kg horse, this would equate to 30g per day, so around two tablespoons of salt. Feeding it with the ration, rather than relying on your horse to ingest it ad-lib, ensures your horse is receiving the correct amounts to perform at his best.

Some horses appear to prefer sea salt or Himalayan salt over regular table salt (avoid Lite salt as this usually is potassium chloride and will not assist in maintaining sodium levels). At this time, there is no research on horses to indicate any nutritional benefit of these forms of salt. However, if your horse prefers these forms, then they will be worthwhile as the horse will be more inclined to eat/lick something he enjoys.

What are the signs I need to call a dentist for my horse?

Ideally, your horse’s teeth should be checked by a professional at least once a year and, better yet, every six months. In between these appointments, the following signs signify you might need the dentist sooner than your next scheduled appointment: • Quidding: Quidding is when a horse spits out balls of hay he has already chewed. A horse that quids is not swallowing his food properly. This can cause the horse to lose condition as his full nutritional needs are not being met. • Weight loss: If your horse is struggling to chew, he cannot extract all of the nutrition he needs from fibrous feeds such as grass or hay. Bad teeth can therefore contribute to weight loss and also result in your horse being prone to choke and impaction colic. • Slow eating: If your horse has broken teeth, infected gums, sore cheeks or any other pain in the mouth caused by dental problems, he may chew his food very slowly. This can lead to weight loss and poor nutrition, especially if the horse is rushed when eating, by, for example, horses wanting to steal his food. • Spilling food: A horse that eats by spilling or throwing concentrate feed may be anxious about his food and want to prevent it from getting removed or stolen. Alternatively, he may struggle to hold the grain in his mouth and chew. • Bad odour: If there is a foul odour coming from your horse’s mouth or nose, suspect an infection in the mouth. This odour might be the only sign of a potential problem and is likely to require dental work and/or antibiotics in order to resolve. • Drooling: Horses may drool after having eaten plants containing fungi or other irritating substances, or something might be embedded in the gums or under the tongue. Alternatively, some horses drool because they have a dental problem. • Sinus discharge: A small trickle of clear fluid is normal from your horse’s nose, but a running nose with thicker liquid can be a sign of a sinus or dental infection. • Dehydration: Horses with bad dental problems may be hesitant to drink cold water. A lack of water can lead to choke and impaction colic, and difficulty getting all the necessary nutrition from the food. • Head tossing: There are many reasons why a horse may toss his head, but as dental issues are a common cause, the teeth should always be checked. • Head shy: If your horse is head shy and does not want you to touch or groom his face, then a painful dental problem could be the cause. • Playing with the bit: A horse that fusses with the bit may be reacting to discomfort caused by the bit itself, but in some cases, the issue is actually a dental problem that makes holding onto the bit uncomfortable. Sometimes extra teeth can be a problem, and other times there may be sharp hooks or points that are causing general oral discomfort. • Spooking: Dental pain can cause horses to become spooky and bolt.