Hi Kate,

To be clear, I'm not discounting your personal experience. Our role is to communicate to the members here the best scientific evidence we know to be true. e.g., "Members and volunteers work to be clear as to solid scientific or medical evidence versus personal theory, observation, or experience in case-by-case support." Currently, there is not enough scientific or medical evidence (or physiologic explanation; there are no magnesium transporters in skin) to support transdermal therapy over oral. There is some evidence that magnesium can be absorbed through hair follicles and/or sweat glands - the horse may have an advantage over humans in this department - but it's pure speculation. There are no studies in horses

The point is that we (ECIR group), have an obligation to readers to point out that this is your personal experience and that there are no studies in horses to showing the effectiveness of transdermal magnesium therapy. If owners want to try it, there is probably no harm, but it should not replace oral dietary supplementation. I know you didn't suggest this, but you'd be surprised how suggestions can get misinterpreted; note the two posts in just the amount of time it took me to write this.
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Kathleen (KFG in KCMO)

Director and Research Advisor, ECIR Group Inc.

Missouri, USA, 2005

https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=3-I7UI0AAAAJ