I have never heard of Se causing liver issues before you’d see other obvious things like feet cracking at the coronet band and mane/tail falling out.
[QUOTE=JB;4325843]
I have never heard of Se causing liver issues before you’d see other obvious things like feet cracking at the coronet band and mane/tail falling out.[/QUOTE]
It may have had nothing to do with the selenium, but the vets told the owners that all the horses with similar conditions they had seen were also on a selenium supplement of some kind. 
Most horse feeds have selenium added. It’d probably be more difficult to find one without than not.
yep, you’re hard-pressed to find fortified feeds without about 1mg of Se per serving (which is usually in the 5lb range, give or take).
Even most vit/min supps have 1mg, maybe 1/2.
Exceptions would be locally milled fortified feeds in areas that are Se-rich, and commercial products that have some different formulations based on the area of the country, so product made in an Se-rich area isn’t likely to have added Se.
My mare would not eat the Vitamin E powdered supplement which cost about 100.00 for the tub of it,
So my vet friend told me to use the softgels and throw 4 in her food, she likes the 400 IU ones, she friends the horses eat them and it is less expensive than the powdered formulas.
Here is a very excellent source of up to date scientific information on vitamin E in equines. I urge everyone to bookmark it. It gives the doses, sources and everything.
Keep in mind that it is easy to overdose a horse with seleneium so if you need a high dose of vitamin E, get one that is just E.
I supplemented my mare with Elevate powder for about 6 months, but then switched to human softgels of natural Vit E from www.vitacost.com (250 gelcaps for $29.99). Her muscle soreness seemed to improve after switching to the gelcaps and she eats them right up no problem. She gets 1 1000 IU gelcap in the AM and PM feed. Oh- and I do know of horses in my barn that were Vit E, but not Se deficient (though we are in a Se low area).
Here is some scientific information on vitamin E deficiency illnesses and treatment from the University of Minnesota.
STH1
I was just told my horse needs Vit E by our Vet. Read some stuff from these posts and am worried about too much Selenium. Just wondering what is safe amount. I would have thought my Vet would have said something or issued a warning about the selenium. BTW…the Vet gave me a coupon for $ off the E sup they sell. Odd, I thought…
An average full size horse should not consume more than 3mg of selenium a day from all available feed and supplement sources. So I would look for an E and Se supplement that provides about 1mg per daily serving. You do need some selenium in your horse’s diet, because the body needs it in order to absorb and synthesize the vitamin E. No matter which brand you decide to go with (whether the one your vet recommends or another), definitely go with natural E, as it is far more bio-available than the synthetic. If you’re unsure, natural E is d-alpha tocopherol. Synthetic is dl-alpha tocopherol. Depending on how many IU of E your vet has recommended, your cheapest bet may be to simply buy the human caplets from Walmart. They are perfectly safe for horses, but if your horse is a picky eater, he may sift them out and leave them in the bucket. Good luck and hope this helps!
Good info here. I have been giving my horse Elevate WS (oil) for vitamin E and then adding a store brand e+ Selenium supplement. Then I found out Elevate Se is available in Canada and I have been switching him over gradually. However in order to get the same vitamin E dose in the powder he’s been getting in the oil, he would also be getting 4mgs of Se per day. Sounds like that’s too high? I might have to use a combination of the oil and powder then.
I have my 21 y.o. gelding on Vitamin E and Selenium from HorseTech.com. It is natural vitamin E balanced correctly with selenium yeast in a ground flax base. He licks the bucket dry. HorseTech is a fantastic company to do business with. Their customer service is over the top. Free shipping, free cookies, and they also do custom mixes if you so desire.
[QUOTE=STH1;8555272]
I was just told my horse needs Vit E by our Vet. Read some stuff from these posts and am worried about too much Selenium. Just wondering what is safe amount. I would have thought my Vet would have said something or issued a warning about the selenium. BTW…the Vet gave me a coupon for $ off the E sup they sell. Odd, I thought…[/QUOTE]
If a horse needs E, he needs E, and that can be given without Se. If he needs E, I’d be looking at 2000IU/day and then re-testing in a month or 2 to see where the level is then. I’d be testing Se too, because if E is low, Se might be as well.
I get Vitamin E from this source:
http://www.scbt.com/datasheet-395630-ultracruz-equine-vitamin-e.html
Not too pricey and the horses eat it readily.
[QUOTE=vtshale;6556374]
I supplemented my mare with Elevate powder for about 6 months, but then switched to human softgels of natural Vit E from www.vitacost.com (250 gelcaps for $29.99). Her muscle soreness seemed to improve after switching to the gelcaps and she eats them right up no problem. She gets 1 1000 IU gelcap in the AM and PM feed. Oh- and I do know of horses in my barn that were Vit E, but not Se deficient (though we are in a Se low area).[/QUOTE]
Dumb question before I go buy some of those… lol My horse is currently on 4 scoops (4000IU) of Elevate daily for some neuro issues and he’s also a very picky eater, he’s not a fan of powder in his feed. Do you know the dosage for one soft gel?
