Spring time 'dangerous' grazing time...

News from the KiefferMAG

Every year ... it starts again: with the start of the
grazing season, many horses - especially those who spend
several up to 24 hours on the pasture - develop into
insatiable problem children and the belly circumference
increases steadily. Not only does this make our horse
misshapen, but the extra weight also negatively affects
performance and strain on the joints. Further health
consequences of excessive grazing can be serious,
sometimes life-threatening diseases such. Be laminitis.
Of course, not every horse is a problem child, but there
are still enough "risk horses" to deal with complaints. Since grazing in itself more than meets the natural needs of the horse in principle, we can look at the phenomenon of meadow vines and other og. Difficulty explaining complaints. Juicy, fresh grass can not be a calorie bomb or cause of illnesses? Yes, the crowd does it! Why this is so and how we can counter it, we will explain in this post. When spring sprouts fresh grass ...

something happens, which takes place every year: after the
cold, dimly lit winter season, our meadows and pastures
awaken to new life with the rising temperatures and the
soothing "more" of sunlight. The metabolic process of the
plants is stimulated again and they begin to grow and
generate energy. Through light, heat and water, the unrestricted
photosynthesis can take place again and the fresh grass
begins to form glucose (dextrose) again. In addition to
glucose, other sugar molecules are produced in grasses
with different functions that make use of the plants for
their maintenance (energy storage, protection against
drought and frost) - such as. Fructan, which is present in
the grasses primarily at the beginning of growth in the
spring or at the end of the growing season in autumn. The fructan content of the grasses is particularly high in
sunny and cold weather, as much fructan is formed, but
this is hardly consumed for the growth of the plant and is
stored in the plant. In the summer months, this imbalance
then relativizes again. Why the grass tastes particularly good at the beginning of
the grazing season? The fresh spring grass contains the energy supply of fructan
(multi-chain sugar molecule, polysaccharide) as well as
the freshly produced glucose (short-chain sugar molecule,
simple sugar) - that is, the grass contains an extra portion
of carbohydrates and also tastes particularly good due to
its sweetness through the fructan. The sweet taste and the
rapid up and down of the blood sugar level also stimulate
the appetite - the real problem, however, arises only from
the total amount of grass and thus sugar added. These
amounts can amount to many kilos per day, depending on how
much time the horse is allowed to spend on pasture.

Which in a nutshell happens in the body. As noted in the
paragraph above, the amount is the poison or problem and
possibly the combination of glucose and fructan.

Glucose Short-chain sugar molecules such as glucose are a perfect
source of energy during exercise and, compared to multiple
sugars (such as fructan), they do not have to be broken
down by the body for the time being to provide energy. If
they are supplied to the body permanently and not in
conjunction with physical stress, the energy source is not
utilized, but stored as glycogen in the body. The glycogen,
the storage form of carbohydrates, is stored in conjunction
with water. One gram of glycogen can additionally bind up
to four grams of water. This means with regard to the
phenomenon blown up belly: A horse of 600 kg eats about 3-5 kg ​​of grass per hour. If
this horse is one that grazes permanently and a candidate
who does little work and still receives a diet of fodder,
this explains the emergence of a grazing belly: Energy surplus + water retention = grazing vines. Another aspect is the insulin level, which increases
rapidly due to sugar intake and drops just as quickly,
which can have a negative effect on the hunger and satiety.
That is why the horse alone can not control and regulate
his feeding behavior and we need to help him with it.

Fructan On the other hand, the long-chain sugar molecule fructan,
whose concentration is highest in sunny and cold weather,
can be far more problematic for the horse's body and cause
excessively inflammatory and in the worst case
life-threatening diseases. The digestive system of the
horse can not handle the large fructan excess over the
grass intake in the stomach and small intestine. Thus, a
large amount of carbohydrates (multiple sugars) undigested enters the colon, which changes the bacterial intestinal flora of the horse and multiplies the number of carbohydrate-processing bacteria. The metabolic waste products of these bacteria are large amounts of lactic acid, which overrides the bacterial diversity in the intestine, provides for hyperacidity and causes endotoxins or toxins. This dangerous mixture passes through the intestinal wall in the bloodstream, the organism acidified and tormenting, inflammatory processes such as laminitis take their course as horse and rider make life to hell. Now we can explain the complaints ... and now what? Both the negative effects on the body volume and the
promotion of inflammatory processes in the body can be
attributed to the feeding behavior in the pasture. This
does not mean that we should deny our horses their natural
needs - but we can help them to live them and yet remain
fit, healthy and free of complaints. And especially in
the spring, when the grazing season begins.... something
happens, which takes place every year: after the cold,
dimly lit winter season, our meadows and pastures awaken
to new life with the rising temperatures and the soothing
"more" of sunlight. The metabolic process of the plants is
stimulated again and they begin to grow and generate
energy. Through light, heat and water, the unrestricted
photosynthesis can take place again and the fresh grass
begins to form glucose (dextrose) again. In addition to
glucose, other sugar molecules are produced in grasses
with different functions that make use of the plants for
their maintenance (energy storage, protection against
drought and frost) - such as. Fructan, which is present
in the grasses primarily at the beginning of growth in
the spring or at the end of the growing season in autumn. The fructan content of the grasses is particularly high
in sunny and cold weather, as much fructan is formed, but
this is hardly consumed for the growth of the plant and
is stored in the plant. In the summer months, this
imbalance then relativizes again. Why the grass tastes particularly good at the beginning
of the grazing season? The fresh spring grass contains the energy supply of
fructan (multi-chain sugar molecule, polysaccharide) as
well as the freshly produced glucose (short-chain sugar
molecule, simple sugar) - that is, the grass contains an
extra portion of carbohydrates and also tastes
particularly good due to its sweetness through the
fructan. The sweet taste and the rapid up and down of
the blood sugar level also stimulate the appetite - the
real problem, however, arises only from the total amount
of grass and thus sugar added. These amounts can amount
to many kilos per day, depending on how much time the
horse is allowed to spend on pasture

Prevention By following measures we can prevent complaints. Right grazing     If the nights are still frosty or the weather
conditions unfavorable, rather wait a little more with the
Anweiden. As explained above, the fructan content is
particularly high and regulates only when the grasses
begin to grow visibly. Grazing should not be granted to the horse directly from
the beginning to several hours, but ideally at intervals
which are gradually increased, e.g. start with 15 minutes
and then and boost. Offer high quality hay before grazing. Good grazing and feeding. Use (preventive) aids If it is unavoidable that the grazing is gradually
extended at the beginning of the season or should the
horse develop into permanent drowsiness in the summer,
then slow-down brakes or muzzles are an effective way to
limit grass intake in order to avoid the unpleasant
grazing Minimize and / or prevent the formation of
inflammation in the body. Hay consumption from round
bales with hay nets can also be effectively reduced.  We at Kieffer have developed in cooperation with Mrs.
Sabine Georgi, the owner of two grazing horses, a
horse-friendly grazing muzzle. The Easygrazer® is a
horse-friendly yet sturdy construction consisting of our
easy-care, water-repellent, durable as an anti-allergenic
SECU® material with a bottom plate made of food-safe
Biothane. Alternatively, the variant Easygrazer Neo® is
available, which is completely made of Biothane and
without the use of rivets. For comfort, this muzzle is equipped with velcro neoprene
cushions that can be washed easily. First and foremost,
the restriction of feed intake and a high well-being
factor, undisturbed mimicry of the horse, unrestricted
water absorption are just a few of many advantages that
make the Easygrazer® a "first-choice" grazing muzzle.