Agnus-castus berries are also known as Chasteberry or Monk's Pepper.
Pegasus Health supplies carefully-sourced, high-quality Agnus-castus berries ground into a powder which can be easily added to your horse’s feed making the benefits of its natural properties available quickly.
Many owners speak of the fast-acting benefits of feeding Agnus-castus to their horses. They say it can control aggressive and uncooperative behaviour in horses. It can also relieve any discomfort experienced by mares in season and helps them to have regular cycles.
Agnus-castus for horses is also believed to maintain good quality sperm in stallions and provide a sense of well-being and calmness. It has also been shown to have an antibacterial effect which can eliminate many harmful infections.
Mares can suffer from what are effectively pre menstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms before and during their season making them stroppy, irritable, difficult to handle and difficult to ride. It is estimated that around 10% of mature mares will get seasonal symptoms like these that affect their performance and their - and their owner’s - enjoyment of life.
Vitex agnus-castus for horses, given just before a mare's season begins and then continued throughout each season, can have a beneficial effect on the horse's temperament. Many owners testify that it has helped control aggressive and unsociable behaviour caused by PMS and hormone imbalance, sometimes with very swift results.
Vitex agnus-castus - to give the herb its botanical name - is a large aromatic shrub that originated in southern Europe and produces small white or lilac flowers in summer. It grows along the banks of rivers in Mediterranean and Central Asiatic valleys. It also grows in the dry and rocky terrain of the Italian and Greek coastlines.
After flowering and pollination, Agnus-castus develops small, hard, dark berries, about the size of peppercorns, which are dried and then crushed to produce powder. It is part of the vervain family of plants.
Agnus-castus and Cushing’s diseaseCushing's disease is named after American surgeon Harvey Cushing who first identified the condition in humans in 1932. The disease was subsequently discovered in a number of animals including dogs and horses.
Equine Cushing's disease is caused by a benign tumour which grows in the pea-sized pituitary gland near the base of the brain.
Despite its small size, the pituitary gland controls and regulates many body functions through the hormones it produces and secretes.
One of the first symptoms of Cushing's disease to emerge is often excessive thirst and urination. Horses might go through as much as 80 litres of water a day instead of the normal 20 to 30 litres. Another obvious external symptom is when a horse or pony grows long, coarse, wavy hair that does not shed in the summer. This happens in more than 85% of cases of Cushing's disease.
Other symptoms include:
- Excessive sweating
- Lethargy and depression
- Chronic laminitis
- A pot-bellied appearance and abnormal fat distribution
- Muscle loss - especially along the topline and rump
- Increased susceptibility to internal parasites
- A suppressed immune system and the failure of any wounds to heal at the normal rate
In advanced cases the tumour may eventually press on the optic nerve, which lies close to the pituitary, causing blindness.
There is
no cure for Cushing's disease - though the symptoms can be managed - and many owners consider it to be an 'old horse' disease. It is true that many horses start to suffer with Cushing's disease around 19 years of age, but cases have also been diagnosed in horses and ponies younger than 10 years old.
Drugs are available to reduce symptoms and ease the condition, but many owners have reported great results by using the herb Agnus-castus for horses.
In recent years the Laminitis Trust carried out a trial on some 120 horses and ponies to study the use of
Vitex Agnus-castus on cases of equine Cushing's disease. They found that all owners reported improvement in some areas with their horses becoming more active and less depressed. Many also shed the excess hair they had been carrying.
Owners reported that their horses became more energetic and interested in their surroundings, were less depressed and began to enjoy life again.
One horse in the trial, whose owner described it as ‘dangerously aggressive’, was said to have shown a marked improvement within a month of starting to receive
Vitex agnus-castus.
Similarly, the UK Horse Journal ran a trial on
Vitex agnus-castus involving 10 horses and ponies aged between 13 and 25 who had either diagnosed with Cushing's or were showing obvious symptoms.
The Journal reported that the typical response of the horses and ponies studied was “rapid and dramatic.” Shedding of the excess hair began within three weeks on average and energy levels quickly rose. High blood glucose and insulin levels dropped, in some cases, within four to six weeks.
Historical uses of Vitex agnus-castusVitex agnus-castus has been used in herbal medicine since at least the 4th Century B.C. to relieve symptoms associated with human female hormonal imbalances such as menstrual cramps, mood swings and water retention. It is also said to re-balance hormones and increase milk production.
By around 900 AD
Vitex agnus-castus was being widely used as a herbal medicine across the Middle East, especially in Egypt and Persia.
In the 16th century, under the names Chasteberry or Monk’s Pepper, it became popular with herbalists in England.
