Mares and Hormonal Balance
Answered by: Kerry Hackett
Question from: Lisa Shortt
Posted on: February 21, 2008

I’m trying to find some alternative remedies to "Regumare" and such. I have several clients asking about raspberry leaf for their mares that have PMS symptoms.. What would you recommend and what dosage should be used?

I see Regumare contains "extracts of Chaste Berry, Chinese Angelica and other hormonal balancing herbs in apple cider vinegar". PMS-like symptoms in horses (or humans!) can be due to many different reasons so it’s best first off to make sure with a veterinarian the true cause of the mare’s condition. If you are looking at hormonal balance, then Chaste Tree berry (Vitex agnus-castus) can be employed as it works to balance the hypothalamic-pituitary axis and thus regulate hormonal levels. However, as all mares are different, Vitex may not be a quick fix as you may not see any changes for at least a month. It may be given as 15 grams herb per day between two feedings. If you haven’t seen any changes by the end of two months, Vitex may not be the right herb for that particular mare in that particular instance.

If you are dealing specifically with irritability, you might want to look at the use of flower essences. Do try Impatiens, Beech, Vervain, Vine, Willow and Holly flower essences at 10 to 15 drops of each essence per day in the mare’s water. Flower essences can have a profound effect on emotional stability and are certainly worth a try in this case.

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