By Jackie Rive at www.brookbyherbs.co.nz
Helping horses and dogs live healthier and happier lives, naturally.
Summer is the perfect time for tasty herbs growing naturally.
In the summer and early autumn, horses require various nutrients to balance hormones through the duration of the breeding season and to prepare them for winter.
Chamomile, passionflower, valerian, hops and red raspberry leaves are excellent for mares in estrus and stallions used for stud. These herbs relieve much of the hyperactivity and 'moody mare' aggression seen in mares in estrus, sexually maturing horses, and breeding stallions.
Cleansing, toning, and stimulating herbs are usually seen from spring to late summer. Such plants include plantain, dandelion, burdock, sheep sorrel, garlic, wormwood, yarrow, mullein and wild pansy.
These herbs cleanse and tone the lymph system, digestive tract, nervous system and immune system thereby helping horses stay healthy throughout the months when parasites and toxins are most prevalent. They also act as stimulants and equines will have better stamina and energy as a result.
External parasites are common in the warm months but horses seek out herbs to assist them in preventing this problem. Chickweed, plantain and mint are a few plants in which horses will roll to resist fleas, ticks, mites and other pests.
A good, healthy pasture will not only contain grass but also seasonal herbs (weeds) and most of these should be encouraged. The attentive horse owner will take note of herbs beneficial to the horse and provide these as they were intended to be used.
If your pastures and paddocks are healthy, you should find herbs growing at the appropriate times but in many cases they must be introduced for the benefit of your horse.
Although Nature provides the wild horse with beneficial herbs at just the right time, domestic horses require our initiative if they are to enjoy the health of their wild ancestors.
It is not harmful for a horse to eat herbs out of season but it can be detrimental if they do not receive certain plants at all. Allowing horses access to herbs that they naturally crave at particular times of the year can give their bodies the elements needed to prevent and correct hormonal problems.
The horse that grazes daily will seek out and eat the plants necessary to keep themselves healthy and therefore this aspect of horse care does not require human intervention. However, in cases where your horse is not at pasture frequently enough to enjoy seasonal herbs, you should provide herbs as part of the daily diet. Learning about seasonal herbs and how they affect equines can help owners select the plants that their horses need throughout the year.
Why not grow your own herbs? We have a Hedgerow Seed Mix available which contains seeds for the following herbs:
Parsley blend, Mugwort, Dill, Fenugreek, Valerian, Red Clover, Marjoram, Fodder Beet, Alfalfa, Sorrell, Chamomile, Chervil, Chicory blend, Burnet, Corn Poppy, Yarrow, Fennel, Garlic, Chives.
Visit www.brookbyherbs.co.nz for a full range of natural organic herbal health blends for animals.
