Himalayan salt is a great supplement to your horse's diet. It has an abundance of trace minerals that keep deficiencies away. These beneficial nutrients are great for horses, livestock, and other pets! Himalayan salt is usually hung with a rope in your horse's stall or run-in shelter.
Himalayan Salt Health Benefits for Horses
Calcium: helps nourish and strengthen your horse's bones, joints, teeth, and hooves. Magnesium: is a must for the active horse. It helps recover its muscles after exercising.
Serving Size: An 1100lb adult horse in no work needs 10g of sodium daily. This can be met by giving about 1oz (2 tablespoons) of salt per day. The requirement increases to 41g of sodium for a horse in very heavy exercise, which is 4oz or 8 tablespoons, about ½ cup.
If your horse prefers the taste of sea salt or Himalayan salt over regular table salt, then that makes it a good choice. But know that at the end of the day they're all providing sodium chloride and one confers very little additional benefit over the other, and most are more expensive than regular table salt.
Most horses love it, and seem to prefer over any other option. This can be especially useful in the summer months when your horse is sweating and needs the extra sodium, or in the winter if you want to encourage drinking. It also contains small amounts of natural minerals and trace elements.
While horses do have a craving for sodium which will cause them to seek it out, few horses lick a block adequately enough to consume their daily requirement. A 500 kg horse needs to consume about a one kilo block of salt a month to be consuming its daily sodium requirement.
One of the main differences is that Epsom salt has no sodium and has more magnesium than Himalayan pink salt. Because of this, it's believed that Epsom salt baths can have a more calming effect helping sore muscles, itching, and sunburn. However, both forms of salt baths can contribute to a soothing experience.
An average 1,100 pound idle horse (not in work) requires: Minimum of 2 tablespoons (1 ounce/36 grams) of salt (sodium chloride) daily. Horses lose at least this amount daily in bodily fluids. Minimum requirement can increase 2 to 3 times in warmer weather.
In nature, salt exists in loose form, accumulating on rock surfaces and sediments near salt water sources. Wild horses often travel miles to find salt. They also obtain salt, and trace minerals simply by eating many types of plants, contrary to the same daily diet our horses experience.
The issues with salt deficiency or consuming too much salt
If the horse consumes too little salt, it can lead to digestive problems, listlessness, and performance deficits. An excess of salt may be noticeable through diarrhea, fecal water, and increased water intake.
There really is no need to seek out fancy salts for your horse, such as Himalayan salt or salt from some ancient dried-up seabed, when regular, iodized table salt or stock salt will provide exactly what your horse needs, which is sodium and chloride.
Improve digestion and balance PH levels in your horse
ACV can work as a natural anti-biotic, and can discourage parasites and water-borne diseases. Apple Cider Vinegar also contains anti-oxidants, which are vital to protect the horse's body from free radicals which can cause a lot of damage.
Himalayan lick salt is best for giving to your horses as it is 100% natural and provides essential minerals to their bodies. You can also add Himalayan salt to their regular feed or set up a mineral lick for them.
Horses rarely consume too much salt. However, salt toxicosis may occur when water is limited or unavailable. Horses who eat too much salt may exhibit signs of colic, diarrhea, frequent urination, weakness, and recumbency. In advanced cases, horses may eventually die.
Importance of Sodium
Conversely, providing adequate amounts of sodium during times of need, such as during high performance, hot summer or cold winter months, can stimulate the horse to drink more. When a horse sweats, he loses sodium and other electrolytes that will need to be replenished.
If your horses perform a modest level of work, they might need about 55 to 65 grams of sodium chloride per day, which is about four teaspoons of table salt. However, there is probably already salt in their grain mix, so check the nutrient contents on the label to determine just how much more you'll need to provide.
In addition to shade and a source of fresh water, every summer turnout space needs to have a salt block. Horses lose large amounts of the essential mineral in their sweat, and if it's not replenished, an electrolyte imbalance may develop, leading to low blood pressure or even neurological or cardiovascular problems.
Don't: Use molasses-sweetened salt blocks, as horses sometimes consume these like candy, even biting off choke-sized chunks. Do: Provide plenty of fresh, clean water (and never add salt to it). Sodium is the main electrolyte found in the blood and the fluid surrounding cells.
The anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties in Himalayan pink salt can reportedly help reduce the burning sensation in the neck that's caused by asthma. It may also help clear the respiratory tract, easing the main symptoms of asthma in the process.
Combining Epsom Salt and Pink Himalayan Salt creates a bath soak with the benefits of magnesium sulfate (from the Epsom Salt) plus the 84 trace minerals found in Himalayan Salt. If you'd really like to treat yourself, you can also add the wellness benefits of Essential Oils.
A good rule of thumb for how much salt to add to feed is a minimum of 10gms per 100 kgs live weight. For example if your horse weighs 500kg, he needs approximately 50gms of salt per day – this is approximately 2 heaped tablespoons. More if he is in hard work or sweats for any other reason.
Sodium chloride (NaCl) is required by every horse, every day, and more when exercise or climate/exercise dictates. The recommended dose for a 500 kg horse is one ounce per day, which is 1 level tablespoon (15 ml), twice daily or over 11,713 gm.
Without them, the horse can become weak and may collapse. Electrolyte supplements contain some NaCl, but not enough to meet your horse's daily need for salt. Consequently, if used, they should be given in addition to salt. They are not meant to replace salt.