For thousands of years wild horses have lived on grass alone and typically they ate all they wanted. There was no one to stop them! Today, colic, allergies, metabolic issues, laminitis, hoof and other health issues are often associated with eating too much grass.

What is different about today's grass or perhaps what is different about the horse? Obviously alot has changed! If we truly look at the way it was and, "mimic" what is natural, perhaps we can have healthier horses and avoid a lot of problems.

Todays species of grasses are totally different from the past. Most horses today on pasture only have one or two varieties of grass - usually timothy, orchard grass with some degree of clover and fescue. In the wild, they had access to vast areas of grass and abundant species. Equally important was access to other plants and herbs. Today they eat what they have access to in the spaces we confine them to. Most species of grass (and even grain) today are genetically modified - a controversy and discussion all in itself. By being able to "pick and choose" what they needed, horses received a balance of nutrients.

For instance, I am sure you know, most horses will chew on tree bark. Of course, it is bad for the tree - totally inconsequential in the wilderness, but in the back yard pasture, chewed dead trees look awful! Simple sugars called polysaccharides and amino acids like methionine and perhaps tannins are probably what they are after by eating the trees. Regardless, if methionine is supplemented then most horses would have better hooves. Supplementing simply poly saccharide sugars will often help the gut (sometimes stop cribbing and help ulcers, too) - the gut being the source of almost all problems in a horse.

One such simple sugar is particular is Arabinogalactan, obtained from the Western Larch tree. Another is Mannose - from the Aloe plant. The Native American Indians and "grandmas" everywhere have used these substances for centuries. In other parts of the world, they may have used Noni fruit or Pomegranate or whatever was native to the area - and if the horses that were there had access to them, be assured thy ate the bark, fruit (or whatever) too!

This is one of the reasons supplements are so important today - horses just can't get all that they need from the typical diets we give them, and the one or two species of grass they graze just doesn't provide all they may need.

The need for essential fatty acids like Omega 3, 6, and

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