What foods do horses enjoy eating?

Answer 1

a mint a month is a kind way to keep a horse happy, but don't give mints to them to often!

Horses like to eat hay and grain. Here is some info about grain and ration balancers.

When we think of feeding grain to horses we either think of straight oats, a sweet feed or a pelleted ration.

Sweet feed is an oat based feed that has corn and a vitamin mineral supplement added and molasses. Sometimes it has soy bean meal or other grains. Pelleted grains mixes are the same basic formula as sweet feed but the grain has been ground and processed into pellets. I know I am simplifying this and all brands are just a bit different but that is the basics. To make a "complete feed" the feed companies grind up some kind of roughage filler i.e. alfalfa, bean husks, corn stalks and add it to the grain.

Research has been done on the daily nutrient requirements for horses and analysis has been done on each product so they can do a scientific blend that fulfils all the daily nutrient requirements for horses. When feeding any type of grain (from now on I am going to refer to sweet feed, pelleted ration, and complete feed as "grain"), in order for your horse to get the proper amount of nutrients you must feet the recommended daily amount that is printed on the grain bag. Most feeds require you to feed approximately 1 to 2 pounds of grain a day per 100 lbs of body weight. Translated, this means most 1000 lb horses should be getting a MINIMUM of 10 pounds of prepared grain mix a day. How many of you actually follow the feeding instructions on the bag and feed the recommended amount? I would bet, not very many!! Right???

First of all is the cost factor, that means you are feeding a LOT of grain every day and then most horses will start looking like whales if fed those amounts. Don't forget that an average horse requires 2% of their body weight in hay/roughage/forage a day, so this 10 plus pounds of grain is always in addition to the 20 plus pounds of hay they consume. So, because we don't want a bunch of really porky horses running around we feed them reduced amounts. The really easy keepers get a couple cups and the harder keepers get a couple pounds and the ones that are worked really hard or are very hard keepers may or may not get up to the 10 plus pounds that are recommended. When we reduce the amount of grain fed, we are reducing calories but we are also reducing the amount of nutrients they are getting. If we feed like this for a while then their system becomes depleted in some vitamins and minerals and it starts showing in hair coats and hooves. With broodmares it can show up with babies with growing developmental problems.

Ration balancers are the answer to the above. You can feed your horse the recommended amount so they get all the nutrients required and you don't break the bank feeding them. Ration balancers are basically a vitamin mineral mix in a protein base. They are designed to be fed in the 1 pound to 2 pound range per day. When you first see the small amount you feed, it really does look like you are trying to starve your horse but they are getting all the necessary nutrients. Most of our horses manage very well on 2 lbs of ration balancer and grass hay a day. If one needs to put on a bit of weight then we add oats for calories, or you can add oil or buy one of the prepared fat supplements on the market. The ration balancer always stays constant and we just adjust the oats/oil depending on fitness level and body condition. A bag of ration balancer in Canada (depending on who makes it) runs between $15.00 and $25.00 so if you think of feeding 1 pound vs. 10 lbs the dollar savings is tremendous.

Since we have switched to feeding a ration balancer and our horses are now getting their proper amount of nutrients - rather than being fed only part when we were feeding a regular grain - manes and tails and feet are much stronger.

All feed companies have a nutritionist on staff and you can either call them or e-mail for any feeding help you need. If you want to get more in-depth you can buy the book called Feeding and Care of the Horse by Lon D Lewis. It has charts of breakdown of nutrients of all grains and hays. Our nutritionist said it was the textbook he used in school. We have our hay tested to check for any deficiencies so we can make sure they are addressed immediately.

One note that is important about feeding in general. Alfalfa hay has a high calcium to phosphorus ratio. Oats are high in phosphorous. Most grass hays have a good calcium phosphorous ratio. If you are feeding grass hay and oats you do not have a balanced diet, if you are feeding straight alfalfa you do not have the correct balance. Ed made us a spread sheet and we transfer all these numbers into it to always check and make sure everything looks OK.

About growing babies. There is two schools or thought, one says babies cannot digest grain until 3 to 4 months of age so should be fed milk based pellets and the other says they can digest it. I don't know which is correct but to be on the safe side we bought the milk based vitamin mineral fortified baby food pellets and feed the recommended amount based on age and weight. Babies are prone to growing problems, so keep a careful watch on their legs. If tendons become tight and the baby starts rocking back and forth on their knees you need to address this. By rocking I don't mean after they have ran and played and their legs are tired but normally standing. Also, watch carefully for any signs of epiphysitis, which is an unnatural increase in the size of joints, starting with ankles. This is caused from babies growing quickly but not having enough nutrients in their diet to support the growth.

A lot of vets do not understand the principals of nutrition and will tell you to starve the baby. This is absolutely WRONG but that myth still continues. What you need to do is decrease calories but increase vitamins and minerals. Both Buckeye Feeds and Progressive Nutrition have a foal product that you give to add extra nutrients to support growth. There are other companies that make a similar product but I can't give you names. Another problem some babies have is a lack of copper in their diet and there is a product called Copperquine that addresses this problem.

Most feed companies are now making their version of a ration balancer. In order to find which product, just ask them for a grain that you only have to feed a pound or two a day.

We also feed, free-choice, a mineral mix that does not contain salt. We feed plain loose salt, free-choice in a separate bucket. The reason for splitting these up is that if a horse needs minerals or salt then they can eat the one that is necessary for their body. We use loose products rather than blocks because it is difficult for them to get the amount needed by licking.

Horses love to eat a lot of things. Carrots, Apples, peperment candies (although they aren't good to give a lot to them), and oats with molasses are said to be among the favorite treats of a horse. But most everday horses are fed hay. It is often different for every horse. If a horse does no like something, he may stick his head high and refuse to eat/stiff it.

Answer 2

Answer. Well if the horse is to pasture and the owners are not feeding it because there is enough grass in the pasture then he horse will eat when ever he is hungry. but if the owner feeds the horse every day then the horse will eat once in the morning and once at night.(you can also feed the horse oncein the afternoon also but not every one does that)

Answer 3

Horses like to eat a somewhat varied diet, but they typically are happiest when on fresh grass as this is what they evolved to eat. Some horses prefer different varieties of grass to others and will try to select those grasses when available. Hay is a close second and again, horses will have a preference of which type they like best.

Grains and hard feeds are generally liked by all horses, but are not always the healthiest choice.

Treats of various kinds are almost never turned away from except for the pickiest of horses. Bananas, apples, carrots etc are always a welcome addition to the diet, but should never be fed in large quantities.

Answer 4

An adult horse should eat between 1.5-3.5% of it's body weight a day. That comes out to roughly 15-35 lbs for an average 1,000 lb horse.

Answer 5

Every horse eats grass/hay. Ocasionally grain and treats like that!! All horses eat grass/hay. Ocasionally grain and treats

Answer 6

High energy food, as they are mainly thoroughbreds they can loose and gain weight quickly so it needs to be maintained. they often eat specially designed feed which releases energy slowly.

Answer 7

HORSES USUALLY EAT HAY

Answer 8

so that they can go fast