Basic Herbs to Support General Health in Horses

Below you'll find some basic herbs for general health for horses. Check with your vet before feeding any herbs as sometimes they can interact with medications. Always check the botanical name of the herb before purchasing it. Often herbs may have the same common name but can actually be a different species. Also organic herbs are best for feeding as they do not contain harmful pesticides or other chemicals.

Barley Grass (Hordeum vulgare) and Wheat Grass (Triticum aestivum)

I like feeding both barley grass (usually found as barley grass powder) and wheat grass (also powdered) to our horses. These are especially good during the winter or for those of us who live in areas where pastures are more of a wish than a reality. It puts some of the greens back into the horse's diet. The wheat grass is also rich in antioxidants. They are both rich sources of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.

Bee Pollen

Bee pollen is the pollen collected by bees as they search for nectar. This pollen is then used to create the bees' food. Bee pollen is rich in protein, antioxidants, and amino acids. Since most of us do not have access to acres of healthy flowers for horses to eat, where they would naturally eat pollen, this is the next best thing. If your horse has pollen allergies, do not feed bee pollen.

Bladderwack Kelp (Fucus vesiculosus)

This is one of the best herbs for general health for horses. It contains approximately sixty essential and trace minerals, including iodine. It is excellent for those horses on restricted diets due to founder. It can also stimulate the metabolism so can be helpful with those overweight horses and ponies. I've found it to be excellent to stimulate shedding of the coat, even in some horses visually diagnosed as having Cushing's disease.

Some experts recommend using bladderwack free choice instead of adding it to the feed. Though some horses may not like the taste or smell of kelp at first so it can be hard to determine if they don't need it or are just not familiar with it enough to want to eat it.

If you are already feeding a supplement containing iodine, bladderwack is not recommended. Also not to be used on horses with over-active thyroid conditions as bladderwack stimulates the thyroid.

Rosehips (Rosa canina)

Rosehips are the fruits produced by a species of roses called Rosa canina. You may be familiar with them from rosehips syrup used as a source of vitamin C. Rosehips are a very rich source of vitamin C and also contain vitamins such as A, D, and E. They are excellent compliment to the bladderwack to help improve coat, skin, and hoof condition. Rosehips are also useful as a tonic for recovery from illness.