I was sent this article from Equestrian Life (Thank you). It was written by a woman in the UK. When she states to feed ‘double cream’, she assumes we know what that means…
Well, not so, at least for me.
You see, at first, I was confused because I had no idea what Double Cream was and how I could acquire it. Truthfully, I still doubt you can get the full fledged, 48% fat ‘double cream’ like they sell in the UK – here… but I have been told that you can find something labeled “double cream” at Trader Joes, Whole Foods and I also found it on this link from Amazon. And, if you have a local dairy, ask them if they could provide for you 48% double cream.
Here is the definition of double cream:
Double cream is like whipping cream. The butterfat content of double cream is around 48%, which makes it less fatty than clotted cream, but more dense than American whipping or heavy cream.
Double cream is a dairy product often found in Britain and Europe. It is extremely dense, rich cream that whips easily and can be used in an assortment of desserts and foods. Working with the thick cream can be difficult, as it separates when beaten too much and has a tendency to be very stiff. Generally, this product is called for in British recipes, while other types of cream are used in the Americas and other parts of the world.
The butterfat content of double cream is around 48%, which makes it less fatty than clotted cream, but more dense than American whipping or heavy cream. Single cream has an even lower fat content and is similar to half and half. The high fat content of double cream makes it an excellent addition to hot foods, since the fat acts as a carrier, making it less likely to separate. For this reason, it is often used in things like creme caramel or in hot sauces.
When milk is initially collected at the dairy, it is centrifuged to extract various products. Originally, milk was allowed to stand and separate, but centrifuging is much faster and safer. Prolonged centrifuging will result in higher butterfat, creating double cream. Unfortunately, the high butterfat can also be a problem, as is the case when this cream is whipped too long and starts to turn into butter.
The issue is that in most states in the USA, it is illegal to sell non-pasturized anything. Double cream is non-pasturized.
(I did contact the author of the below article, and I asked her what she has told readers from the US about how to acquire double cream… I will let you know if I hear back.)
OK, so, if you can get your hands on double cream when you need it, here is a very, very interesting finding out of the UK…
If I had known about this during Mama Tess’ life, I would have tried it for sure! Couldn’t hurt, could help!
A VERY INTERESTING STUDY FOR LAMINITIS OUT OF THE UK!
Click image to go to the original article
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By Susan Rogerson
The main laminitis season is here – the time when many horse owners start monitoring grass growth and checking their horse’s feet for signs of the dreaded disease.
I used to be one of those people. Now I no longer worry because I have found a simple, natural and highly effective treatment which stops the disease in its tracks – full-fat dairy cream. This might seem like a bizarre quack remedy, but the science behind it is compelling. My theory is that it works as an anti-inflammatory by lowering levels of prostaglandin E2 and leukotriene B4. I also believe it lowers thromboxane – a powerful vasoconstrictor. This theory is backed up by other published evidence. I have found it far more effective than bute, which often doesn’t work and can make the condition worse.
It was after a previous laminitic horse failed to respond to conventional veterinary treatment that I began to look for an alternative. After much research, close observation of my own horses and making connections to things I’d read about cheese, I formulated the dairy cream theory. Sadly, this horse died before I quite figured it out, but less than two years later my remaining horse got laminitis. He became my first guinea pig.
He was Obel grade three and reluctant to walk. I stabled him and fed him double cream in a bran feed with ad lib hay. The following morning he had already improved slightly. By day three he was walking easily. He was allowed out to graze for a short period each day and when I opened the stable door on the fifth day he trotted into the field with just a slight limp. I then turned him out 24/7 and he was completely sound within a few weeks. I didn’t give him any drugs or cryotherapy and his grass intake was only restricted for a few days.
The treatment was not completely without problems though. Initially, I fed the bran dry as I thought the combination of wet bran, lush spring grass and cream might give him diarrhoea. I also fed his usual broad-spectrum vitamin and mineral supplement. His droppings were normal but he did suffer mild tympanitic colic (gas). He also had fluid retention, drank twice his normal volume of water and urinated copiously. These side-effects were later alleviated by feeding the bran as a damp (but not soggy) mash and omitting the supplement.
After a second bout of laminitis that same year which was again successfully treated with double cream, my horse became sound and remained so for the next eight years. Then, in spring 2012, he had a third attack – the worst ever. Again the double cream worked – five days later he had only a slight limp. A friend then tried the cream on her pony, also with favourable results.
The full results have now been published in the journal ‘Open Science Repository Veterinary Medicine’, which is available open access. This paper includes a full discussion of my findings, along with references which support my theory. And since publication, two more horses have been successfully treated with double cream.
Unfortunately, despite my best efforts, the veterinary establishment is not interested. They have dismissed the idea completely without even bothering to test it out. So I am left in the frustrating position of having found a potential cure for laminitis, but having no way of validating it. Of course, that needn’t stop other horse owners from trying it out for themselves if they so choose. If it works on other horses then eventually the vets will have to sit up and take notice.
But here I must add a caveat. Laminitis is a serious and complex disease. If anyone wants to try the double cream treatment, but is inexperienced in dealing with the disease, or has any doubts at all, then it would be best to try it under the supervision of a vet – one who is open-minded enough not to dismiss the treatment out of hand – if such a creature exists!
Please also remember it is your decision. I am not a vet; I cannot legally (nor would want to) offer specific treatment advice for individual animals. All I can tell you is what worked for my horse and three others. Owners must decide for themselves whether double cream is an appropriate treatment for their own horse.
But if anyone does try it, please send me the results. If it cures enough horses then perhaps it will be accepted as a valid alternative to the current, hopelessly inadequate treatment.
My own horse has been laminitis free for over a year now. There is no guarantee that he won’t have another attack, but if he does I won’t be unduly worried. I’ll just put him back on the double cream.
For me, the fear and dread associated with laminitis has gone. It is my biggest hope now that other horses might also benefit, and that laminitis will lose its deadly grip over all of us.
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THANK YOU! I will post this. May I have a photo of your Shetland to go along with the article, please? Wonderful news!
Hi Susan
I wonder if you remember me. I wrote a few years ago about my falabella x shetland mini who had a really bad flare up of laminitis and tried your double cream remedy.
I live in France and the only cream available was a full fat but not double. It did help a little but he still had laminitis.
I sent for a liver supplement which helped push the sugars through the gut and that seemed to do the trick.
This year, he has had another lami attack and the liver tonic did not work. I remembered your experience and mine with the cream.
I decided to treat the root problem and gave him probiotics in raw (unpasteurised) fermented milk. This improved his condition but he was still lame. I then thought about the double cream which isn’t available in France so I gave him butter with the fermented milk and that seemed to do the trick. I occasionally gave him unpasteurised cheese. I kept this regime up for over a week. the difference was amazing.
Two days ago I noticed that we had left the butter so decided not to give him anymore. So far he is okay on short grass.
I have now opened the gates to a recently cut pasture that he can graze alongside the short grass pasture both meadow so has various herbs.
So far so good. I believe probiotic supplement, the fermented milk which has agricultural culture and is the whey which retains all the protein including every amino acid unadultered because it has not been heated and lumps of butter may have been the key to his recovery.
I fed him twice a day around 100ml of fermented milk with the probiotic supplements, butter and magnisium.
I believe that the probiotics would help his gut build his bacteria, the fermented milk would give him all the protein he needed especially with the amino acids which would help his immune system fight the inflammation by waking up the macrophage and the cream would also reduce inflamation.
I thought I’d let you know.
Kind regards,
Anne Main
From Susan Rogers who conducted the test. She is in the UK. You can contact her: Susanrogerson@outlook.com
I used 5 tablespoons cream per day on my 16.1 horse. My friend used 3 tbsp per day on her 12.2 – Nothing below that works.
Don’t know how that translates to ghee – never used it myself.
I fed it once a day in a cooled bran mash for 5 days the first time. When he got laminitis again when he was old, I fed 6 tablespoons until he was better and then left him on a very small maintenance dose. This worked for him.
I have also found out that you can get fresh organic whipping cream in US. There is a dairy in Wisconsin that does it – I expect there are others.
How much cream a day? Just once a day or every feeding? Thanks, louanne