Early on when my horse Calli came to me, I noticed that she was rubbing her tail a lot…on posts, trees and inside the run in area. In May, when the Noseeums come out, she would get bit up all on her underside from her chest down past her belly. There were oozing, crusty clumps all along her midline. It wasn’t until we started doing a few things differently that the itching stopped. Soon Calli was no longer bothered by any of these earlier problems. Don’t get me wrong, she will still run for cover when the bugs are around but her body no longer reacts to them as they did in the past. Without realizing it, the steps I took served to lay a foundation for building her immune system and making it less likely for her to have these problems!
It was during this time that I was learning about plant based products and using essential oils. I began trading out a lot of the “traditional” products that I had learned to use and started using cleaner options. The first one I started with was Thieves Household Cleaner. A capful mixed up with water in a 28 oz spray bottle went a long way for a small amount of money and seemed to soothe Calli’s itching right away. All I did was spray her tail head area and her midline daily. I continued to use it throughout the nice weather. There are many other products that I traded out and shared in a video. You can watch it HERE.
I was also learning about how important diet and nutrition is to the hooves and overall health of horses. Are you aware that about 80% of the immune system is in the gut? So it’s a good bet that feeding your horse clean, nourishing food is going to help support their immune system. As part of my nutrition education, I realized just how difficult processed feeds are on the body. Whether it’s the processing or the ingredients, these processed grains actually cause more damage to the gut (when combined with a confinement lifestyle)and subsequently the immune system.
I started feeding my horses flax as their base “grain” and added oils and oil infused supplements to that. Offering a whole food like flax and feeding them in a fashion more conducive to their nature (movement for their forage) is a huge benefit to their overall gut health and immune system.
Another powerhouse I use is NingXia Red. This juice is made up from the wolf berry, and other fruits and essential oils, and is considered to be a super food! It contains 15% protein, 21 essential minerals, 18 amino acids, is loaded with B vitamins and a high amount of Vitamin C! Adding this to the daily feed of a horse needing an immune boost works every time. And they like the taste!
If you’re looking for a solid foundation on nutrition to get started with your horses, here’s my FREE GUIDE.
As I was learning how to use my essential oils, Thieves Essential Oil became an instant favorite. Using it for myself in a daily tea to support my own immune system, I also turn to it for my horses. I add drops to their feed as needed or use a roll on to run over their body. Both ways help to get these powerful oils into their system to help provide balance and support to the immune system. My horses also like citrus oils added to their water in the warm summer months. Citrus oils are a great support to the immune system!
A very important piece of the wellness puzzle that had been missing, was supporting the energy healing of my horses. I finally started learning about Healing Touch for Animals®. I am currently practicing in Level 2 of the program and am so happy to be able to offer this key healing piece to my horses. The benefits of energy healing are many…it helps to regulate the immune system by offering a variety of physiological responses. Such responses as relaxation, release of endorphins, increased circulation, elevates oxygen, absorbs nutrients, influences every cell of the body, builds enzymes, regulates hormones, releases toxins, promotes healthy cell growth and promotes healing. If you’d like to learn more about HTA, watch HERE.
Working alongside these other areas of healing I’ve talked about, I also use light therapy. It has been so helpful to supporting my horses’ immune systems. The light therapy protocol called the Immune Boost is a way to proactively support your horse. The red light helps to stimulate the immune system and to regulate all meridian systems. Using the light on the 13 points for about 30 -60 seconds (each point) every other day for a few weeks sets up your horse for increased balance and wellness. Interested in light therapy? Here’s the one I use, Photonic Health.
Focusing your attention on supporting your horse’s immune system is key to their wellness. So many of the “problems” that horses have with skin, allergies, etc. just seem to go away when there is a healthy, well balanced immune system in place. I hope you’ll get started cleaning out your horse feed and products too as a first step on the way to a balanced immune system.
All the best,
Marta
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