Chia Seeds - for Horses and Humans

Sarah told me during Saturday’s lesson that she would like me to add Chia seed to Grace’s diet. I had to agree with her when she pointed out that Grace is looking a little “waspy”. No ribs are showing and she looks good but she has a waistline. Grace’s coat is also not a shiny as it could be – this happens every spring, the winter coat is almost ready to let go, but not quite. The result is a fluffy washed out coat especially on her neck. Sarah explained that Chia seed are a great source of omega 3 and omega 6 plus they form a gel in the stomach which helps with ulcers. While I don’t have veterinary evidence that Grace has ulcers I do know that spring is the hardest season for her. The weather is warm and sunny one day, cold, wet and nasty the next day. I’ve noticed some of the old symptoms crop back up when I treated Grace for ulcers in the past; gaping her mouth before her morning feeding and more touchy when I first start to brush her. I’ve put her back on Dynamite Miracle Clay last week which has done wonders in the past, chia seeds sound like the perfect addition.

My feeding program was adopted from the woman I bought Grace from and by advice from Sarah. Whenever I take advice from a fellow horseperson I always look at their horse’s first. If I like what I see I am more inclined to consider their advice. When I met Penny’s horses, many of which had not been worked in several years I had to ask her what she was doing. Her horses were beautiful, vibrant, shiny and all seemed to have good muscle tone. She pointed out that it wasn’t what she did as much as what she did not do. She didn’t feed her horses anything that she would not mind eating herself. You know that feeling when you come across a really nice bale of hay – one that is so good and clean that you could eat it yourself? That is what she was talking about. She fed her horses the best quality clean hay (Eastern Washington orchard grass) she could buy, dry C.O.B. (no fillers or molasses to cover it up) and top quality chelated supplements as needed (Dynamite products). I’ve tried feeding Grace locally grown hay from Western Washington and it just never works out. She either leaves most of it behind or starts coughing from the local molds. The local hay looks nice and clean, but it never truly dries out enough like the hay from the East side does. The Eastern Washington hay costs more, but in the end she wastes less, doesn’t cough and looks better. I’ve also fed her dry C.O.B and Dynamite supplements for years now. Just like Penny everything in Grace’s diet is food I wouldn’t mind eating myself.

This brings me back to the chia seeds. After researching the benefits for both humans and equines I decided to try them myself. For the last three days I’ve added a tablespoon to yogurt twice a day. The first result I noticed was an almost instant change in my skin. The skin on my face tends to be very acidic and sensitive to everything. Just looking at makes it red and blotchy. On the first day I could feel my skin loosen up and become softer. With each day it is more hydrated and even smoother. Today I cannot stop touching my hair. It feels like silk, I can feel the oils from the root to the tip and I haven’t changed any of my hair care products. I swear I can breathe better today, which is odd because I had no idea that I wasn’t breathing well. And the BEST part – I’m not hungry at all. I just picked up a green salad for lunch and I’m not sure if I will be able to finish it. My blood sugar levels have never been this steady, I usually crave chocolate and sweets throughout the day especially when I get home. I’ve had zero interest in sweets for the last two days and I seem to actually want to drink water during the day.

I’m now looking for the best price for organic chia seeds online – it looks like if I purchase 25 pounds I can bring my per pound price from over $9.00 closer to $7.00. Grace is eating 2 ounces a day and I seem to be holding steady at 2-3 tablespoons a day. I wonder what else she's eating that I could benefit from?