Make your own Supplements?/Digestion thread

[HollyLolly]

Hi everyone!
I was just wondering if it's possible to make your own supplements?
I'm looking to buy a horse who has coliced before, so I was going to (if I get gim) start him on a supplement to aid his digestion, to prevent it happening again.

I was looking, and it states the ingredients:
Slippery Elm, Marshmallow root, Meadowsweet herb, Cramp Bark stem bark, Milk Thistle seed, Liquorice root, Gotu Kola leaf

And a slightly different one, but similar (by the same people - Hilton Herbs):
1:3 tinctures of – Milk Thistle seed, Dandelion root, Burdock root, Cleaver herb, Nettle leaf, Liquorice root, Dandelion leaf with Apple Cider Vinegar & Honey.

I've had a look, all these I can source for way cheaper, and some - like nettle leaves - I can source in my own field (obviously I'd dry them myself, so they're nicer to be eaten).

-Do you guys think it's possible to make these supplements myself?
-Have any of you tried it?
-Anything that I need to know that could be dangerous (for example, would I have to boil a particular ingredient for it to be safe - something like that - I've not heard anything like that about any, just an example)?
-Does anyone know any rough measurements/ratios that I could use?

Obviously, it wouldn't hurt for me to just buy them ready mixed if the worst comes to the worst. But, if there's a chance of me being able to get the same things for cheaper (and it being safe & do-able) then I'm game. If you guys think this is risky in any way, please let me know, the last thing I want to do is put any horse at risk just to protect my pocket a little (plus, if it caused a vet bill, it would do the darn opposite anyway!)

Many thanks,
Holly

[rookie]

I would be speculative of supplements to aid in digestion. I just worry that you could inadvertently cause colic. I am not a fan of supplements so take this with a grain of salt. I would wonder why and what kind of colic the horse had. If the horse has gas colic that's different than impaction or twist colic. Which is also different from colic that's the result of ulcers. I know some people who use sand ease or metamucil for sand colic. I think I would try to figure out what kind of colic the horse has and in what situation then you can work on prevention.

[HollyLolly]

Apparently he was not fed enough hay (by a long shot), so when he ran out, his stomach stopped - in layman's terms (they're supposed to eat pretty much constantly as I think everyone on this site knows) which is what caused the colic.

I just wouldn't like it to every happen again, so on top of his 24/7 grazing, hay, water, AM/PM feeds (that all my horses get) I was thinking the supplements would be just another measure to stop it happening again (that's just what I figured, but I'm not as knowledgeable as a lot of people on here - which is why I like this forum, everybody has a little bit of knowledge that somebody may not know; it's great)