Does my horse have summer eczema? Or is there another reason for itching in the summer?
Poor nutrition or unbalanced nutrition is often a cause of itching. This is usually related to sugars and starch, but it can also be a deficiency in vitamins and minerals. Especially a deficiency in minerals can cause problems and lead to an imbalance in the body. Minerals are the building blocks of the body, and when a horse experiences a deficiency, reserves from tissues are first directed to essential processes in the body. This means that hooves, skin, and coat receive lower priority. This deficiency in minerals then leads to skin problems that can result in itching. Therefore, it is extremely important to provide your horse or pony with sufficient minerals (for example, through a balancer or a supplement of concentrated seaweed). This deficiency in minerals is becoming increasingly common. Due to overgrazing, one-sided grass species, and over-fertilization, pastures have become poorer in minerals. As a result, horses no longer receive sufficient minerals through roughage (hay and grass), and it is now truly necessary to supplement these to prevent deficiencies.
Sweet itch
3 June '22 • 4 min reading time
An Excess of Sugar (and Starch)
A major cause of itching in the summer is sugar. This is especially seen in horses that are sensitive to sugars or even insulin resistant. Naturally, horses consume relatively little sugar; especially in the winter, they live very sparsely and lose a lot of weight. There is a reason for this! When horses lose weight in the winter, waste products are eliminated from the body, allowing the horse to process the rich grass of summer. Nowadays, horses are also fed richly in the winter. Concentrated feed, mash, and all sorts of other sugar-containing products are given. Horses now have to process much more sugar, and the extra sugars from grass in the spring lead to problems. This amount of sugar causes inflammatory reactions in the body and disrupts the gut flora. All these toxins enter the blood and accumulate in the fat tissue. This causes itching! Therefore, limit the sugars and realize that grain products consist of starch. Starch is treated in the body like sugar! So, when looking at your feed bag, don't just check the sugar percentage, but also add the starch percentage. Try to keep this below 12-15%, and preferably even lower!
Overweight also increases the chance of itching
The modern horse no longer emerges slim from winter; often, horses even have overweight by the end of winter because we, as horse owners, feed them well. This means that plump horses are already at a disadvantage when it comes to itching. Fat tissue is sensitive to inflammation and also causes additional inflammatory reactions. This fat storage is often located at the mane crest or at the base of the tail, just under the skin. Inflammatory reactions under the skin cause itching, leading horses to rub themselves. This results in damaged skin, which also triggers inflammatory reactions, thus perpetuating the cycle of itching. Therefore, ensure that your horse maintains a proper weight and ideally comes out of winter a bit lean! If your horse is on grass and gains weight easily, make sure there is training to counterbalance it; walking for 30 minutes a day can already have a significant effect. Long training promotes fat burning, while intensive training builds muscle. Therefore, prefer long and slow over short and fast! You can also consider limiting grazing time or grass intake. But don't forget the minerals!!
Not all horses can tolerate artificial fertilizer
Does your horse mainly itch on the head or ears? We often see this in horses that are on grass treated with artificial fertilizer. Not all horses can tolerate artificial fertilizer! This can really cause enormous itching. In any case, artificial fertilizer is not beneficial for soil quality, but if your horse has itching in the summer, we definitely advise against its use! Preferably choose to use manure and possibly supplement it with pasture minerals made from concentrated seawater.
Packaged pre-dried hay/silage is also a cause of itching
This reason somewhat coincides with the deficiency of minerals. Packaged pre-dried hay/silage undergoes a fermentation process. Even when it goes into the package as dry hay, a fermentation process is at play, as the wrapping causes this. This fermentation process affects the acidity level of the horse's stomach. The horse's stomach requires a certain acidity level, and once this is disrupted, the pre-digestion is disturbed. This pre-digestion is important for the absorption of minerals. The disrupted acidity level also affects the gut flora, leading to poorer nutrient absorption and the accumulation of additional waste products in the body. These waste products and inflammatory reactions cause itching. Packaged roughage thus leads to reduced mineral absorption and triggers additional inflammatory reactions. Moreover, the body will try to resolve this disruption in acidity by drawing minerals from reserves, as minerals are alkalizing. Therefore, not only is the absorption of minerals reduced, but the body also consumes more minerals! Enough reasons to only feed unwrapped hay!
Conclusion: look for the cause of the itching and adjust your management accordingly!
Itching is a broad term and can have many causes. It is our responsibility as horse owners to search for the reason, as action can then be taken. Until that time, it is important to support your horse as best as possible, so that it is bearable for the horse. Itching is truly terrible, perhaps even worse than pain. Eczema blankets, fly masks, lotions, supplements, etc. Pull out all the stops and combine things to make your horse as comfortable as possible. Do you want to discuss the right approach with us? Feel free to contact us! We are happy to help and will look at your horse's situation to figure out the best approach.
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