Re: Carbs - only part of the picture

[CMKSAGEHIL@aol.com]

In a message dated 98-06-24 13:32:18 EDT, suendavid@worldnet.att.net writes:

<< I don't know whether damaged mucose can or will
 regenerate partially or entirely as time goes on, Heidi, do you know? >>

I don't have any hard and fast facts, but cases I have seen lead me to believe
that it depends how severe and how long-term the damage is.  They certainly DO
regenerate well if the damage is not too severe and does not continue over a
long period of time.  I do think you can cause permanent damage, though, if
you insult the mucosa long enough.

I also think that the show horse industry selects for a different type of
horse than many of the rest of us do--a more hyper sort of animal that perhaps
lends itself better to that sort of feeding regimen.  I know horses that are
from prominent show lines but are not raised in the same manner often still
exhibit a lot of the same unthriftiness when asked to perform work, so I do
think some of these horses are born, not made.  They tend to fret in camp the
night before rides rather than eat, they tend to have much higher needs for
electrolyte supplementation (no surprise, as they have minimal gut fill), and
also tend to be 50-mile specialists if they are successful, rather than
100-milers.  But as I know a lot of them as individuals and know that they
didn't all come from show barns, but rather were raised in a less pushy
fashion, I tend to believe that it is in the nature of the beast rather than a
manufactured problem.  They are also the horses whose heart rates will jump up
just because something happened 4 rigs away, or because a horse walked
by--just like they are giving themselves little shots of adrenaline every
chance they get.  Since they are erratic eaters, they are tough to
manage--they may choose to eat a little hay and no grain, or no hay and some
grain, or whatever, but it may not be the same as yesterday or tomorrow, so
every day is a change in feed.  Makes them more prone to GI problems, tying
up, you-name-it.  Some people manage to manage them, but I feel for them as it
is a lot more work and effort than to manage horses from other lines.

Heidi