What's In A Consult? An Out of the Box Approach to Equine Nutrition

I've been meaning to write an article on this topic for quite some time now. The horse industry is chalk full of nutrition advice. Heaven knows all you have to do is walk into a feed store where the latest "hot product" sales rep has a booth or login to Facebook and start scrolling the depths of the innerwebs. You're sure to find countless opinions and an overwhelm of options.

How can horse owners know where to turn? Who has the "best" advice? Which way is right and which way is wrong?

My take? I truly don't look at it from the "right" or "wrong" perspective at all. I turn to the horse for answers. I study. I OBSERVE. And in my career, I've shifted....grown....changed my approach more than once. The horse is the greatest teacher I have ever known. I appreciate that and I aim to right the ship for every stone overturned that shows me another way in which we've let our horses down. These animals are tolerant, kind, and it never ceases to amaze me what they'll contend with for months and years before they ever "speak up" about a problem.

I started out with a very "mainstream" approach to equine nutrition many years ago. Over time, I saw too many holes in the programs. I saw too many issues that were being addressed by covering up symptoms and too many horses suffering because we were not addressing root issues. Most of these issues could be resolved with nutrient dense, clean, whole, foods that could imitate what a horse would eat in the wild. That's what a horse was biologically and divinely designed to consume and digest so that's where I headed. Enter "functional nutrition". This is where we use food as medicine just like we do by feeding ourselves wholesome, clean food options rather than highly processed, nutrient deficient foods.

This isn't to say that we get it perfect. We can't. After all, our horses are domesticated, and not wild and therefore sometimes reasonable compromises and adjustments have to be made.

What's in a equine functional nutrition consult? I am not interested in telling others how to run their horse barns or their nutrition businesses. I'm not here as a "know it all", but as a resource determined to help horses and horse owners who have grown weary and tired of all the industry "noise".

To do that, my consultations begin with a whole lot of questions and a whole lot of listening to the horse owner (and the horse). I determine what testing has been done and what tests we can still do. I look at what we know today and what we knew five years ago. I look at what the goals are for 3, 6 and 9 months ahead and communicate that in a way that horse owners can be comfortable with.

We can learn a lot from traditional and alternative diagnostic testing. I like to look at the microbiome among other areas. From bloodwork to hair analysis, to iridology assessment to careful observation, information is gathered, and from there we go to work to build a solid plan.

My programs come with tailored options because who wants their horse stuck in some cookie cutter program that isn't addressing their specific needs? If one suggestion isn't ideal for the client, we switch things up a bit and use what works for the horse and the horse owner. Nothing has to be set in stone. I'm here to problem solve and give solutions, not to leave you high and dry after one consultation.

Sometimes I tell horse owners that one of the best things about what's in a consult with me is what IS NOT IN A CONSULT. So here are some examples of what I promise I won't do to you or your beloved horse:

• I do not sell a thing. Not a single feed, product, or supplement. This is because I want to foster a trusting relationship with my clients. You'll never have to question my motives. You will always know that the horse comes above my ego and my pocket book.

• I do not receive commissions or any form of compensatory endorsement from any product I recommend. Sometimes it is tempting. I have been approached by multiple companies and friends in the industry offering to give me a few "perks", including formulation opportunities, but I refused because again, the horse will always mean far more to me than a commission.

• I do not represent a feed or supplement company or brand, which is incredibly common in this industry. You're getting legitimate, no strings attached recommendations -- not a hidden company that funds me.

• I do not pretend that your horse is like every other horse. Your horse's diet is not "copy and pasted". It is tailored. It is measured. It takes time.

• I do not force my clients to purchase unnecessary tests or products. Your hard earned money is spent wisely.

A consultation is in depth because I care about all the details. Initially, I speak with a client for 1.5 to 2 hours and we get all questions answered. Follow ups are simple and clients aren't charged every time they have a question. We stay in touch. I want to know how your horse is doing down the road. We monitor progress.

A consultation includes discussion of both simple and complex conditions as they relate to how we can better your horse's health through strategic nutrition. Though I welcome a good challenge, and have helped thousands of horses, I fully appreciate simple cases as well. There's no "one size fits all" approach. Your horse is treated like a unique individual because he is.

We work together. We build a program. Your horse feels better and it shows. You sleep better at night.

That's what's in a nutrition consult with me, at Hilltop Equine Concepts.

Be well. Be horsemen. Be you.

XO

Heather