Over half of mature light-breed horses in the U.S. are obese — an incidence that’s among the highest in the world.
For most of them, the problem is equine metabolic syndrome, which centers around abnormal insulin activity. That, in turn, is driven by people feeding their horses grain-based diets and concentrated carbohydrates. The resulting long-term insulin elevation drives fat storage, which predisposes the horse to laminitis — a painful, and sometimes fatal, breakdown of hoof structures — as well as other problems.
Now, equine veterinarians aren’t just focusing on a horse’s weight loss, they’re measuring the insulin levels that can drive obesity. As consumers and horse stewards, people can do their part by feeding better diets, including good quality hay, instead of relying heavily on tasty grains.