>supplements for sweetitch" I've seen many horses & humans recover quite nicely from skin issues/auto immune reactions by adding freshly ground flax seed to the daily diet along with some herbal/homeopathic support. Horses seem to do well with 4 oz 1-2 x's daily with humans at about 1-2 tbls. daily. Sometimes a deficiency of EFA's contribute to the whole SE label. The added benefits are beautiful gleaming , shiny coat & more hormonal balance in mares/human females. Also helps with elimination problems like constipation/low bowel motility in humans.
Flax starts to oxidize very quickly after grinding, so refrigerate only what you can use within a few days. The refrigerated oil from the HF store is also good, but some don't like the taste. The capsule form can be rancid, so avoid..the same with any of the horse products that say they can stabilize flax..not possible. A simple $12.95 coffee grinder from Wal Mart/K-mart is a handy, low cost way to grind the seeds. Hilton Herbs also has 2 herbal equine products for skin/auto-immune available through Chamisa Ridge. The horses with a crabbier, more irritable temperment that also have skin issues usually are much improved in disposition/skin issues after ta short course of an liver cleanse herbal formula called Milk Thistle Plus followed by Chamisa Ridge- Healthy Coat or Hilton -Top Coat . Wendals Herbs "Stop Itch" is another formula that is a blood purifier/kidney-liver cleanse of safe North American Herbs that stops skin itching & heals coat issues from the inside out. In Traditional Chineses Medicine, skin issues/itching, susceptibility to insect bite reactions has it's basis in what they call "Heat in the Blood" stemming from an over taxed Liver with secondary Kidney involvement in the TCM sense. The crabbiness-irritibility (often labeled "just the way they are") is often the effect of a chronically overloaded Liver along with sensitivity to sound & touch esp near the flanks. I've personally seen many animals & humans "temperment" improve dramitically once the system was balanced from the inside out with a combo. of acupuncture/acupressure with appropriate herbs or homeopathy. Many holistic veterninary practitioners think that overuse of wormers/ exposure to other chemicals topically or internally exacerbate the condition. Kaaren
