Equilibrate Horsenutrition SA

13/01/2026

While Merry and I were out riding this morning, I removed an egg sized tortoise from the road, that narrowly escaped wheels. The first I've seen since the devastating fires.🙏

10/12/2025

So delighted for Sunny and Ninon. He's an older boy and apparently highly sensitive and allergic. It can be difficult to get and maintain the condition we require in their later years.

"The dull coat.
It has taken me months to find the recipe that works for Sunny. Finally, his condition is perfect, if not a bit on the chubby side… But the coat. He was dappling, but his coat remained dull. I tried different types of supplements, even oil. Nothing could give me the coat that I wanted.

Then I remembered, years ago there was a horse who I’d used a product on. The horse was faded & dull. A bit ribby. The transformation I saw within in 10 days absolutely blew me away.

I decided to get in touch with the company, I ordered a month’s supply. The service was excellent and I recieved the supplement in a couple of days.

Firstly, Sunny had NO allergic reaction. Which for a horse as sensitive as he is, was already a huge plus.

And in less than a month, my horse finally had the gorgeous coat I’d been working months on to achieve. To say I’m blown away is an understatement. This is a product that is not recommended or talked about enough.

I am all for giving credit where credit is due.

The product? Equilibrate Horsenutrition SA CHF. CHF stands for CONDITION, HOOF QUALITY, FLEXIBILITY.

It is VERY competitively priced compared to other supplements on the market. And it works. A highly concentrated supplement with the best, pure ingredients. 20 grams a day is all your horse needs to transform how they look, feel and move.

This is NOT a sponsored post. This is me sharing a fantastic product that is not nearly recommended or talked about enough.

CHF is sensitive Sunny safe and approved ✔️✔️✔️

The photo’s are less than a month apart. The results speak for themselves 🤩🤩🤩"

08/12/2025

It's birthday treats today. My pretty little Merrylegs is 14!

For fun! She's a sagittarius, a fire sign like myself, so thankfully we are compatible.
Sagittarians are stubborn and pursue their wants with brute force, and often have little patience for things they don't want to do. Totally.
Shes outgoing, and doesn't take criticism or rein in her energy when determined.
Dislikes rigidity or routine and can get restless if things become stagnant.

Born in 2011. Under the Chinese astrological calender, Merry is a rabbit. Good communicator, intelligent and stubborn. Yes all of that!🤣

07/12/2025

Roughage is generally acknowledged to be the most important element in the horse's diet (after water). And that it's available as grazing and as various hays or haylage.
The various grass swards and hays nutritional values are determined by geographical location, species, soil conditions, including fertilizing, weather ie amount of rainfall, temperature, aspect, daylenth and harvesting time.
It's also generally known that the nutrient values can only be determined by laboratory analysis. Even this requires regular routine testing of each seasons supply for accuracy. Other than that we must relie on published data for typical analysis of the type of forage.

Feed manufacturers should use laboratory analysis of the ingredients to determine values in order to provide a balanced feed and will add minerals and vitamins to ensure minimum delivery, IF you adhere to the manufacturers quantity to be fed per day recommendations.

If feeding solely forages as I do, then it's necessary to feed either a complete mineral and vitamin supplement or a feed balancer. This is because neither grasses or hays will EVER provide a full spectrum of minerals and vitamins required for long term health and longevity.
Providing a variety of forages, in my case lucerne, teff and oathay, that have very different nutrient profiles, goes some way to providing natural phytonutrient sources and the ingredients for a diverse gut biome, but is still lacking in certain minerals and vitamins.

Signs of imbalances or deficiency may be: unexpected, unexplained lameness or injury, poor immunity eg wounds that heal slowly, succumbing to infection or disease, reproductive problems, behavioural problems and the common poor hoof quality and skin allergies.

Please share 🙏

05/12/2025

Just when we thought we might have a handle on the importance of good bacteria and the gut biome. Just when we've come to terms with the making of dietry changes slowly in order not to cause digestive upsets and the dreaded colic ! A recent conversation reminded me that there are big gaps in understanding the consequences in shifts of feeds, both roughage and concentrates. Most know that increases in concentrates need to be gradual. But roughage increases also need to to be gradually increased. As do reduction in either. This is because the flora and fauna of the gut biome are specific to the substrate in the gut.

Then along came pathobionts. These are microorganisms that are often present in the gut of healthy horses that can cause disease under certain conditions. These include
a weakened immune system or an imbalance in the host's microbiome, but are otherwise harmless. They are opportunistic and when environmental or genetic factors, or a disruption of the usual microbial population create conditions that allow them to thrive, they cause harm. This idea replaces the old "good" or "bad" bacteria model by acknowledging that an organism's role is dynamic and depends on the host's state.

Pathobionts are usually members of the body's normal microbial community eg the gut that are normally beneficial or neutral.

They may be associated with chronic diseases.
The increase of pathobionts can exacerbate inflammatory conditions and trigger diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or f***l water syndrome and colitis.
Conditions that may lead to pathobiont overgrowth include:

Antibiotics that disrupt the beneficial gut microbiota, allowing pathobionts to proliferate.

Physical or mental stress, such as intense training or changes in living environment.

Diet plays a major role in shaping the gut microbiota, and sudden changes can contribute to dysbiosis.

The presence of helminth parasites can also alter the gut environment and immune response, potentially contributing to inflammation.

Once inflammation starts, pathobionts activate the immune system, causing inflammatory disease.
While it can be difficult to diagnose disease caused by pathobionts because of their presence in healthy individuals, clinical signs, history, and the exclusion of other causes help.

Restoring the balance of the gut microbiota is key with ongoing studies into the efficacy of F***l Microbiota Transplantation (FMT) and specific probiotics.
Maintaining a healthy gut microbiome through appropriate diet (forages), low-stress environments, and considered, appropriate use of antibiotics is needed for keeping pathobionts in check.

02/12/2025

Borrowed little Welsh Section A, 14 year old mare, has contracted biliary. What a nasty surprise as she has been in the current environment for a year and is regularly treated with an anti tick spray. Thankfully it was caught early as I'm very hands on daily and noticed that she was "off". Eating her forage, but not with the usual enthusiasm. Initially I considered colic, but a friend who has long lived in the area, reminded me it was likely biliary. It hadn't entered ny mind because of the aforesaid. The vet confirmed with a slide having taken bloods for both biliary and theleria testing. Treatment was immediately initiated. I opted for Berenil that is less likely to provoke colic (per vet) and I have past good experience of it.
Because of its shorter action, it is often preferred as a first line of defense, as it gives the animal a chance to build its own immunity against Babesia bovis (Asiatic redwater), while providing temporary relief from the active infection.

Little Princess was also given pyroflam (flunixin) antinflammatory and painkiller. Her temperature was immediately reduced, but has fluctuated over the past couple of days, indicating that the disease is actively being fought.

Her diet consists of a variety of forages and a complete supplement, Equilibrate CHF, also containing nutraceuticals MSM, glucosamine and chondroitin. These ingredients are antinflammatory, analgesic and help maintain and repair the muscular skeletal system and support liver function.
I always feed something succulent daily, but have slightly increased her share of excellent and palatable fibre sources carrots, sweet potato and apples (pectin a type of soluble fibre that is a natural bulk forming laxative. It helps normalise bowel movements, relieving both constipation and diarrhea). to support digestion.
She is otherwise of good health and weight, though walking wounded as a consequence of a nasty injury, the result of a dark past.
She enjoys a stress free environment that is conducive to a rapid recovery. And because my horses, whatever their breeding and origins, whether Pavement Landings or Racecorse Royalty, receive my best care, the added support of medical grade CBD for anxiety, pain relief and stimulating appetite.

07/11/2025

I've written on this subject previously. The Power of branding and marketing.

Companies spent millions on the branding and marketing òf their products. Eliciting testimonials from famous people to endorse their products. Why? Because it's known to increase sales.

Before choosing a product, consider the claims for efficacy. Wide coverage of ailments and issues, and wild claims are unlikely to be true.

Consider price. Price is a factor but doesn't ensure quality. You may be funding the companies expensive branding, marketing and overheads.

The most important point to understand is to learn to read labels. Be discerning and knowledgeable about the ingredients. Read the analysis. Know what effective levels of the various ingredients are. Many are simply fillers, unnecessary but sound impressive.

If the information is unavailable on the packaging ask for assistance and or talk to the concerned company😉.

30/10/2025

Alwynsdal is where I'm so very fortunate to be able to keep my pony (thank you Sandra) together with her little loan companion, (always grateful Cilla, she's a darling). It's 6 hectares of fynbos and native grasses, which is absolutely excellent for easy keepers, with little fear of metabolic problems arising.
Alwynsdal is situated about 4km inland and at approximately 50m above sea level. Consequently strong winds are frequent, but this means that flies and midges are minimal. Sea winds mean that moisture laden with salt and iodine are deposited. Salt is invaluable and iodine is essential for thyroid function,
supporting brain development, aiding in energy production, and helping maintain a healthy immune system.
I have ever recommended that horses are managed outside whenever and as much as possible. And fed a roughage based diet. Long before the idea gained popularity. I've been accused of being extreme (out there) in my ideas of management and of showing off when I fed my Tb oats, preferring straights to compound feeds. Merrylegs being a pony and only lightly worked, ridden 2 to 3 times per week, (thanks Alta and occasionally other riding buddies), does perfectly well on a forage diet comprising oathay, teff and lucerne. She receives an oathay/lucerne chaff to deliver her supplement. That is my own Equilibrate CHF, comprising minerals, vitamins and nutraceuticals. In existence now for 20 years in SA and formerly similar in the UK.

My very rudimentary but servicable and adequate setup is a shadecloth wrapped shelter, with roof plates on top.
This provides a sturdy wind and rain proof shelter. Cool thanks to the shadecloth above which also reduces the noise of rain. The shelter is specifically designed for ponies and fronts a small container where I keep forage and other small necessities. This enables me to work in all weathers between shelter and the container.

Our water supply is piped in and of human quality, as supplied by the local Municipality. I have had a shadecloth structure erected over our water. This reduces evaporation and maintains a cooler water temperature while also reducing algea.

Merrylegs is ridden in a 16.5" Wintec Enduro that I love. It's supportive, safe and fits her like a glove. Her bridle is without a noseband. I've had it for 30 plus years. It formerly belonged to my 7/8ths Arab/Thoroughbred/ Welsh Cob and subsequently to my SA Thoroughbred who had a small head. Or perhaps Merrylegs has a big head.
Her bit is a loose ring mullen naithe. I prefer a bit because it provides a direct and precise contact rather than multiple, potentially confusing pressure points. It is quite useless when she has a variance of opinion to mine. Fortunately I have learned, after riding mostly geldings who are more guidable or gullible, to compromise. And most of the time we share each other's aims.

Merrylegs and companion Misty are seen by the dentist annually, have their feet trimmed every 6 weeks and routine antihelmintics.
Merrylegs, shy of 14 has never needed veterinary attention. I like to think this is due to her species appropriate lifestyle. And of course, Lady Luck.

30/10/2025

This is 6 weeks growth in winter. A full 1cm. Trimmed every 6 weeks. Barefoot, out 24/7 in 6 hectares of rough ground and ridden 2 to 3 times per week.
Quality mixed diet of oathay, lucerne and teff. And indispensable CHF.

29/10/2025

29/10/2025