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Dinah C from CT
Hi all, I’m Dinah from Cape Town, South Africa.
I have been involved with horses constantly for 35 years as an owner, competitor in Eventing & Dressage, Yard manager. In the last 11 years I trained in Infrared thermography which led me into Saddle fitting and Fascia Release Bodywork.
I happened upon Doc T and his blogs by receiving a link to the lectin blog from one of my clients just over a month ago. This blew my mind as I have been questioning “our” horses bellies for more than a year now and wondering what has gone wrong as they never looked like this 30, even 20 years ago. So everything was pushed aside and I read every blog I could find that Doc T wrote and with each read, I smiled as I realised I had finally found a vet who observed and questioned and didn’t just accept things as presented. It is so refreshing to finally be in a community of like minded people who keep questioning what they are seeing.
I own a SA WB, named Praline. I bought her at 18 months. She was going to be my Dressage horse. Brought her on slowly but by the time she was 5, things were already going wrong in behavior, feet, body and posture, ability to progress in her training, general confidence, energy levels, the list goes on. I was caring for her, so I knew exactly what was being fed and how she was being cared for.
On Jan 3, she turns 14. And finally I believe I might be getting the horse I expected 12 years back. Two and a half years ago I started reducing the grain in her diet. But it was only 15 months ago that I believe I had put her on a fully grain free diet. Such huge improvement but still not 100%. Just 5 days ago, I have managed to move her to almost (using FFS at the moment) the diet Doc T recommends, that being soya, salt, alfalfa, grazing and water and I am feeling extremely hopeful that this is the ultimate solution.
This has been the most difficult horse for me to care for. Such a sensitive girl and one that puts self preservation as her top priority.
These 12 years of owning her have been the most challenging for me but have afforded me such growth as a horseman. She has made me question and explore things things I would never have dreamt of. So whilst I have not achieved my goal of riding competive Dressage, she’s filled me with so much more that I now share with other owners and their horses.
I have already completed the Nutrition course and started the Dentistry one. These are just 2 more facets that I can use to help me help horses and their owners do better as we move into 2022 and beyond.
Thanks for starting this venture Doc T. I look forward to a long and informative journey with all in the community.
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7 Replies
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Welcome, Dinah!
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Welcome Dinah! I wish you well on your journey with Praline. We are travelling a similar path here in Canada! I would be interested in your perspective as a bodyworker on the changes you see after a few months of this way of feeding. I have our chiropractor/cranial sacral therapist booked for later this month. Although I’m not riding at the moment, I suspect there will be some structural things to keep up with as the body changes with them finally getting enough protein.
I would also be very interested in looking at what sort of exercises we can do with our horses to help them build muscle in the best way-to that end I’ve ordered Jec Ballou’s book 55 Corrective Exercises (Doc T was on her podcast).
Looking forward to your progress notes.
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@AngelaM Remember you cannot build a building (muscles, connective tissue) without enough of the right materials (all the amino acids in enough amounts).
1 pound of soybean meal = 174g (approx) of high quality protein that includes the branch chain amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, valine) as well as lysine required in every protein. Add this to 20 pounds of 10% protein hay which adds approx 454g of good quality (limited total amino acids) protein and you get about 625g total protein.
The goal is 0.5 to 1.0 g per pound of body weight. If your horse is 1000 pounds or more then 500 to 1000 g is needed. While 625 is in the ballpark, you can go higher.
In human body builders the target is 1g/pound and several horse owners wanting to increase muscle in their competitive horses are adding 2 to 3 pounds SBM per day.
This might be something to think about as you work with individuals needing a push.
Also remember that protein in the diet may be converted into glucose if the horse is still consuming excess glucose in the starch of the hay. In these horses you should consider also soaking the hay to reduce the starch plus keep food away from the horse during the evening. If satiated, this 12 hours of no food will not be a mental concern and if they are like humans, you can give ½ the protein within 1 hour of exercise and the other ½ at the evening meal before the fast.
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Thanks for the welcome Eliza and AngelaM.
@ AngelaM, yes, I have picked up as I’ve been reading through other members intro’s that I might well have found a few people in the community with horses that are very similar to Praline. I’m so sorry there are others who are living with equally sensitive and reactive horses, but thrilled to know they have kind and caring owners who are desperate to help find the answers needed to make life better for them. So, in a nutshell, it’s great to have found other owners who can share my despair!
That being said, I can say that I think my despair maybe be coming to an end now that Praline’s on Doc T’s diet. I believe this has been her most comfortable week in 11+ years! I shall elaborate more in the No Grain Forum. I think it’ll also be best to respond to your question about exercises in the NGF as well.
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Looking forward to your reports in the forum!
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Thanks @DinahC for your kind words. It is thrilling (and humbling) to know that so many around the world are reading and applying my ideas in reducing chronic systemic inflammation and replacing lost protein with high quality protein in the diet. These notes help fuel me to keep going in the New Year! Doc T
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Welcome Dinah! My sensitive horse has thrived on this diet and I am happy to hear how well your mare is responding. Great to have you here.
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