Getting in front of thyroid dysfunction

Is your horse’s thyroid at risk?

Although there aren’t statistics to reveal the shocking numbers of thyroid imbalance in horses, a quick survey of horse owners you know would likely give you an indication of the reality that many horses have an imbalance with their thyroid.

Thyroid imbalances or conditions in horses can include a complex range of concerns including thyroid gland neoplasia, hyperthyroidism, and hypothyroidism. Although a horse being diagnosed with these concerns directly is considered rare, the thyroid is often linked to conditions like laminitis and metabolic disease… and those concerns in horses are rampant.

From my personal health experience, I struggled for years with many signs of a thyroid imbalance. In fact, my thyroid would get swollen and hot to the touch. Yet after blood tests coming back normal… I was told nothing was wrong.

Seeking medical help and blood work is important, but please note that taking action beyond that is often crucial if you’re aware there is a concern and the results are non-conclusive (which is often the case, for horses and people alike).

Back in 2011 when I almost lost my mare Pokey, I went through many opinions, tests, and diagnosis that only led to recommendations to euthanize her. Devastated, exhausted, and quite honestly broke from the medical bills, I could have followed the advice and no one would have judged me…

Except for myself, as I knew there was more that could be done. Supporting the body to healing and restoring itself. That’s what I did then and that’s what I teach others to do now.

One of the concerns that my mare had was labeled “Cushings”, translation from your horse’s body – it needs a nutrition overhaul, thyroid support, and promotion of pituitary health and balance.

So if your horse if experiencing hormone, metabolic, thyroid, or pituitary concerns right now… or you want to reduce the risk that they will in the future. These tips and suggestions are for you.

Start with a Solid Health Foundation-

Traditional thyroid treatments and even some alternative natural approaches are more like throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping it sticks. They fail to ask how or why the thyroid is in the state it’s in, or how do we support the body back to proper function on its own…

A lifetime of medications or supplements is considered the responsible and only path in which a horse owner can take. Many of the supplements never yielding a tangible result on their own and the medications often result in the horse experiencing side effects like loss of appetite, weight loss, and depression.

So what are you left to do? What other options or paths do you have?

Let’s first explore the relevance to the thyroid to your horse’s overall health. Because the truth is that every cell within your horse’s body has receptors for thyroid hormones.

Meaning the thyroid is therefore connected to almost all the major organ systems. Directly impacting your horse’s brain, digestive system, the cardiovascular system, metabolism, liver, hormone production, body temperature regulation, and more.

Common suggestions will be to support your horse’s mineral intake specifically iodine, selenium, copper, zinc, magnesium, and manganese. Here’s the concern with only going that route, if you don’t look at the health of the horse’s digestive system first, the nutrients will not make it to where they need to go…

Furthermore, if the cells are in a state of toxicity and high oxidative stress the nutrients will not be utilized by the body appropriately.

Meaning your horse isn’t going to improve and your hard-earned money is going in one end and out the other, while your horse’s condition will progress.

Decoding Health and Where To Begin

In my 30 Day Equine Health Transformation program I empower horse owners to decode their horse’s health. From that place, they can optimize and breakthrough many health concerns with their horse that many have deemed impossible for horses to recover from. I go much deeper on this in the course but here are the basics you need to know to get started.

1. Reducing your horse’s oxidative stress is imperative to their overall health and in the case of the thyroid, the same rings true. Studies have shown that oxidative stress compounds hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism is a state of increased oxidative stress. Many horse owners rely on vitamin E and herbal antioxidants alone to offset this concern. In my experience, this just isn’t enough in the day and age that we live in. Activating the body to reduce its own oxidative stress is much more effective. Learn more about how to naturally activate your horse’s body in our exclusive Facebook community, click here to join now.
2. Support your horse’s digestion with a prebiotic, probiotics, and digestive enzyme supplement to ensure the nutrients are prepared for absorption properly.
3. Review your horse’s nutrition for synthetics, chemicals, and additives that are feeding health problems with every scoop. Most fortified grains you get from your local feed stores won’t cut it, if your horse thriving and feeling their best is your goal.

Additional Options and Remedies-

Only after you have assessed and reviewed the suggestions above will including these additional support options be of benefit to your horse.

• Ashwagandha – is know for thyroid stimulation and for increasing oxygen to the blood, acting as an anti-oxidant. Naturally supporting your horse’s amino acids, copper, zinc, magnesium, and iron.
• Chasteberry Powder – know to support pituitary health and hormone balance.
• Kelp – a clean heavy metal-free source of kelp can support a healthy thyroid as it is naturally high in iodine, (please work with an equine nutritionist or health coach as for some horse’s kelp or foods high in iodine, might irritate the body and has opposite effects than intended.)
• Essential oils including Frankincense, Cedarwood, or Rosemary are options you can utilize topically and aromatically to support balance and promote over the health of the thyroid.
• Acupressure check Bl 22 Association Point for Triple Heater and select points from the Triple Heater Meridian, download the Tallgrass Publisher Acupressure App for assistance in meridian and point location.