Weaning doesn’t have to be a stressful event. The goal of weaning is to separate mare and foal with as little stress as possible as stress response at weaning can have lasting effects on both the foal and the dam.

Foals suffering from weaning stress have been shown to have decreased immune response for up to 40 hours following weaning. Weaning stress in foals can cause decreased food intake, lowered growth rate, and increased susceptibility to infectious diseases, gastric ulcers, and the risk of self-induced injury. Depending on the degree of stress and sickness, it may take foals several weeks to recover, especially if they have been injured. While most mares cope just fine with weaning, some will undergo a high level of stress when their foals are weaned.

Weaning is a key event in the breeding calendar, so ensure that you have adequately prepared for the event with some specific measures. Make sure the foal is in good health, accustomed to being handled (wearing a halter, leading, picking up feet), and eating a balanced diet. In addition to pasture and hay, foals should be fed a specially fortified creep feed from 90 days of age, building up their intake so that they are consuming about 0.5kg (1 lb) per month of age daily. Furthermore, make sure that all vaccinations and deworming treatments have been completed at least two weeks before weaning. The same goes for any corrective surgery.

Make sure that mare and foal’s surroundings following weaning are free of obstructions and protrusions that can cause injury. If at all possible, maintain the newly weaned foal in a constant and familiar environment and don’t plan any surgical or diagnostic procedures for at least two weeks after weaning.

No need to worry! Most foals will start eating solid feed and nibbling pasture in the first few days of life, but few drink water because their water requirements are being met by mare’s milk.

A research study of mares and foals on pasture reported that the youngest age a foal was observed to drink water was three weeks old, with some foals never observed to drink water until weaning.

With that said, you should always allow the mare and foal to have free access to fresh water. If a nursing foal drinks a lot of water or visits the water trough frequently (more than twice daily if the environmental temperature is less than 10° C [50° F] or more than every two to four hours if the temperature is 10-35° C [50°-95° F]), the foal probably isn't receiving enough milk. Inadequate milk consumption is also indicated by prolonged or excessive periods of nursing or by below-average weight gain.

During the first month of life, the foal should nurse three to seven times per hour, with each nursing bout lasting one or two minutes. Thoroughbred foals should gain 0.8 to 1.5 kg (2 to 3 lb) per day. We recommend regular weighing of growing horses, which will help you pick up on any issues, such as low milk production in the mare.

I understand your concern about mixing two products, and I am grateful that you have chosen to seek professional advice. These two products have different actions but will work together quite well. One side effect of probiotic use can be a decrease in fecal pH, and EquiShure raises pH. Beneficial bacteria thrive best in a more neutral pH, so I believe that EquiShure would be a good fit with the probiotic. (EquiShure can be purchased through Kentucky Equine Research by calling 888-873-1988 or visiting its online store.)

You do not mention whether your mare is still receiving the balancer pellet. Because she is receiving well below the recommended feeding rate of the low-starch feed, she still requires 1 lb (0.45 kg) per day to round out her diet.

The easiest way to tell if your horse is selenium deficient is with a blood test. To assess selenium status of a horse, concentrations can be measured in serum, plasma, or whole blood. You can coordinate with your local vet to have a sample taken and sent off for testing. Whole blood selenium levels are indicative of chronic levels of selenium intake, while serum and plasma levels are indicative of short term intake of selenium. The bigger question, if you're located in a selenium-deficient area, is whether or not your forage is providing enough selenium, and if not, is your fortified feed making up for the difference.

You can have your forage tested by sending a sample to a lab such as Equi-Analytical. The forage source most important to evaluate is the one that provides the majority of your horse’s forage intake. If your horse is maintained on pasture and that is the primary source of forage, follow the lab directions on collecting samples of grazed areas of the pasture. Alternatively, if local-grown hay provides the bulk of your horse’s forage intake, its selenium concentration will be more influential. Make sure you take a representative sample by collecting portions of hay from not just one bale but from different bales found in the load. The best method of obtaining samples is through the use of a specially designed tool, or forage sampler, that can core a bale. These instruments can be expensive, so if you don't have access to one, just do the best you can to get a representative sample. Your local extension agent might be able to help you with forage sampling and testing.

Once you know the nutritional composition of your horse’s forage, total daily selenium intake can be determined by multiplying the selenium concentration in the forage by the daily intake of forage and combining that with the amount supplied by your horse’s feed. Comparing this to the recommended daily intake for your horse will will let you know whether its requirements are being met or not. Then, you can formulate a plan to combat selenium deficiency, or prevent it from occurring.

Contact a qualified equine nutritionist for help if you encounter problems.

I do not know of any connection with fat intake and stomach cancer in horses. In fact, stomach cancer is extremely rare in horses. The horse's diet is very low in fat (usually less than 5%) in comparison to the diets of other species, and therefore fat is not a major component of equine diets.
 

Your new horse may just need more calories. There may have been some damage to his gastrointestinal tract from the neglect that would reduce his digestive efficiency. The simplest way to increase calories would be to feed more of the high-fat, high-fiber feed. He could easily be getting double the amount you are feeding without concern. You could try 8 lb  (3.6 kg) per day (4 lb or 1.8 kg per feeding), increasing the amount gradually, and see if that doesn't make a difference. By boosting feed intake, you are not just increasing the amount of beet pulp but also the oil and other calorie sources that are in the feed. The feed you’re using is relatively low in starch, so there’s no concern for starch overload. As soon as you get the horse to the weight you desire, then you can cut back on the amount so that he doesn't keep gaining weight. I would try this before complicating things.

Flaxseed is a great supplement for horses. If you decide to go with feeding additional flaxseed (there is some in the hoof supplement you’ve chosen), then realistically you probably won't be able to get the horse to eat more than 0.5 lb ( (0.2 kg) per day. That amount will not add many calories, but it will provide him with beneficial fats (omega-3). It can be fed whole, but you may find some coming through in the manure. Should you decide to feed ground flaxseed, make sure to grind it right before you feed it. You can find ground flaxseed in the market but check to see that it has been stabilized to keep the fats from becoming rancid.

Top-dressing with oil is simpler but messier. There is a limitation to the amount of oil a horse will tolerate in the feed, and the feed you’ve chosen is already high in fat. If you were to add more oil, you would want to keep it under one cup per day. Even though horses really prefer the taste of corn oil, we recommend that horse owners supplement with canola (preferred) or soybean oil to keep the omega-6:omega-3 fatty acid ratio in balance.

At six years old, there is nothing that can be done nutritionally to alleviate the OCD lesion in her hock. I would be skeptical of any supplement that claims it can make an OCD lesion disappear. Because the lesion cannot be cured, the focus should therefore be on preventing further joint issues and managing any problems that might arise, such as excessive inflammation, which may cause soreness.

I have performed a complete nutritional evaluation for your mare. Because you were able to tell me roughly what your mare consumes daily, this was easy to do using MicroSteed™, ration evaluation software developed by Kentucky Equine Research.

Starting with the hay, the timothy/orchardgrass mix works nicely for your mare. Estimating the amount she’s being fed at about 22-24 lb (10-11 kg) per day, it appears as though she is consuming our recommended minimum intake. You might offer her a little more hay, especially during winter.

Three-quarters quart of pelleted concentrate fed twice a day probably totals about 4 lb (1.8 kg) daily. Considering most feeds require that 6-10 lb (2.7-4.5 kg) be fed to meet all micronutrient requirements, you’ve chosen a multipurpose vitamin/mineral supplement to make up for the shortfall. Unfortunately, this specific supplement is not going to provide sufficient nutrients to compensate for the deficiency caused by underfeeding the concentrate.

If you are committed to feeding only about 4 lb (1.8 kg) per day, look around for a low-intake feed. Many manufacturers make these feeds specifically for horses with lower energy requirements, yet they provide all of the vitamins and minerals needed for health and well-being.

Alternatively, you can boost her vitamin and mineral intake by top-dressing her pelleted feed with a balancer pellet. Usually, these types of feeds are fed at a rate of 1-3 lb (0.45-1.4 kg) per day.

Regarding her supplements, you should discontinue the vitamin/mineral supplement if you're feeding a fortified feed at recommended levels or adding a balancer pellet.

Adding hyaluronic acid to her diet (we suggest Synovate HA) will help lubricate her joints. You also might consider adding a joint supplement containing glucosamine and chondroitin (make sure it contains both as they work better together than alone) such as KER-Flex.

The other big management consideration you'll face will be her metabolism. As a Danish Warmblood, she's going to be more prone to carry excess body weight than an average horse. I would suggest taking weekly full-body photos of her so that you can monitor her weight and body condition score. All of the feeds and feed types I have mentioned can be adjusted accordingly. If she starts getting heavy, cut back on her feed, even if you have to cut back all the way to just the balancer pellet (but increase the balancer accordingly). If she needs a bit more weight, add some more feed and discontinue the balancer pellet if need be. It's hard to notice subtle changes in body condition when you see her daily, so the weekly photos will help.

As far as turnout goes, I'm sure you've seen horses “stock up” when stall-bound. Stocking up refers to an accumulation of fluid in the lower legs, giving them a swollen look. If she's only getting three hours of turnout per day plus an hour or so of riding, you might make a special request for additional turnout time. Any extra time will help decrease inflammation just by being able to move around and increase blood flow to her lower extremities. Or, if you have lots of spare time, you could take her on a couple of 15-minute hand walks each day.

Beet pulp is an excellent addition for horses that cannot tolerate diets high in starch, like your mare diagnosed with insulin resistance. Because the beet pulp is a new addition to her diet, I would add it slowly, starting with 0.25 to 0.5 pound (113 to 226 grams) and increasing gradually until you reach the desired amount needed to maintain your horse's weight. The amount needed to maintain your horse in a desirable condition could range from one or two pounds per day, and perhaps as much as four pounds each day.

I would recommend soaking your beet pulp pellets for a couple of reasons. First, beet pulp pellets can be quite hard (much harder than other pellets) and soaking will soften them while allowing your horse to get used to the texture. Second, soaking the pellets will allow you to increase water intake in your horse (or at least give you some insurance for maintaining hydration), which can be a problem in cold climates.

The easiest way to keep a steady supply of soaked beet pulp pellets is to start soaking the pellets when feeding the previous meal of presoaked pellets. That will give the pellets ample time to break apart and absorb the water. Be sure to keep the beet pulp in an area that is not freezing, which may mean bringing it into the house if you do not have a heated feed room in the barn. If you are in a real hurry, the pellets can be covered with hot water and left to soak 30 minutes before feeding.

Of course, in addition to the beet pulp pellets, you should check that you’re providing between 1% and 2% of your mare’s body weight (12-24 lb for a 1200-lb horse, or 5.5-11 kg for a 550-kg horse) per day in good-quality hay. If in doubt, it’s best to feed more than you think you need, especially if you’re trying to maintain weight on a hard keeper or promote weight gain.

Additionally, you might want to slowly add up to a cup of oil to the diet (purchase generic “vegetable oil” at your local grocery store but make sure it's soy or canola) and supplement with a balancer pellet (fed at 1-2 pounds per day) or I.R. Pellet (fed at 120 grams per day) to ensure all of her nutrient requirements are being met.

I find it interesting that you chose lecithin as a calming supplement over other popular options such as magnesium or thiamin. I have found only one study that investigated the effect of lecithin on the disposition of horses. Although the researchers discovered an effect with the use of lecithin, they were actually feeding quite a lot of it. In the end, the researchers also were not sure if the effect they saw was due mostly to the fat in the diet or whether the lecithin had played a role.

In this study, the total diet of the horse was 10% fat (including the forage) and half of that fat was soy lecithin (either soy lecithin with corn oil or soy lecithin with soy oil). To give you an idea of how much lecithin that was, if a 1,100-lb (500-kg) horse is fed 2% of his body weight in feed each day, he would receive 22 lb (10 kg) of feed. If 10% of that is fat, it would be 2.2 lb (1 kg) of fat, and if half of that was lecithin, it would be 1.1 lb (0.5 kg). The horse would therefore consume over 1 lb (0.45 kg) of lecithin per day.

What the researchers do not say in the report was how difficult it was to get the horses to eat that much lecithin. In an earlier article published by the same research team, the scientists explained the strong preference of the horses for oil without lecithin over oil with lecithin. I was at the university when this research was being conducted and saw firsthand the difficulties involved in trying to keep horses on high-fat diets and trying to encourage the consumption of lecithin when pure corn oil tasted so much better.

There may be a solution to the dilemma of getting horses to eat lecithin. Lecithin used in the aforementioned research studies was derived from soybeans, but there is a significant amount of lecithin in flaxseed (linseed). It is much easier to get a horse to eat flax. Further, flax is rich in the omega-3 fatty acids that help moderate the inflammatory response in the horse.

There is no established recommendation for the amount of lecithin, but 0.5 to 1 lb  (0.25 to 0.45 kg) of flax seed per day should be adequate to test the premise that it will have an effect on the reactivity of the horse. Flax can be fed whole (horses can digest whole flax better than humans) or ground immediately before feeding. It is not a good idea to leave ground flax lying around because it oxidizes rapidly, destroying the beneficial fats. Stabilized ground flax is available and may be a convenient alternative.

A short article about lecithin appears here.

Once senior horses have lost enough molars to make chewing difficult, it becomes increasingly complicated to get forage into them. Their need for forage does not diminish. However, old horses are sometimes unable to break down forages in small enough particles to be digested by the microbial population or keep them from getting lodged in places, causing choke or impaction colic.  

Fortunately, there are forages that are ground fine and do not require chewing. The caveat is that these forages usually come pelleted. If fed dry, these can cause a horse to choke because the horse doesn’t have sufficient teeth to break apart the pellets. Forage pellets or hay pellets can be soaked until they fall apart and make a mush. Hay pellets are typically made of either alfalfa or grass hay, and a horse can meet his forage requirement by consuming them.  

Senior feeds typically include some ground forage plus some type of ground roughage, like beet pulp and soy hulls, to help senior horses with teeth problems get adequate fiber in the diet. While senior feeds can be fed alone, manufacturers usually recommend that they be fed with some hay. For horses with dental problems, this is where additional hay pellets come in handy. The hay pellets and senior feed can be fed as one mash.

Re-Leve may be a high-fiber product, but it is made with a special process that allows it to have high amounts of fat incorporated into the pellets. This is what makes it effective for use with horses that have issues handling starch, like horses with polysaccharide storage myopathy. Re-Leve was not formulated to be a standalone complete feed like senior feeds and should always be fed with forage of some type. If you feel that your horse would benefit from a product like this, I would recommend it be used with hay pellets and not fed alone.

Also called locking stifles, “sticky stifles” are caused by upward fixation of the patella and occurs when the medial ligament catches over the end of the femur and does not release. Horses can stand for long periods of time without lying down because they can lock the stifle in one leg and relax the other leg so standing requires less muscular effort. A malfunction in the release of this mechanism leads to locked stifles.

The traditional method of treatment for locking stifles is cutting of the medial patella ligament so it is no longer able to catch over the end of the femur. This procedure is no longer recommended. Though long considered useful, the technique often results in complications.  Other veterinary techniques such as splitting the ligament or injection of irritants are now more popular treatments.

Measures to increase muscle strength (particularly of the quadriceps muscles), improved body condition, and corrective shoeing are important strategies before considering veterinary intervention, including surgery, for the more severe cases.

In mild cases, exercise has been recommended to strengthen muscles and resolve the problem. The aim is to improve the muscle tone of the quadriceps and hence tension in the patellar ligaments, to achieve stability, and to reduce the laxity in the medial patella ligament. In younger horses, this may be achieved by simply increasing work that develops the hindquarter musculature, especially the quadriceps. Controlled hill work is one way of doing this.

Corrective shoeing goals include encouraging hoof rotation by trimming the inside wall or applying a lateral heel wedge, and promoting medial breakover by rounding the medial aspect of the toe of the hoof or shoe.

In one study looking at the success rate of various treatments, 40% of horses with locking stifles showed complete recovery, and 20% had marked improvement following corrective shoeing.  Another 10% of affected horses showed improvement when corrective trimming was combined with weight gain and exercise.

There are reports of young affected horses showing no further signs after gaining 55-100 lb (25-50 kg). This is thought to relate to enlargement of the fat pad behind the patella. Therefore, the nutritional goal is to feed calories in excess of daily requirements so the horse gains weight. Care must be taken not to feed in a way that predisposes to hindgut acidosis, colic, or laminitis.

With appropriate changes to hoof care, exercise, and body condition, many cases of stifle lock will resolve, but others require veterinary treatment.  Seek advice from an experienced veterinarian.

Because your mare is part Appaloosa, I can’t help but feel like the appearance of the white hairs may have something to do with her breeding. The fading coat is another common phenomenon among horses that live outside, especially in sunny climates like Florida. 

There can be a correlation between low copper or zinc in the diet and bleaching of the coat.  However, on review of the mare’s diet, it does not look like she is suffering from a shortage of either. 

Let me go through how I came up with how much of each mineral she is consuming in her diet.  The balancer pellets has 200 mg/kg copper and 400 mg/kg zinc; the sweet feed has at least 50 mg/kg copper and 200 mg/kg zinc, and the bahia grass has an average of 6 mg/kg copper and 24 mg/kg zinc. 

The Kentucky Equine Research (KER) recommended daily allowance for a 1200-lb (550-kg) horse in light work is 143 mg copper and 429 mg zinc. Feeding 1.5 lb of balancer pellet, 1.5 lb of sweet feed, and 22 lb of bahia grass reveals your mare is consuming on a daily basis approximately 227 mg copper and 540 mg zinc, both exceeding the recommended daily allowance. 

The best resource for the nutrient composition of feeds is the online feed libraries provided by Dairy One Forage Labs at www.dairyone.com or www.equi-anlaytical.com.

You will see there can be a massive range in the sugar content between different samples and the labs don’t tend to classify grass by species, as often they have no way of verifying if the classification is correct.

Generally, later cuts of hay are usually more fibrous with lower sugar and protein content. Grass that is more mature when it is cut for hay will also show the same trends. Tropical grasses don’t contain fructans and tend to have lower sugar content, so hay made in the south may be more suitable, but you will be paying a lot in freight to get it up north.

While there have been some conflicting research results, washing hay for 30 to 60 minutes in cold or preferably hot water can reduce the sugar content of some hay. This method can be used if you can’t get safe hay for your horses.

There are a number of other articles on www.Equinews.com relating to hay selection, variables that affect sugar content, and laminitis risks.

A nutrient is any constituent that is necessary to support life, and in the horse, these fall under several headings: water, protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals. The most vial nutrient is water. A horse can survive for weeks without food, but only days without water. Thus water is the most important nutrient for survival. However, I’m assuming that most horse owners are well aware of the importance of water and allow their horses free access to fresh, clean water at all times. You will notice that energy is not listed, because energy is not a nutrient, but is provided by the nutrients – specifically carbohydrates, fats, and to a lesser extent protein.

The other nutrient classes cover specific nutrients that are all essential to support life. Proteins are made up of chains of amino acids, some of which must be supplied in the diet and are therefore termed essential amino acids. These include lysine, arginine, and methionine. The challenge for horse owners is to choose a feed that supplies good-quality protein in the diet so that all necessary amino acids are available for the synthesis and repair of body tissue, enzymes, and hormones.

Carbohydrates are the major energy source for horses and consist of two main types: Structural carbohydrates, which include fibre (forages, beet pulp, etc.), and nonstructural carbohydrates, which include starch and sugars found in grain. Fats are also a source of energy in horses but are also required for various metabolic functions including as carriers for fat-soluble vitamins and precursors for the production of hormones.  

The list of vitamins and minerals numbers in the dozens, and a deficiency of any will likely result in poor health and reduced performance. Interestingly, for deficiencies in many of the vitamins and minerals the horse may not exhibit any symptoms and thus the only true method to determine if a diet is deficient it to have a nutritionist perform a complete diet analysis, including analysis of forage sources, grain, concentrates, and supplements.

Mineral balance in the diet is as important as the amount provided and the ratios of several minerals must be taken into account when planning a ration.

In summary, there is no one nutrient that is more important than another with regards to deficiency, but rather all nutrients must be provided in the diet at the correct amount for each specific horse. Balancing the nutrients supplied in the forage, grain, feed, and supplements is a key component to a healthy, well-performing animal. If you are unsure if your horse’s diet is meeting his requirements, talk to an equine nutritionist for diet advice.

I am sorry to hear about the laminitis, but it sounds like your horse has bounced back quite well.  It is a long, slow process to grow out the damaged hoof wall, but after one year he should be fully recovered.  Laminitis can be acute (a one-time occurrence caused by something specific like retained placenta, fever, etc.) or chronic (the horse is constantly or seasonally in danger of recurrence). 

Chronic laminitis has been associated with equine metabolic syndrome and Cushing’s disease. Insulin resistance is a common factor in chronic laminitis and can be diagnosed with blood tests. Two ways to combat insulin resistance are to keep the horse at a healthy weight and to exercise him almost daily. From your description, it seems your horse suffered an acute case of laminitis rather than chronic. However, I understand your caution in trying to avoid it from happening again by keeping him on a feeding program that will not provoke insulin resistance. The amount of exercise he is getting in training for the marathon should help tremendously with this as well. 
 
Your gelding is getting a low-energy diet for the amount of work he is doing. Senior feeds are designed to supply a portion of forage to the horse, which is what makes them fairly safe for horses with potential metabolic problems. However, they often don't supply enough calories for the hard-working horse. 

If you are concerned with the horse having more energy for work and staying power in a marathon, he may need a higher energy feed with more starch or fat. One of the simplest and safest additions to the diet would be oil (preferably ¼ to 1 cup canola or soybean) to increase the caloric density without increasing starch.  This may give the horse a little more staying power in the work but may not help with building muscle glycogen stores needed for energy generation. 

Starch is the key to building muscle glycogen. Strategies to consider that take the need for starch and fat into consideration would be to exchange a portion of the senior feed with a higher energy feed (look for something with at least 8% fat and substitute 2-3 lb of the senior), or add a supplement like rice bran (20% fat; ½ to 1 lb per day). 

I don't think it would be necessary to completely replace the senior feed, and I feel like it would be adequate to swap out some of the senior for a higher energy feed.  All of the suggested strategies should be safe for a horse with a questionable history of laminitis as long as he is in training and competition.

Old-timers fed ear corn to horses after the fall harvest to help them keep weight on through the winter. In general, horses find the corn palatable, first eating the kernels and later chewing on the cob. 

In some countries, like Peru, the whole corn plant is chopped and fed to horses fresh, especially in areas where there is a shortage of grazing. Corn silage is fed in some parts of Northern Europe as well, particularly during times when horses are not allowed out on the pastures.  These practices were also fairly commonplace in the past in the United States but have fallen out of favor over the past few decades. The reason is fairly simple: it is easier to go to the local feed store and purchase a bag of fully fortified, nutritionally sound horse feed and bales of good-quality hay.  

The risk of horses getting sick from the ear corn or the stalks is too great for many horse owners.  Ear corn and stalks might harbor mycotoxins produced by molds (Fusarium spp.)  that develop when the corn plant is grown under adverse weather conditions. The mycotoxin fumonisin seems to be the most devastating to horses, causing equine leukoencephalomalacia (also known as moldy corn poisoning or blind staggers), which brings about facial paralysis, ataxia, and potentially death.  Risks with feeding corn silage also include bacterial contamination, such as Clostridium botulinum which causes botulism, and Listeria moncytogenes, which causes listeriosis.

Mold and bacteria are rarely visible on the exterior of the ear or stalk, making it nearly impossible to detect a potential problem.  There does appear to be a variation in the susceptibility to these poisonings among individuals, so not every horse is equally affected when exposed. If the growing conditions are ideal for the corn plant and the harvest is properly stored, corn plant products can be a nutritious addition to a horse's diet when used with caution and moderation. 

Learn more about corn here:

Moldy Corn a Risky Ingredient for Horses

The two terms are often used interchangeably, but there is a distinction worth noting.

A diet is any feed ingredient or mixture of feed ingredients a horse consumes. You might say, for example, that an overweight pony lives on a hay-only diet. That simply means the pony consumes hay and only hay. There is no indication of the amount of hay the pony consumes.

A ration, however, is the amount of feed provided to a horse over a 24-hour period. The same pony’s ration might be 12 lb (5.4 kg) of mixed-grass hay. That would indicate that the pony is allotted 12 lb (5.4 kg) every day.

In the future, when you hear a horseman declare that his horses are on a full ration of timothy hay and oats, smile to yourself and know that his horses are on a diet of timothy hay and oats.

In trying to keep weight on your aging population of horses, I believe you are experiencing a common problem: even though they appear to have plenty to eat, they lose weight.  I have found that adding more concentrate is not always the answer and that the problem lies in forage intake.

For any number of reason (poor dentition, deterioration in the muscle or bone structure for chewing, suffering from chronic pain, loss of vigor in grazing, etc.), older horses will need forage in another form aside from grass in order to maintain their weight. Common alternate forms are hay cubes, hay pellets, chopped forage, and beet pulp. Senior feeds often include some type of alternate forage like alfalfa meal, soy hulls, and/or beet pulp. For this reason, their feeding rate is usually double that of a normal concentrate feed.  With your horses, you can easily and safely feed double what you are feeding now.  

When horses reach an advanced age, it is often advisable to serve their meals wet.  This would be particularly important if there is any question on the ability to chew hay properly. If you want to increase calories after you are sure they are getting enough forage, you can add some type of fat to the diet like oil (soy or canola, for example) or rice bran. Thoroughbreds can be particularly difficult to keep weight on as they age.

Saliva is released in response to chewing, the physical movement of the jaws. Decreased access to pasture or other forages is a risk factor for gastric ulcer formation. As long as your mares have access to a feedstuff that gives them a reason to chew, such as hay, enough saliva should be reaching the stomach to keep ulcers at bay.

Some researchers believe that saliva is released into the mouth when horses press their lips against an object. If this is true, saliva would be discharged from the salivary glands each time a horse bumps its grazing muzzle on the ground to grasp a bite.

The horse you might have to worry about is the one that is frustrated by the muzzle and spends inordinate amounts of time trying to get it off.

Watermelon is not harmful to horses. In fact, it is a great treat.  In some European countries, watermelon rind is a common horse treat, though it should be cut into small, easy-to-chew pieces. If large pieces of rind are given, horses may choke. However, horses generally prefer the sweet flesh to the rind.

Related article:

Watermelon: Summer Treat for Horses

The muzzle you described in your question sounds nearly identical to ones typically used in the United States, so it should work fine. As with any piece of equipment, fit is important. Muzzles adjusted too tightly can cause rubs and hair loss, and those fitted too loosely can be challenging to keep on the horse.

In regard to weed consumption, horses would likely maintain the same selectivity in plant choices as they would when unmuzzled. The amount of grass horses eat when muzzled is probably somewhat dependent on grass height. The horses will have to work a lot harder, for little reward, when the grass is short.

In terms of quantity eaten, I would suspect that the Miniature Horses would eat similar amounts as the ponies in the study mentioned in my article: 3.8% of body weight when left unmuzzled all day on pasture; 0.8% of body weight during three hours of unmuzzled turnout; and 0.14% of body weight during three hours of muzzled turnout. Be sure to feed adequate hay (at least 1.5% of body weight) when the horses are not on the pasture.

In response to your question on the difference in energy density between alfalfa pellets and beet pulp, there is little. The primary difference is in how they are fed. If you take the average digestible energy of alfalfa pellets at 1.092 Mcal/lb (range is from 0.933 to 1.191 Mcal/lb)* and compare it to beet pulp at 1.199 Mcal/lb (range is from 1.105 to 1.293 Mcal/lb)*, it would seem that beet pulp is more energy dense, although only slightly (only 0.1 Mcal/lb). These numbers, however, do not take into consideration moisture content. Beet pulp is usually fed wet after being soaked in water, so if you compared the wet beet pulp to the dry alfalfa pellets the amount of energy in the beet pulp would be less because you would factor in the water that adds weight (but not calories). If you fed the same amount in dry weight, the caloric density would be about the same. Both feedstuffs are good sources of fiber energy and work well for putting weight on hard keepers, especially the ones that are not very good at eating hay or grass.

For this Thoroughbred, I would say a combination of the feedstuffs is a good idea as long as neither of the two is unpalatable to the horse.  If the horse is recently off the racetrack, he may be very accustomed to eating large amount of grains and not nearly as much roughage as you may be offering.  It may be a matter of time before the horse settles down into his new home and develops an appetite for different types of feed. 

There are other factors with ex-racehorses that have an influence on appetite as well.  Most racehorses have ulcers (surveys suggest over 90%), and it takes time for them to heal after leaving the track. Having the horse out on pasture most of the day is one way to give the stomach time to repair itself, but it will take longer than two months. You may consider giving him a supplement like RiteTrac that will prevent him from developing new ulcers by providing a healthy gastric environment. Another recommendation is to include some alfalfa in the diet, which has been shown to reduce severity of ulcers. You have been doing this, but the horse has to be willing to eat the alfalfa. Since the horse is new to your farm, even if it is not off the track, and it does not have much appetite, I would suspect ulcers because of the change in environment. Anemia is seen in horses with bleeding ulcers. 

Another issue can be hindgut acidosis or an imbalance in the microbial population in the hindgut, which will make it difficult for the horse to put on weight. When this occurs, we often see the appetite affected because the horse is not comfortable. Hindgut acidosis is often relieved by a supplement that includes a hindgut buffer like EquiShure. A supplement that corrects microbial imbalances would be a probiotic or a yeast blend like Triad. 

Another problem with ex-racehorses is the possibility of steroid use, and withdrawal from steroids can be pretty hard on certain horses. It takes some of them about a year to come around and settle into a new program. 

It looks like you are trying to stay away from starches with this horse by feeding a lot of roughage and oil for calories, and balancing it out with a balancer pellet, but sometimes a horse will actually gain weight faster with a little starch (particularly Thoroughbreds). If he does not come around with the current diet, you have a couple of options: (1) offering some oats in addition to what you are feeding (it may perk up his appetite); (2) mixing some of a commercial feed into the beet pulp/alfalfa pellet mix to make it more palatable; or (3) using a commercial feed and feeding it at the recommended feeding rate instead of balancer.

* This data is from Equi-Analytical.com, and the averages are from 408 samples of alfalfa and 637 samples of beet pulp.

Some confusion exists around linseed because there are two names for the high-fat seeds: linseed and flaxseed (flax). If you do a search on flax, you may find a lot more information because it is the more common term these days.

Flax is a small teardrop-shaped seed that has been used for centuries as a nutritional supplement for horses, due largely to its high fat content (~40%). There are two varieties, golden and brown, and both have virtually the same nutritional profile, including almost identical amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Brown flax is usually fed to horses.

The virtues of flax stem from the high fat content and the type of fatty acids that make up that fat, as well as the high soluble fiber content. Flax is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential to the horse and responsible for improving cellular integrity and balancing inflammatory response in the body. Flax is chock-full of soluble fiber that not only supplies energy to the horse but also has mucins that have a beneficial effect on gastrointestinal function.

The seeds can be fed whole and mixed into horse feed but are best if ground immediately before feeding. The traditional way to feed flax was boiling because it makes a thick, gelatinous soup that is readily consumed by horses. Boiling or grinding breaks open the hard shell to expose the most nutritious parts of the seed to digestive processes. The concern with grinding in advance of feeding or soaking in unheated water stems from the fact that there are neurotoxic cyanogenic glycosides in the flaxseed that produce cyanide when exposed to air or water. Ideally, flax should be added only to water that is boiling, not water that is on the verge of boiling. Grinding well in advance is also not recommended but grinding just before feeding is acceptable. Commercial products that are milled or ground can be safely fed because they have use a stabilization process that stops the enzymes that produce the cyanide.

Up to 100 g of flax can be fed safely, but typically horses are given between 25 and 75 g per day. Feeding 50 g will supply the amount of omega-3 fatty acids recommended for humans (adjusted for a horse’s size, of course). Fresh grass offers an abundance of omega-3 fatty acids, so horses on pasture do not usually have a deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids. Horses fed hay and grain or concentrates will benefit from additional omega-3 fatty acids.

In humans, flax can interfere with absorption of certain medications, so timing of flax consumption is important. This may be similar if the horse is on thyroid medication; flax should not be fed within two hours of receiving the medication.

There is another product on the market by the name of linseed meal or flax meal. This is not the same as ground flax. The meal is a by-product of oil production. While there can be residual fat, an average of 12%, the meal can be fed to horses as well and has some of the same benefits, even though it is not as high in the omega-3 fatty acids.  Flax meal is more commonly used as a protein supplement because it has about 36% protein.

Learn more about flax here:

How Much Flax Meal to Feed

Linseed Meal for Horses

Equinews.com has a lot more to offer. Find out more here.

A horse’s behavior and response to different situations is related to many factors including breed, age, training, proximity to horses, previous experience, disease, environment, skill of handler, and in some cases nutrition. Certain behaviors can indicate a nutrient deficiency, and nervousness or spookiness has been linked to magnesium deficiency.

Lack of magnesium in the diet and resulting magnesium deficiency can have varying symptoms which include nervousness, muscle tremors, hypersensitivity of the skin, increased body temperature during exercise, and ataxia. Magnesium is stored in the bone and muscle, so serum or blood magnesium is a poor indicator of body magnesium levels. Diagnosing deficiency is best done with muscle biopsy or dietary analysis, though deficiency would be unlikely in any horse with day-to-day access to good-quality forage.

Studies have shown that horses normally excrete much dietary magnesium in their urine, and it took 13 days of feeding a magnesium-deficient diet before horses began to conserve magnesium or excrete less in their urine. It is unlikely that much, if any, of the injected magnesium is still present the day after injection. In clinical situations, intravenous magnesium is used to treat heart arrhythmias and hypoxic/ischemic encephalopathy (dummy foals). Concentrated magnesium solutions have been used for euthanasia.

There is a significant risk for adverse effects, including death, when intravenous magnesium is administered to horses that do not have a medical need for magnesium supplementation. It is likely that the dose administered is too low to have any major effects. If concentrated magnesium solutions are given outside the vein, swelling, infection, and clotting of the jugular vein are very possible. Inadvertent injection of concentrated magnesium solutions into the carotid artery could be fatal, but have a high chance of inducing seizure-like activity and resultant secondary injuries.

There is some anecdotal evidence that magnesium supplementation improves anxious or bad behavior in horses. However, there are no scientific studies that have proven an effect. Several commercially available supplements contain magnesium to help with behavioral issues. It is more likely that dietary supplementation will have a more profound and lasting effect on magnesium status than the occasional intravenous injection.

Your Standardbred’s diet of pasture and lucerne chaff is unlikely to provide the daily recommended amount of many nutrients including magnesium. I understand the reluctance to provide additional grain to your easy-keeping horse, but there are several options you can consider that will ensure he gets his daily recommended intake of nutrients without the calories. A low-intake balancer pellet or trace mineral/vitamin supplement is recommended in addition to your horse’s pasture diet to supply daily recommended amounts of all minerals and vitamins.

Physitis is not one of the more severe orthopedic problems diagnosed in foals and rarely has permanent effects on the long-term soundness of the horse. However, it can be painful for young growing horses, and compensating for the pain might strain other parts of the body, including other immature joints. Therefore, a proactive approach to treating foals is wise.

Restricting activity of the foal is recommended because it can help keep the foal from getting too sore on the stressed joints. This is particularly important if the foal shows any signs of soreness or lameness.

Excluding the foal from its mother’s feed tub is an excellent idea, because it is so difficult to measure how much of the meal the foal is eating. Some mares allow their foals to eat the majority of the feed. The foals you don't have to worry about are those that are kept away from the feed tub by mares that are more strict or protective of their feed.

If the foal was over four months of age, weaning would be recommended, but at three months it is still a little young to take that step. If the physitis was causing noticeable lameness, then it may be a consideration, but it does not sound like that is the case with this foal. 

Reducing caloric intake is recommended to slow growth. Growth may slow but it will not stop; therefore, we need to supply the foal with the vital nutrients for healthy growth. Cutting the foal back to balancer pellet was the best step, but cutting all fortification is not ideal. Without fortification (such as what the balancer pellets provide), the foal will not get the supplemental protein, vitamins, and minerals necessary for proper bone and tissue development.

Contrary to popular belief, overconsumption of protein is not responsible for orthopedic problems and is vitally important for healthy bone and tissue growth. Nutrition-related bone problems are usually caused by excessive calories from carbohydrates and fats. Your concern about the protein content of the balancer pellets stems from a misunderstanding. The amount of protein in a balancer product needs to be high because the intake is so low. For example, if you feed 1 kg of a 10% concentrate feed, it supplies 100 g of protein. A balancer pellet is trying to supply that amount of protein in only 400 g of feed. This is why most balancers need to be at least 25% protein (400 g x 0.25 = 100 g protein). 

In short, I would keep the foal on reduced exercise until the swelling reduces and maintain him on the balancer (about 400 g per day).  Kentucky Equine Research (KER) makes a bone supplement called DuraPlex for horses on restricted turnout. It is designed to keep horses from losing bone density.

Would you like to learn more about orthopedic problems in young horses? Check out these other articles on Equinews.com.

Feeding to Prevent Developmental Orthopedic Disease

Equine Nutrition in the Management of Flexural Deformities

Growth Comparisons Between Warmbloods and Thoroughbreds

Stomach infections with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori have been associated with gastric ulcers in humans. Antibiotic therapy can be indicated in some cases of human gastric ulcers for this reason. However, H. pylori infection has not been associated with gastric ulcers in horses. Any oral antibiotic has the potential to cause diarrhea or other gastrointestinal upsets in horses.

In general, antibiotics should be administered to horses only for known infections. Ideally, a culture of the infected site is performed to confirm bacterial infection and determine which antibiotics are most likely to be effective.

The diet seems perfectly adequate, meeting the nutritional needs of the horse as long as he has additional salt at his disposal. Though nothing is notably absent or oversupplied in his diet, I have a couple of suggestions that you might consider.

• • Your horse’s diet contains a lot of fat and fiber. He derives few calories from starch. Some horses need a little more starch to sustain their energy levels, particularly with an increase in workload or in the summer heat. This lack of spark could be remedied simply by adding more oats and barley to his diet. Both of these cereal grains are high in starch. You can add either to his current diet, and it would take only 1-2 lb per day to see a difference.
• • If you are concerned with top-dressing oats or barley to his diet because of his history with colic, another approach would be to add beet pulp to his morning feeding so he gets it at both meals. Although beet pulp is not high in starch, it adds calories and raises glucose levels, thus providing energy enough to make a difference.
• • Although you don’t mention how much corn oil you are feeding, adding more would also boost calorie consumption. You can increase the amount of oil to one cup per day, divided between at least two meals and preferably three. Corn oil is notorious for imbalancing the omega-3 to omega-6 ratio in the diet. Therefore, you might consider changing to canola oil. Flax and fish oil are excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids as well.
• • Sometimes horses on high amounts of concentrate (even those high-fat, high-fiber ones) will have subtle issues with hindgut acidosis. Considering your horse’s history of colic, this is noteworthy. Kentucky Equine Research (KER) developed and markets a product called EquiShure, which is a buffer that corrects pH fluctuations in the hindgut. I have seen many horses that were not on high-starch diets or had intermittent colic bouts that had tremendous relief after being on EquiShure. Most showed positive changes in attitude and increased willingness to work. Another product from KER, RiteTrac, combines EquiShure with ingredients that keep the stomach healthy. If you choose to proceed with RiteTrac, you could eliminate the current ulcer preventive.
• • Could there be a physical condition affecting your horse? A slight lameness that might be changing his mindset and affecting his work ethic? Is he sensitive to working in hot weather? When temperatures soar, some horses become lethargic. Is the horse sweating properly? Does he exhibit normal sweating patterns when worked? Anhidrosis (lack of sweating) is not common in the northeastern United States, but it is frequently diagnosed in warmbloods. Anhidrosis makes horses extremely tired and is detrimental to their health.

Research indicates that reducing protein intake can have a greater effect on milk production than decreasing calories.  Therefore, while it is possible that you may have a small effect on milk production by cutting out the sweet feed and replacing it with balancer pellets, I don't think it will be notable because by switching to a balancer pellet with >25% protein you are not actually giving less protein, just fewer calories. The greater stimulus for milk production is milk consumption by the foal.  The more milk the foal drinks, the more milk the mare will produce (within normal physiological limits).  If your change in diet does not affect the milk intake by the foal, then you would not see a drop in milk production.

Muscle tremors or shivers after a ride can occur for various reasons including physical exhaustion, stress, lack of electrolytes, and tying-up. Evaluation by a veterinarian is the first step that should be taken in providing answers for this medical concern. Once any physical ailments have been ruled out, a deeper investigation into his diet should be pursued.

To prevent physical exhaustion, it is important to ensure that any horse competing in an endurance ride is fit enough for the task at hand. Endurance places significant physical demands on the horse, and thus requires proper conditioning. Weeks of fitness work should be coupled with a suitable feeding regime to ensure optimal health before, during and after the competition.

Inexperienced horses are often more high-strung and stressed at competition venues. As the horse attends more competition, his behavior will likely become more settled. Stress levels can also be decreased by ensuring the horse is receiving adequate B vitamins in his diet.

Electrolytes are a critical component of an endurance horse’s nutritional programme. By choosing Endura-Max from Kentucky Equine Research (KER), you’re certainly on the right path.

The time of feeding or administration of electrolytes can make a significant difference to recovery, and it is essential that your horse starts off the ride with adequate stores of water and electrolytes. Because the horse’s body is fine-tuned to balance the amount of electrolytes and water it stores in its body at rest, the best time to provide these additional electrolytes is the night before and the morning of the ride. Supplementation immediately before the ride should be avoided.

Boosting water stores can also be achieved through forage consumption, as increased forage in the hindgut will add to the level of water and electrolytes stored there. These stores can be called on to replace sweat losses early in the ride.

An endurance horse will lose between 45 and 60 liters of sweat during a 160-km ride, which means 460 to 690 grams of electrolytes (mainly sodium, chloride and potassium) will be lost. Therefore, water should be offered and electrolyte supplementation should be given at each stop on the ride. The most convenient way of administering electrolytes in this instance is through the use of paste. However, be aware that administering large doses of electrolytes without adequate water intake can result in serious problems, and measures should be taken to encourage drinking if the horse is reluctant. Many riders train their horses to drink molasses-flavored water to disguise taste variations, which also increases potassium consumption.

Adequate electrolyte supplementation should also be given to assist in recovery following a ride, and 120 to 240 grams of an electrolyte over a 24-hour period is recommended.

Due to the significant demands placed on them, tying-up is common amoung endurance horses. Blood tests following a ride aid diagnosis, as certain muscle enzymes will be elevated. Factors that contribute to tying-up include genetic predisposition, inadequate fitness, and insufficient antioxidant supplementation. Antioxidants such as vitamin E and selenium are essential for quenching the free radicals that can build up in muscle tissue with intense, prolonged exercise.

You mention in your question that your horse is receiving Preserve, an antioxidant manufactured by KER. Provision of this supplement should quell any antioxidant problems your horse might be experiencing.

Many horses prone to tying-up also benefit from a diet low in starch and sugars, and high in fat and fibre.

No, Kentucky Equine Research (KER) has not done any research on the product you mentioned, and KER has not been approached by the company to do so. Your skepticism is justified, especially when such a large price tag is involved. Whenever a supplement claims to cure a disease, you should be wary. 

Supplement companies are not allowed to make any claims that their products "treat, cure, or prevent any disease;" otherwise, they would be considered drugs. In fact, if the FDA became aware of these types of claims on product websites, the manufacturers would probably get a stop-sale order. However, in order for the FDA to know that companies are making unlawful claims, someone has to bring it to the agency’s attention. 

When a substance, including one considered food, is intended to be used for the treatment or prevention of disease or for a non-food structure/function effect, the FDA considers it a drug. A new animal drug must be shown to be safe and effective for its intended use by adequate data from controlled scientific studies as part of a New Animal Drug Application (NADA). If a product on the market is not approved, it may be deemed an adulterated drug and subject to regulatory action.

Consider your purchase carefully. See if you can find somebody who has used the product or any other product from the company. You can check with the Better Business Bureau to see if there have been any complaints about the company. 

Having said that, in reviewing the label of the product, I do not see anything that would be harmful for the horse in the quantities the manufacturer recommends.

Easy-keeping performance horses are sometimes a little tricky to feed as it is important to keep their weight under control while also ensuring they receive the necessary nutrients to fuel the demands of work.

You didn’t mention if he needs to lose or gain weight, so I will assume you are happy with his current body condition. Your plan to base his diet around good-quality forage is great. You mentioned feeding 2.2 kg (1 lb) of a performance horse feed. I suspect that feed was formulated to be fed at a higher daily intake (probably 3-4 kg/day or 6.6/8.8 lb), and thus it is unlikely that your horse is receiving the full daily recommended intake of nutrients, especially vitamins and minerals.

For horses that don’t need the additional energy that a high-intake performance horse feed brings, we recommend a concentrated balancer. Balancers are great for easy keepers as they provide protein, vitamins, macrominerals, and trace minerals in a concentrated, low-intake, low-energy package. I recommend feeding at least 1% of his body weight in forage including pasture, hay, and/or chaff (ideally 1.5% of body weight), swapping the performance horse feed for a balancer fed at the recommended daily intake (common intakes for balancers range from 800 g-2 kg (1.8-4.4 lb) per day), and having a salt block available in the field.

I also encourage you to constantly assess his body condition and adjust energy intake accordingly, especially if his workload changes.

In answer to your question about your aged gelding, most of the ingredients in the hoof supplement are provided in excess of the requirement. However, biotin, the major active ingredient of the hoof supplement, is supplied in a therapeutic concentration well above the normal requirement of the horse. Research has proven that hooves of many horses respond to therapeutic levels of this nutrient. Sometimes, though, hoof integrity improves with the provision of a balanced diet with sufficient micronutrients, especially if the previous diet had been deficient.  Because your gelding is retired and will probably not have to be shod, it would be reasonable to discontinue the hoof supplement. As a reminder, the effect of biotin occurs only on new hoof growth, so you may not see any recurrence of hoof problems for six to nine months, if you see any reappearance at all.

For the nine-year-old crossbred gelding, a balancer pellet is ideal for him. If he does have a heavier workload at times, you can always add a little performance feed for the extra calories, increasing and decreasing with his need to keep him from losing weight. The balancer pellet can remain the base of the diet.  The amount to feed him would be dependent on his size, but if he is around 1,400 lb (637 kg), he would need approximately 1.5 lb (0.68 kg) of the balancer pellet per day. If he is 1,200 (550 kg) or less, he would only need about 1 lb (0.45 kg) per day. Always double-check feeding directions before starting a horse on any feed or supplement. 

For your young athlete, start by ensuring his diet is providing him with an optimal daily intake of energy (calories) and nutrients. With respect to energy, it's fairly easy to determine if the diet is providing sufficient amounts by assessing your horse's body condition. A horse that is underweight needs to consume more calories, and one that is overweight and/or gaining undesirable weight should consume fewer calories. If your horse is maintaining his weight, or since he's growing, gaining at an appropriate rate and maintaining a desirable body condition, then he is consuming the appropriate amount of energy.

Next, double-check that enough forage (either good-quality hay or pasture) is being provided to maintain digestive tract health and optimize forage as a source of energy and nutrients. We typically recommend 1.5% of the horse's body weight be consumed as forage.

Then, evaluate whether you're using an appropriate feed and using it as directed. This entails determining how many pounds (or kilograms) of feed your horse is currently consuming per day and comparing this to the feeding directions provided on the feed bag (or tag). One of the most common mistakes horse owners make is feeding outside of the product manufacturer's directions. These directions are meant to indicate the amount of product that should be fed per day in order to meet the horse's nutrient requirements. If you're feeding less than the recommended amount, you may need to provide a supplemental source of nutrients or switch to a product designed to be fed at a lower daily intake.

In most cases, if you're feeding an appropriate amount of good-quality forage and using a feed designed for your horse's age and activity level according to the manufacturer's directions, then you can be reasonably confident that your horse's nutritional needs are being met.

Once you've determined if your horse's daily ration is appropriate, then you can investigate other options to support optimal health and performance. Providing dietary additives to maintain joint health is a common practice and certainly one we would recommend for horses that are destined for performance disciplines. Glucosamine, chondroitin, hyaluronic acid, and long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA) have all been linked to positive effects on joint health.

The best way to develop more muscle in young horses is to provide them with the nutrients and exercise they need to build greater muscle mass. Ensure that enough energy is being supplied by the diet. Energy should come from a variety of sources, including nonstructural carbohydrates, fat, fermentable fiber, and protein. There are many different products that tout improved muscle development, and it's a difficult job trying to sort out which ones are backed by equine research. For instance, while creatine is effective in humans, it is poorly absorbed by horses. Feeding creatine to horses has not resulted in increased muscle creatine concentration or increased muscle mass.

You might enjoy reading the following for more about nutraceuticals and ergogenic aids:

Nutraceuticals: What Are They?

Equinews: Making Sense of the Supplements

Nutritional Ergogenic Aids in the Horse: Uses and Abuses

The following delves deeper into nutrition for the young performance horse:

Nutrition of the Young Equine Athlete

While your horse is older, it does not sound as though he exhibits any of the physiological changes that would indicate a need for increased nutritional support. From a nutritional standpoint, horses classified as “senior” or “geriatric” are those that exhibit signs of decreased digestive efficiency or physiological problems associated with increased age. In these horses, the key to nutritional management often lies in providing slightly higher energy and nutrient concentration in their diets in order to overcome reduced digestive efficiency as well as offering them highly digestible feedstuffs. Because your horse is obviously thriving on a forage-only diet, he can be treated the same as any other horse that is an easy keeper.

An important component of feeding any horse that maintains weight easily on forage alone is balancing its diet by providing the nutrients not delivered in sufficient quantity by the forage while limiting additional caloric intake. This can be done by using a concentrated vitamin/mineral supplement such as a ration balancer pellet, which would be fed at 1-2 lb (0.5-1 kg) per day, or through use of an even more nutrient-dense, lower-intake option such as I.R. Pellet, which can be fed at 0.25 lb (120 g) per day. Both of these will supply the key trace minerals and vitamins often deficient in a forage-only diet while contributing very few additional calories to the diet.

In order to avoid metabolic problems, it is important to maintain moderate body condition and avoid obesity. We recommend most horses be maintained at body condition scores of 5 to 6. If you're unsure of where your horse fits on the body condition scale, refer to this body condition score chart.

Limiting caloric intake and increasing exercise are both great ways to reduce excess body condition. Beware of the temptation to feed supplemental hay or traditional feeds to horses that are already fat from consumption of pasture alone as these will add additional calories without supplying sufficient nutrient intake to meet the horse's nutritional needs. Reducing time on pasture or using a grazing muzzle to reduce the rate of intake are both ways to lower caloric consumption of horses that receive the majority of their daily calories from pasture.
 

The basic grains fed to horses in the United States and Australia are barley, oats, and corn. Oats are by far the most commonly fed as a straight grain, while corn is probably the most commonly used in commercial feeds.  These grains are excellent energy sources but offer little more in the way of other nutrients. Some averages on digestible energy for the three grains are corn = 3.87 Mcal/kg, barley = 3.65 Mcal/kg, and oats = 3.34 Mcal/kg. (Averages obtained from Equi-Analytical.com.)

Corn is the most energy-dense of these grains because it has the most starch, which is a concentrated energy source for the horse: corn = 70.2% starch, barley = 54.9% starch, and oats = 44.4% starch. The starch found in oats is easily digested by the enzymes found in the small intestine of the horse but that is not the case for the type of starch found in corn and barley.  Both of these grains benefit from steam-flaking or steam-rolling to improve starch digestibility in the small intestine.

More of the energy in oats is derived from digestion of fiber than in either corn or barley, which can be seen by looking at NDF (neutral detergent fiber) for these grains: corn = 9.9% NDF, barley = 19.2% NDF, and oats = 27.1% NDF. If you want to add calories to the diet of the horse, any of the three grains will work, and steam-rolled barley is fine if you are happy with its palatability. 

Here are a few suggestions if you are topping off a commercial feed with any of the basic grains: (1) the commercial grain should be fed to at least the minimum recommended feeding rate in order to supply your broodmare with the extra protein, vitamins, and minerals needed to support her maintenance and milk production, and to foster healthy growth of foal; (2) extra grain will supply additional calories but can upset the calcium-phosphorus balance of the diet if overfed; however, if you are feeding any alfalfa (high in calcium) this may not be of concern; and (3) forage should be the basis of the diet and too much starch from grain can interfere with proper forage digestion in the hindgut, so it is important to keep at least 50% of the diet as forage.

There is no requirement for biotin established for the horse because the microbial population of the gastrointestinal tract is thought to produce adequate amounts. With that said, using a therapeutic amount of biotin has a positive effect on hoof integrity in some horses. The research studies that have shown positive results on hoof quality with biotin supplementation used 15-20 mg biotin per day. Most hoof supplements on the market offer 6-30 mg per day. Because you are not buying the biotin in a commercial supplement, I would recommend making sure the biotin you have is d-biotin, which is the only active isomer.  Also, biotin has a fairly short shelf life and should be used within six months of purchase. I do not know the concentration of the product you have, but if it is on the label, try to figure out how much would provide 15 or 20 mg per day.

Horses that are not in work have much lower requirements than those that are working, growing, or reproducing. The nutrition supplied by good-quality pasture grass and/or hay goes a long way to meeting the needs of the horse, especially energy and protein requirements. However, good-quality forages may lack certain trace minerals, and dried forages may be too low in vitamins. 

Concentrates are designed to provide nutrients missing in the forage. However, when you feed a concentrate feed well below the recommended feeding rate, the horse will not receive all the nutrients that the feed is designed to deliver. If you look at the tag or bag it will give a recommended minimum, which for a typical senior would be around six lb (~2.7 kg) per day.

To illustrate what happens when you feed below the recommended amount, like 0.5 lb (~250 g) a day, let’s look at one mineral, selenium. If the feed is fortified with 0.5 mg/kg and is fed as recommended at six pounds (2.72 kg) per day, it will supply 1.36 mg of selenium; however, when you feed only 0.5 pound (~250 g) of the same feed, it will only supply 0.12 mg, which is below the requirement of the horse. The recommendation from Kentucky Equine Research (KER) would be 1.87 mg/d. If the forage is high or adequate in selenium, this would not be an issue, but in many parts of the country selenium is deficient in forages. This trend continues for other nutrients, and this is why the feeds are formulated with a certain balance of nutrients. 

Many horses in this country that do not need the abundance of calories that would be supplied by feeding the minimum recommended feeding rate. For these horses, there are “low-intake” feeds or “ration balancers,” which will supply the nutrients with a much lower recommended feeding rate. Typically these low-intake feeds are designed to be fed at 1–2 lb (0.5-1 kg) per day. Balancers are particularly helpful when the protein, calcium, or phosphorus content of the forage is questionable, as well as when trace mineral and vitamin levels are low. The other option is to add a vitamin/mineral supplement to the feed to top off the mineral and vitamin content of the ration, which could be added to the small amount of senior feed you are giving and not cause any significant increase in calories.

There is no requirement for omega-3 fatty acids in  horses. Humans should consume about 1.6 g of omega-3 in the diet per day. Using that amount as a basis for a recommendation for a 1000-pound horse, the intake should be around 8 grams of omega-3 each day. The amount of flax you are giving one-half cup will supply the horse with approximately 12.8 grams of omega 3 per day. If the horse is happily eating this amount, then I would not change it.

There are a number of equations used to estimate a horse’s body weight. Aside from the one you used, another common one is [(heart girth² x length)/300] + 50.

These equations were derived by measuring large numbers of horses and then weighing them with a scale. A statistical program was used to evaluate which measurements or combination of measurements most accurately estimates the actual weights.

The weight tapes you refer to are obviously using only girth circumference, which is why they give a different number than the equations. The difference can be negligible for some horses and significant for others, depending on the conformation of the horse.

From a statistical standpoint, adding in the body length measurement increases the accuracy of the reading, though statistically speaking, both are inaccurate. However, both weight tapes and equations are useful tools for determining changes in weight, especially if the same person measures the horse each time and the same measuring implement is used on every occasion.

Thyroid hormone produced by the thyroid gland is responsible for a number of functions in the body, the main one being regulation of basal metabolism. If a horse is thought to be “hypothyroid,” it means the metabolism is sluggish due to low thyroid hormone production.  Even though true hypothyroidism is uncommon in horses, it is routinely given as a reason for obesity and lack of energy.

Thyroid hormone replacement therapy is frequently used in horses to treat hypothyroidism as well as obesity, equine metabolic syndrome, reproductive problems, anhidrosis, and other problems with metabolism. An important component of thyroid hormone is iodine, and it is necessary for the synthesis of both thyroxine (T₄) and triiodothyronine (T₃), the two forms of thyroid hormone. The idea behind iodine supplementation is to boost thyroid hormone manufacture in the thyroid gland by providing more substrate. 

In rare cases in which iodine deficiency results in hypothyroidism, supplementation of iodine might be warranted. Unfortunately, if there is no iodine deficiency, little difference in thyroid hormone production will be seen with iodine supplementation. Iodine excess is much more common than deficiency. Interestingly, the signs of iodine deficiency are the same as those of iodine excess, and hypothyroidism may result from either underconsumption or overconsumption of iodine. The most notable outward sign of a problem is goiter, an enlarged thyroid gland. Other signs are lack of energy, abnormal estrous cycles, abortion, alopecia, and an increased susceptibility to infectious diseases.  

Broodmares should not receive excessive amounts of iodine since it can cause problems with the foals. The fetus is solely dependent on maternal intake for its iodine supply and is more sensitive to the effects of overconsumption, so a foal can be born with goiter even though the mare showed no signs. Toxicity has been seen in foals born to mares consuming 40 mg/d. Overconsumption can affect viability of the foal, and those foals that survive to delivery may exhibit other signs of iodine toxicity like weakness, difficulty standing to nurse, and extreme flexural deformities of the lower forelegs. 

Kelp or seaweed supplements contain high levels of iodine but when used correctly do not result in toxicity. If using a kelp or seaweed supplement with pregnant mares, it is particularly advisable not to exceed the recommended dosage on the product. These supplements cannot cure hypothyroidism if iodine deficiency is not the cause.

Watching an animal be irritated with itching can be exasperating. You should know, though, that feed allergies are not a common cause of pruritus (itching).

If the issue is related to feed, it would be caused by hypersensitivity to something in the diet.  Food allergies are actually rare but are caused by a reaction to proteins/allergens in the feeds and not a physiologic effect of the feed. 

The most commonly incriminated feeds found in Juju Bean’s current diet are beet pulp, wheat, soy, and alfalfa. This is not to say that there couldn’t be any other food sensitivities than those I have listed.

Usually food allergies have an effect on the skin but can also affect the digestive and respiratory tracts.  Dermatological effects include generalized itchiness with or without skin bumps or welts.  Digestive tract involvement causes excessive gas and loose stools; respiratory tract involvement causes heaves or asthma. 

There are allergy tests currently available that are used to identify possible allergens, but they are not without controversy. It would be useful to know what the mare was eating when she lived in Florida since she was not having problems then. Pinpointing what has changed in her diet, or if something in particular was added around day 220 of pregnancy, may help to determine a cause.  

The most effective diagnosis is to do an elimination diet. This is done by eliminating all the current feeds/supplements and offering a hypoallergenic diet of oats and grass hay for 4-8 weeks. Then add the feed items previously used one at a time at one-week intervals.  If the itching returns, you will be able to identify the offending feedstuff. 

Goat’s milk has been used as milk replacer for foals for centuries, particularly when a nurse mare was not available. Techniques for grafting foals onto goats can be found in numerous older publications. Designs for ramp and platform setups that position the goat so the foal can reach the teats easily are available, although foals do learn to get down on their knees to nurse goats. If the foal can be adapted to drinking instead of suckling, the milk can be offered in a bucket.

Goat’s milk is similar to mare’s milk, and probably more so than milk from other species. Foals generally accept goat’s milk more readily than milk replacer. The milk supply of one goat may not be enough to meet the total needs of an orphan if it is not receiving other supplementation, and a second goat may be necessary. Goats can provide companionship to an orphan as well, so the orphan learns some social behavior from another animal.

That said, goat’s milk is not a perfect match for mare’s milk, and there are differences that can result in suboptimal growth of the foal. Nutrients in highest demand in milk are water and energy, followed by protein, calcium, and phosphorus. There are subtle differences in the energy and nutrient content in milk from goats and mares. The water content is very similar between the two (11% solids in mare; 13% solids in goat), and is not enough to warrant dilution of goat’s milk. 

The energy content is higher in goat’s milk (690 kcal/l in goat; 550 kcal/l in mare), largely because it is higher in fat. In fact, the fat content in goat’s milk is nearly double that in mare’s milk (40 g/l for goat; 21 g/l for mare). In contrast, the calories in mare’s milk come mostly from carbohydrate and are higher by 25% in mare’s milk. The form of carbohydrate found principally in both milks is lactose, which causes no problems in foals. In contrast, commercial milk replacers sometimes add maltodextrin, corn syrups, oligosaccharides, and glucose polymers that may cause excessive gas production or osmotic diarrhea in young foals. Their immature digestive tracts have difficulty handling these types of carbohydrates. Calcium and phosphorus levels in both milks are similar, and there are very minor differences in the other minerals and vitamins.

Protein content is 24% higher in goat’s milk than mare’s milk. The quantity of protein is similar but the amino acid composition is not. There is a distinct difference in the quantity of the amino acid arginine, as it is twice as high in mare's milk. At this time nutritionists are not sure how important this one amino acid is for growth, but the lack of arginine in goat’s milk and most commercial milk replacers may be related to suboptimal growth of orphan foals.

Perhaps the proportions of whey to casein found in goat’s milk make it more suitable for the foal than milk from other livestock such as cows. The whey to casein ratio in goat’s milk is 86:14 and is reversed from cow’s milk, which is 16:82. This ratio in mare’s milk is 85:15 immediately after parturition and normalizes to approximately 50:50 during the first 28 days of lactation.

Goat’s milk may be a suitable substitute for mare’s milk in many cases, but a research study done in 1990 found that the complications can be poor weight gain and a possibility of metabolic acidosis. These can be attributed to the differences in composition of milk.

The economics of using goat’s milk in your case may be the deciding factor since you already have the animals on the farm. If it came down to buying goat’s milk, it would not be as economical as buying milk replacer.

I understand your concern about finding the ideal weight for your horse. A body condition score chart will help you determine whether your horse is still overweight. This chart was developed for horse owners to quantify the body condition of their horses. Look at the descriptions for each body condition score and then compare it to your horse to determine where he lies in the range. This is an assessment of body fat so it works for any horse, even if the horse is big-boned or muscular. Take a good look at the actual amount of body fat covering his rump, ribs, neck, and other body parts mentioned on the chart. Avoid focusing exclusively on his belly.

Muscle is hard, fat is soft. In order to differentiate between the two, use your hands to feel places where horses normally deposit fat, like over the ribs, at the tail head, on the neck, and around the shoulder. Performance horses should have a body condition score between 5 and 6. It is particularly important they maintain appropriate weight so they are not carrying around extra pounds, putting more stress on limbs and making it more difficult to cool out after exercise. 

You are currently doing what it takes to get him to the ideal weight. If you are seeing a result, it must be helping. Easy keepers are a challenge, because as you cut calories their bodies become more efficient at using the calories that are available. This is why it is so important to keep the horse in a regular exercise program, which will prevent this from happening. Once the horse is at an appropriate weight, you will still have to monitor constantly, making subtle adjustments in the diet in response to weight gains and losses. 

Because he is an easy keeper, he probably will put on weight effortlessly and will do well with a diet of mostly forage and a balancer-type concentrate. Since a horse can derive significant calories from forage, the amount of forage can also be adjusted, not just the concentrate. Caution should be taken to keep an adequate amount of forage in the diet to keep the digestive tract functioning properly. In general, a horse should not be fed less than 1.5% of its body weight in forage per day. For this 1600-pound horse, that means no less than 24 pounds of forage.

Please let me know if you have any further questions. Perhaps with the body condition score chart in hand, you can show your colleagues how to assess body fat as well.

Giving horses feeds or products designed for other species is usually not a good idea unless you have the ingredients verified by a nutritionist or veterinarian. In this case, the only ingredient that may be of concern in the salt block would be acorns (the nuts of oak trees). However, the percentage of acorns in the block is probably minimal (less than 5%). A horse would probably not consume more than a few ounces per day, and the resulting intake, equivalent to less than one acorn, would not be enough to cause any problems, especially if the horse has access to plenty of forage.

What may be a concern is whether the horse will lick the block at all. Acorns are typically bitter, and horses not accustomed to them might not lick the block. In light of these concerns, I would suggest purchasing a salt block intended for horses.

Acorn toxicosis occurs when horses consume large amounts of acorns, though it is highly unlikely in the case of the salt blocks you mentioned in your question. Acorns contain tannins, though the amount varies based on the maturity of the nut. Green acorns have much higher levels of tannins than ripe ones. Tannins are also found in other parts of oak trees, especially tender buds, young leaves, and bark. Because the tannins are associated with a bitter taste, horses do not usually consume these things unless there is a shortage of forage. Rarely, a horse will develop an unusual obsession for acorns.  

Signs of acorn poisoningare initially depression, lack of appetite, and colic. Other signs may include emaciation, poor or rough hair coat, increased thirst, mouth ulcers, frequent urination, bloody urine, constipation with hard, dark feces or bloody diarrhea, edema of the abdomen and legs,excessive salivation, slow or irregular heart rate, elevated temperature, pale mucous membranes, watery eyes, and sometimes choke with saliva passing out of the nostrils. 

The type and severity of clinical signs are dependent on how much tannin was ingested and the duration of the poisoning. Tannins are astringents, so they draw fluid out of tissues. Bloody diarrhea is caused by the destructive effect tannins have on the intestinal lining by dehydrating and damaging cells, thus drawing abnormal amounts of fluid into the intestinal tract. Not only do the tannins destroy the intestinal tract, but they can be absorbed and cause excessive damage in the liver and kidneys. This damage may not be immediately apparent but will be obvious within a week of ingestion. Sometimes the horse will die within a day of eating large quantities of acorns, or it may live for five to seven days after the onset of clinical signs. If the liver and kidneys are severely affected, death occurs about 85% of the time unless treatment is administered.

There is no cure for acorn poisoning, and it is usually handled by giving supportive care. Once poisoning is suspected, it is important to remove the horse from the acorn source. Intravenous fluid therapy will help counteract the dehydrating effect of the tannins on cells, flush the toxins from the organs, and prevent kidney failure. Administration of paraffin, mineral oil, calcium hydroxide, or activated charcoal by stomach tube has been recommended to stop further damage from occurring in the intestinal tract and to bind the toxins. Encouraging the horse to eat hay and drink water will also dilute the toxins in the digestive tract. If the horse is colicky or painful, analgesics can be administered.

Bryan Waldridge, D.V.M., a KER veterinarian, responds: The description of the problem fits well with heaves, especially if the improvement coincided with her being turned out full time in the spring. Horses with heaves often work so hard to breathe that they do not want to eat, as they cannot do both at the same time.

It is possible too that the growing fetus puts more pressure on her diaphragm, and if she is mildly affected with heaves already, the increased work to breathe with the larger fetus compounds the problem. No owner wants to hear it, but even good-quality hay is loaded with mold spores and dust.  Other barn-related situations that incite heaves include bedding on straw and storing straw or hay in a loft.

In an ideal world, this mare would live outside at all times. If that won't work, there are some management tips that will help her:  (1) clean and bed her stall only when she is outside; (2) bed on shavings; (3) try hay cubes or pellets to reduce hay exposure; (4) feed hay on the ground; and (5) remove straw and hay from the loft.

It is not unusual for heaves to be seasonal, and she could be treated with steroids to get her over the hump. Some owners worry that administration of steroids will trigger premature foaling, but this is only true for ruminants, not horses.

Cold weather could figure into the cough, but it should not be causing enough respiratory problems for weight loss.

It is important to note that I'm basing my opinion only on how you’ve described the mare’s symptoms. Without seeing her in the flesh, I can't truly diagnose the problem.  You'll need to work with your local vet, who can physically examine the mare and observe her symptoms, before a final diagnosis can be made.  With that caveat, your vet might consider a steroid such as dexamethasone or prednisolone to speed your mare's recovery.  Either can be given by mouth, but a vet will have to prescribe any medication (and perhaps administer the first dose). Finally, steroids alone will not make the mare better without environmental changes.

The old saying “no hoof, no horse” still applies today. Many horses have great potential but cannot succeed because of poor hoof health, and this can be really disappointing. Hoof quality is dependent on balanced nutrition, and the correct building blocks need to be present in the diet to ensure healthy hoof growth. Just to be sure you’re horse’s diet is nutritionally balanced, I would recommend a ration evaluation. Request a KER diet analysis.

Hoof wall is made up mostly of protein. Proteins consist of amino acids, and there are a few specific amino acids that are essential in forming strong healthy hooves. Methionine and lysine are two important amino acids that tend to be limiting, as they can be deficient in horse diets. Without these building blocks, hoof growth is restricted and hoof integrity is likely to be poor. When you look for a hoof supplement, be aware that it should contain methionine in its formulation.

When poor hooves are a problem, an important factor to consider is whether you are feeding enough energy. When a horse is expending more energy than it receives in feed each day, the energy in the diet is reserved for important body functions such as growth, maintenance, and repair of body tissues rather than hoof growth.

Balanced trace minerals are essential for healthy growth of hooves as well as the overall health of the horse. The mineral zinc is involved specifically with the integrity of skin, hair, and hoof, and is essential in a diet designed for hoof health. However, without the correct balance of the other trace minerals, you are unlikely to see the desired results when using a hoof supplement as a quick fix. Chelated zinc is better absorbed and utilized within the body than alternative inorganic zinc sources, so it is a useful ingredient in a hoof supplement.

The vitamin biotin is well-known as a key player in hoof health. Studies have shown that biotin levels of 15-20 mg per day have positive effects on the hoof wall. These effects take approximately 6-9 months to fully manifest, so you do have to be patient and persistent with your hoof-repair strategy.

Balanced nutrition plays a large role in promoting sound hooves. Once you have addressed any dietary imbalances and have double-checked the work of your farrier, and your horse’s hooves are still in poor shape, a well-fortified hoof supplement will supply essential nutrients for hoof growth. Bio-Bloom is one such hoof supplement.

In general, donkeys are much less prone to laminitis than horses or ponies. As with all equids, though, risk is greatest when coupled with obesity. As  long as donkeys have plenty of space to roam, are encouraged to move, and are not supplemented with grain (you can provide them with a trace-mineralized salt), they should keep their weight down and be fine. Keep a close eye on their weight, and if they get too heavy, you may want to consider limiting their access to pasture, particularly during the seasons when it is richest (spring and fall).

Making sure your horse’s tank is filled with fuel for the competition might not be as easy at you think. To understand how to feed before an event, it is important to think about what the horse will need for the competition. Horses will draw on different fuel sources during a competition. The major ones are blood glucose, muscle glycogen (and to a lesser extent liver glycogen), and muscle and stored triglycerides (fat).  How to manipulate these stores can be tricky because it will affect how much energy the horse will have for performance.

The amount of glucose available to the horse at the start of exercise will be relative to the last meal the horse consumed and the effect of adrenaline on mobilizing glucose when the horse is keyed up in anticipation. The timing of the feed can have an effect on the availability of blood glucose. If a grain meal is given within three hours of performance, insulin will be high after the rise in blood glucose from the meal and will be putting glucose into storage instead of having it ready for exercise. The result may be a glycemic crash and loss of energy shortly after starting exercise, because the glucose is both being used and tucked away, so there is a precipitous drop below pre-exercise levels. To avoid this problem, do not offer any concentrate meals within three hours of the start of competition. Forage does not cause the same type of glycemic response and therefore time of feeding is not as critical. 

The only drawback to a gut full of forage is the extra weight that the horse will have to carry. Tapering intake of forage may be of interest if speed is an important issue for the competition. Be aware that with decreasing forage comes an increased risk of ulcer development.

Muscle and liver glycogen will be the fuel you are influencing with feeding the week before a competition. In human athletes, the practice of glycogen-loading was found to be an effective tool at increasing glycogen stores. This was done by depleting glycogen days before a competition with a really hard workout, and then feeding high-carbohydrate meals for the following days to replenish the lost glycogen. With humans, it was found that during the replenishment the levels would end up even higher than before the start of the process.  When the same types of glycogen-loading studies were done in horses, the process was not found to be effective because their muscle glycogen levels are already much higher than humans. Researchers had a problem with horses tying-up in the early studies when they were given higher levels of carbohydrates than the horses were accustomed to. So glycogen-loading is not effective in horses and caution should be used in increasing the feed too much without an increase in the amount of work. Glycogen synthesis does respond to starch in the diet, so having some grain in the diet of a sport horse on a regular basis is advantageous unless the horse has certain genetic muscle disorders such as polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM).

The other fuel the horse will be using during the competition is fat. As long as the horse goes into the competition with good weight, the fat stores should be adequate to fuel the efforts demanded. If the horse is too thin, he will be very dependent on glycogen stores to fuel his work and may not have any staying power. In a study done at a 160-kilometer (100-mile) endurance ride, researchers found that horses with low body condition were unlikely to finish the race. They did not have enough fat reserves to fuel their work effort once the glycogen stores were tapped out. On the other end of the spectrum, it is not good to have too much body condition. The extra layers of fat may adversely affect the horse.  Acting as a layer of insulation, the fat will inhibit the ability of the horse to cool. The fat also adds extra weight to carry around the course and over the jumps.

Feed management at the competition is just as important as feeding before it. If the competition is local and the drive is less than a few hours, there should be no real adjustments to the diet. However, when arriving at the competition a day or more before it starts, it may be advisable to match the intake to the needs of the horse. In other words, if the horse had a long trailer ride or becomes more active from nerves due to being away from home, he may start tapping into those built-up fuel stores before the competition even starts. Under these circumstances, increasing the feed (forage and grain) may be advisable to make sure the horse does not lose too much weight before the competition starts. The key is not to feed more at each meal than the horse is accustomed to, but to add a small meal or two to accommodate the increase. This will prevent any changes in the glycemic response to a meal, yet provide the extra calories the horse may be burning.  

As you mention, it is essential to know a few specifics about the horses being fed in order to determine the amount of protein they require. Generally, mature horses that are asked to perform little or no daily exercise require less protein than young horses that are experiencing tissue accretion through growth or gestating mares that are nurturing a developing fetus. Horses in light work require a small amount of protein to help heal minute lesions that occur throughout the body as a result of everyday wear-and-tear.

I suspect those individuals that inquire about the protein level in a feed believe the nutrient is a key provider of energy. While energy can be derived from dietary protein, the conversion is inefficient. From a metabolic perspective, the breakdown of protein to energy produces more heat than the degradation of carbohydrates or fats. Though usually not a problem, excessive heat production might lead to disproportionate sweating and possible heat exhaustion during demanding exercise in warmer climates. Excessive protein in the diet can increase urination and affect fluid balance, which can be cause for concern in performance horses.

Customer education comes into play at this point. Explain to the customer that energy is better provided by the provision of carbohydrates and fat. Carbohydrates remain the principal sources of energy in horse diets and typically originate from forages and grains. One subgroup of carbohydrates that has been receiving considerable attention includes certain feedstuffs called “super fibers” such as beet pulp and soy hulls. The amount of energy in super fibers is slightly lower than that of cereal grains but is considerably higher than that of typical forages. Super fibers are safer to feed to certain horses than cereal grains because their fibrous nature reduces the likelihood of carbohydrate overload.

Fats are being used increasingly to boost the energy density of rations and as a substitute for rapidly fermentable carbohydrates such as those found in cereal grains. Other benefits of feeding a fat-enriched diet include superior energetic efficiency, improved body condition, and diminished excitability.

In sum, I would like to commend you for taking the time to write. Counter employees at feeds stores are often the only people with whom many horse owners will ever speak to about nutrition. Though many feed retailers like Kentucky Equine Research Team Members make a concerted effort to educate their employees, some do not. For that reason, it is important for horse owners to seek out reputable feed manufacturers that not only employ knowledgeable staff members but also have access to professional equine nutritionists.

Flax plants are grown for both their seeds and their fibers. Horsemen are most interested in flaxseed and its oil derivative, as these products provide nutritional benefits to horses. Both flaxseed and flaxseed oil are rich sources of the essential fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which is converted in the body to the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Whole flaxseed is rarely fed to horses these days as the small, hard seeds cannot be chewed sufficiently to break the seed coat and allow for maximal nutrient extraction. When left whole, flaxseeds are chemically stable. Once they are processed, usually by grinding, they became much less stable and must be fed within a few days unless refrigerated. Flaxseed oil is an easier and more popular way to provide the benefits horsemen seek in omega-3 supplementation: increased immune response, maintenance of healthy membranes, and decreased inflammation, to name a few.

For many years, the conversion of ALA to EPA and DHA has been thought to be efficient. Now, however, a summary of omega-3 research by the International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids (ISSFAL) has questioned the ability of ALA to be changed in the body.

According to the summary, “conversion of ALA to EPA is very low, and to DHA is even less—essentially negligible. These very low conversion rates mean that ALA cannot meet the body’s need for DHA.”

Tom Brenna, professor of nutritional sciences at Cornell University and chairman of the ISSFAL committee that assembled the summary, said, “Each type of omega-3 has distinct functional properties. Seafood/algal omega-3s, also known as long-chain omega-3s, are more potent than terrestrial plant sources of omega-3s and boast certain functions that terrestrial plant-based omega-3s simply cannot perform.”

The summary reported that DHA levels in the body were raised most markedly by consuming “preformed” DHA, such as that found in marine-derived oils.

Though the aforementioned summary included studies involving primarily humans, what impact does this research have on supplementation of omega-3 fatty acids to horses? Foremost, horsemen might look elsewhere for an effective omega-3 supplement. One alternative is oil derived from certain cold-water fish. Fish oil is a direct source of EPA and DHA, so the question of whether or not ALA can efficiently be converted to EPA and DHA becomes obsolete.

Raw fish oils are typically not palatable to horses. Recent advances in deodorization and flavoring technology have made fish oils more palatable. In two-choice preference trials with Thoroughbreds, horses showed no significant preference for either fish oil or soybean oil after four days of side-by-side supplementation. Similar rates of grain intake were noted. EO•3 is one example of a palatable, omega-3 supplement.

The first step is to make sure the ration you’re feeding your two-year-olds contains sufficient energy and fortification. Two-year-old performance horses are an unusual class because they require nutrients for growth as well as additional energy for whatever work is asked of them. Another post on the Answer Exchange details the challenges inherent with properly nourishing two-year-old performance horses.

A qualified equine nutritionist should be consulted to ensure your horses are receiving all the nutrients they require to fuel growth and performance.

Because the skeletal factor most affected by both the beginning stages of training and stall confinement is density/integrity, you may be considering some type of bone-building supplement to prevent consequential loss in bone density. There are numerous supplements on the market with a dizzying array of nutrients, from diatomaceous earth to fish bones. Very few of them have supporting research to substantiate their effectiveness.      

A top choice would be a supplement that includes not only minerals but also bone-building proteins and vitamins. DuraPlex is one such supplement. Research on this product concluded that DuraPlex increased bone mineral density and bone area in both performance horses and growing youngsters. In addition, DuraPlex was shown to prevent the natural demineralization that occurs when access to free-choice exercise is restricted such as when young horses enter a training program or during recuperation from injury.

Hindgut acidosis is most frequently a problem among horses that are fed high-grain diets or those given access to certain lush pasture grasses. Because the quantity of certain sugars in these feedstuffs cannot be digested normally in the small intestine, they pass on to the hindgut. While the hindgut is a wondrous environment for the digestion of fiber, it is not the ideal place for the digestion of sugars. As these sugars are processed in the hindgut, their end products are extremely acidic and certain beneficial microorganisms die off, making the environment ripe for acidosis, or a drop in pH. (Learn more about hindgut acidosis here.) Hindgut acidosis can lead to certain management issues in horses: inappetence, colonic ulcers, recurrent mild colic, stable vices such as cribbing and stall-walking, and decreased performance.

A hindgut buffer keeps the pH of the hindgut at a desirable range, preventing shifts in the fragile microbial population. By maintaining a steady microbial environment, horses are able to digest forages most efficiently. A critical features of any equine hindgut buffer is time-release technology. Encapsulation ensures that the buffer is delivered to the hindgut, where it is needed. Without encapsulation, the buffer would be ineffective by the time in reached the far end of the gastrointestinal tract. EquiShure is a research-proven, time-released hindgut buffer.

Another product available in the United States, RiteTrac, supports total gastrointestinal health by providing antacids and coating agents for the stomch and EquiShure for the hindgut.

Trying to put weight on a poor-doer can be frustrating. I’m glad you mentioned your horse’s dental and deworming programs in your question, as these are always the first things that should be checked when struggling with weight gain. It is difficult to make a change in body condition when these have been neglected.

A constant supply of good-quality forage is essential, and hay should always be available to your gelding, even if he is out at pasture. This will ensure he is consuming the minimum of 1.5% of his body weight in forage daily, and may even help to discourage him from cribbing. It is difficult to say what causes crib-biting, though recent studies have shown a link between feeding practices and stereotypical behaviors. A constant supply of hay may help to relieve boredom and might deter him from cribbing.

It is great that your horse is receiving the recommended daily amount of a high-quality commercial feed, as this will ensure his nutrient requirements are being met.  However, in your situation this amount of feed is not supplying him with enough energy to maintain his weight. Horses burn a lot of energy while crib-biting, and the time he spends cribbing could be better spent eating.  Therefore, you will need to increase his energy intake.

Calorie consumption can be boosted by either increasing the amount of the commercial feed he is receiving or including an additional energy supplement such as stabilized rice bran. Additional energy in the form of fat can be added easily to the diet without creating an imbalance in the level of nutrients your horse is currently obtaining from the commercial feed.  Stabilized rice bran is high in fat and low in starch, and is ideal for increasing energy in a diet and assisting with weight gain. 

If these dietary changes do not result in an improvement in your horse’s condition after four to six weeks, it is important to consider that he might be at risk for either gastric ulcers or hindgut acidosis, two digestive conditions that can cause a decrease in feed utilization and loss of body condition.

Gastric ulceration is a common condition that generally occurs due to lack of forage and high levels of grain consumption, though horses can still be at risk when correct feeding measures are in place.  Because your horse is a cribber, this leads me to believe he might have gastric ulcers, as studies have shown a link between cribbing and gastric inflammation. If your horse has ulcers, you will need to treat them medically. Speak with your veterinarian about ulcer treatments. Once treated, feeding a specially designed ulcer preventative can help buffer excess gastric acid and may aid in reducing cribbing behavior.

Hindgut acidosis is another common condition that can contribute to stereotypical behavior such as cribbing and stall-walking, as well as poor performance. An effective hindgut buffer uses encapsulated technology to bypass the stomach and work in the hindgut. It can help to stabilize pH levels and encourage healthy fiber digestion, which can help with weight gain.

Some horses are metabolically designed to be poor-doers, while others have medical, physical, and environmental reasons for having difficulty maintaining weight. Once you have ruled out digestive health conditions such as gastric ulcers or hindgut acidosis, increasing the caloric intake of the horse is a good way to solve many of these problems.

In your question, you do not mention what the mare was fed prior to her journey to North America. Under the circumstances, it might be prudent to pinpoint what the mare ate when she was thriving in France. The logical place to start would be an attempt to emulate her European diet on American soil. With the variety of feedstuffs available in this country, it might be possible to do just that. Without that information, though, other options are available.

Focusing on forage first, good-quality grass might be the best thing for this mare. Few horses refuse fresh grass. If she has not been turned out recently, be sure to gradually increase her grazing time an hour or so every few days, beginning with a half-hour. If she is at all unsettled in the paddock or pasture by herself, provide a companion for her.

If regular turnout is not an option, give her as much hay as she will eat. At least once a day, remove the uneaten hay and give her fresh hay, making it as tempting as possible. Although she doesn’t like the taste of alfalfa, you could look for another energy-dense legume such as clover. She might find clover more palatable than alfalfa. Grain hays like barley or oat hay are common in France, and she may be accustomed to these. Ask your hay supplier if he has a way to source grain hay.

Chaff (chopped-up hay) is a popular feedstuff in Europe, and she might be familiar with this. It can be fed alone or mixed with a concentrate. Chaff is available in the United States. Your mare may have been fed haylage in France, and this would be much more difficult to obtain stateside.

In terms of a concentrated energy source, you might try high-quality oats. In France, it is common to feed horses straight grains, not textured or pelleted feeds.  Most common are rolled oats or steam-rolled barley and occasionally micronized corn.  If your mare is familiar with eating rolled grains, it may require some patience to get her to eat whole or crimped grains. Adding a slight amount of vinegar to the grains may stimulate her appetite.

Because the mare is not eating well, she may be becoming deficient in B vitamins, which are normally produced in the hindgut.  B-vitamin deficiency is known to affect appetite. A complete B-vitamin supplement is recommended if a horse is not eating normally, if a horse is heavily stressed, or if a horse is in heavy exercise.  Several different B vitamins work together in the body, so a supplement that contains a B-vitamin blend is suggested.

The mare might have other physical problems that are hindering her ability to gain weight. A thorough dental examination by a specialist will rule out any anomalies. An examination by a veterinarian to exclude any subtle pain that might be decreasing appetite would be a good idea, as would a review of the mare’s deworming schedule.

A relatively common problem among sporthorses, especially those in stressful situations, is subclinical acidosis. This syndrome is characterized by fluctuations in hindgut pH, which predispose horses to colonic ulcers. Inappetence with concomitant weight loss is one sign of subclinical acidosis, as is a general sourness in disposition and development of stereotypies (cribbing or stall-walking). The use of a hindgut buffer, designed to attenuate changes in hindgut pH, is useful in these situations.

Although you do not mention the mare’s normal demeanor, you might consider changing her environment if she seems sensitive to the goings-on around her. Instead of a front-and-center stall, choose for her a more secluded one, far removed from the hustle and bustle of a grooming stall or the feed room. Make sure she is still in the company of other horses, though.

If you are looking to round out your horse’s forage-only diet, the best bet is a balancer pellet, which will provide the protein, vitamins, and minerals your horse requires for optimal health. An in-depth review of balancer pellets can be found here.

However, balancer pellets often contain soybean meal because it is a common source of high-quality protein. In fact, it may be difficult to find a balancer pellet that does not contain some type of soy. You would have to contact the manufacturer to determine the ingredients of a particular balancer pellet.

In light of that, try a vitamin/mineral supplement such as this, which does not contain soy or flax but will provide your horse with the nutrients it requires.

First, I would get a current weight on the mare so that you can track weight gain or loss during stall rest. You will then want to monitor her weight on a weekly basis. Using a weight tape is fine for this as long as the same person takes the measurement in an identical manner each time.

Second, as you alluded to, she will require fewer calories. For stall rest, I recommend cutting out all textured or pelleted concentrates and switching to a ration balancer product. This is a low-calorie feed that will provide the amino acids necessary for repair of damaged tissues and the minerals and vitamins required for maintaining the health of the mare. Follow the feeding directions for the weight of the horse. The activity level would be considered maintenance.

Third, provide hay at 1.5-2% of the mare’s body weight. It may take a couple of weeks to figure out the amount of hay necessary to not cause weight gain. It should be mostly grass hay, but giving a little alfalfa may help to prevent the development of ulcers. A mixed hay with grass as the majority plant type is ideal. If you do not have the mixed hay, add a flake of alfalfa per day to the other forage.

To keep the horse from eating hay too quickly and being bored the remainder of the day, you might want to consider one of the special hay bags that allows the horse to get only a little bit at a time.

Careful vigilance will help your normally active horse get through this period of convalescence.

Foals develop OCD lesions (osteochondrosis dissecans) for several reasons, and you are fortunate that throughout the years you have avoided this problem. The following two articles might help you better understand the disease: Bridge the Gap Between OCD and Nutrition and Principles of Bone Development in the Horse.

Some OCD lesions resolve without surgical intervention, but without knowing the particulars of your horse’s case, it is difficult to say. If your veterinarian recommends surgery, then it is probably the best option. If the OCD has been characterized as a chip, surgery will likely take care of the problem before it becomes a chronic issue. The surgery is simple and prognosis is usually very good if surgeons remove all of the chips. Most horses recover without incident from this type of surgery. If the OCD is characterized as a cyst in the joint, the surgery is not as promising and prognosis may be guarded.

Nutritional deficiencies and imbalances can be responsible for the development of OCD lesions. Correcting nutritional problems may prevent future lesions but will do little to help existing ones. If you have never had a problem with OCD lesions in all your years of breeding, I doubt that you have a nutritional problem unless you have made some radical changes recently with your program. 

 One-on-one consultation with an equine nutritionist is your best bet in allaying any fears that your foal’s problem was nutritionally induced.

Horses are given a cresty neck score (CNS) to determine degree of fat deposition and to more easily monitor changes in neck thickness. A narrow range of scores exists; a score of 0 would describe a neck with no crest, and a score of 5 would describe a massive crest that has shifted permanently to one side, called a fallen crest.

If the horse loses weight with a change in diet and activity, it should lose fat out of the subcutaneous layers all over its body.  The fat that accumulates in the neck tissues is a little different than other body fat, and the amount lost on the neck may depend on the breed of the horse. Draft horses and draft crosses, some pony breeds, and Morgan horses may retain a bit more crestiness than members of other breeds. If the horse is hot-blooded like a Thoroughbred, it should lose all of the crest once it has achieved moderate body condition.  Stallions of any breed might retain more crest than mares or geldings because deposition of fat in the neck is a secondary sexual characteristic.

If you can get a EMS horse to a body condition score of 4 or 5 and keep it in a consistent work program, it should resolve a lot of the issues with insulin resistance. The problem is getting the horse to lose that much weight. A structured schedule of near-daily exercise is usually necessary.

Certain feeds are formulated without oats with no detriment to energy density. Many of these use other steam-flaked grains, super fibers, and fat-rich ingredients to make up for the energy deficit left by the exclusion of oats.

Because Pennfield Equine Feed Technologies offers a wide variety of scientifically formulated feeds, I am able to recommend mixing two of the company's feeds, EnduroEvent Ener-G and Fibregized Omega. Neither of these feeds contains oats, but EnduroEvent Ener-G includes easily digested corn among other high-calorie ingredients, so energy is plentiful. Likewise, Fibregized Omega contains beet pulp, rice bran, and soybean oil, all of which are calorie-rich. Gradual adjustments in the mixture offers flexibility in the diet: if an increase in energy is needed, more EnduroEvent Ener-G and less Fibregized Omega can be fed; and if a decrease in energy is indicated, less EnduroEvent Ener-G and more Fibregized Omega is appropriate. 

Remember that no single grain meal should exceed five pounds, so if the daily allotment of grain is ten pounds or more, consider feeding it in three or four smaller meals each day. For horses on high-grain diets, I would recommend the addition of RiteTrac, a gastrointestinal support supplement that protects the stomach from gastric ulceration and the hindgut from subclinical acidosis, a precursor to colonic ulcers.

Continue to feed high-quality hay on a free-choice basis, as this too will add calories to the diet. Because your horse is an athlete and probably sweats regularly, a salt block and perhaps even an electrolyte supplement might be warranted.

Diagnosis of Lyme disease in horses is difficult, so the fact that your mare has been definitively diagnosed increases her likelihood for recovery. I applaud you and your veterinarian for seeking ways to properly support your mare from a nutritional perspective.

Nutritional support lies primarily with immune-building nutritional aids. The benefits of omega-3 fatty acids have been detailed extensively in recent popular press and scientific journal articles. Boosting immunity is just one advantage of supplementing with omega-3 fatty acids, so this seems a natural choice for an immune-suppressed horse. Another advantage is a body-wide reduction in inflammatory responses. In fact, omega-3 fatty acids are thought to reduce arthritic pain, and can possibly reduce the dose of anti-inflammatories used for joint pain.

Select an omega-3 product that has been derived from fish oil, as these contain direct sources of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), two long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. For maximal palatability, marine-derived products such as fish oil should be deodorized and flavored. Check with the manufacturer to be sure the product has undergone these processes.

A well-known immune-strengthening nutrient is vitamin E. Not all vitamin E supplements are the same, so look for a natural vitamin E product (d-alpha-tocopherol, not dl-alpha-tocopherol). Certain products are designed to be absorbed quickly. In a trial conducted at Kentucky Equine Research, the bioavailability of several vitamin E products was measured. Bioavailability proved greatest in a natural-source vitamin E product that used a process known as nanodispersion to deliver the nutrient throughout the body.

Selenium is often discussed hand in hand with vitamin E because it too is essential for proper immune function. A complete diet analysis by an equine nutritionist can verify that nutrient levels, including selenium, are appropriate for your mare.

Because your mare is on antibiotic therapy, I would suggest products designed specifically to keep the hindgut in optimal working order. Yeasts and probiotics come to mind. Products with a diversity of yeasts and bacteria are the best choices because these will repopulate a depleted hindgut with a multitude of species.

The bacteria that causes Lyme disease has a predilection for striking certain areas of the horse's body, and joints are often compromised. To bolster joint health, if this is a concern with your mare, search for supplements that supply a synergistic blend of glucosamine hydrochloride and chondroitin sulfate to provide broad-spectrum support. Sodium hyaluronate may also be helpful for improving lubrication of the joint and increasing the comfort of the horse

Other useful nutrients or additives include vitamin C, alpha-lipoic acid, magnesium, and possibly B vitamins. Each horse should be treated as an individual, certainly from a nutritional point of view but also from a medical standpoint. A strong working relationship with your veterinarian and a nutritionist will help you determine what is best for your mare.

Some horse owners believe that corn does cause excitability or unnecessary exuberance in certain horses. The feed manufacturer that you're currently working with also markets a high-fat, high-fiber feed that contains no cereal grains. I would suggest switching your gelding to this no-grain feed and monitoring his behavior for several weeks. The difference in energy levels between these two feeds is minuscule, so your horse should not experience any changes in weight, provided you do not alter his forage intake.

Cereal grains provide starch to horses, and certain horses will lose a significant amount of energy when starch consumption is minimized. If your gelding becomes too sluggish under saddle, especially for eventing work, you can switch back to the original feed or add a small amount of feed that contains cereal grains.

The amount of hay you're feeding seems to be spot-on. Be sure to give him access to a salt block.

In addition to a change in feed, you might consider adding a thiamine supplement such as B-Quiet Paste or B-Quiet Powder. Thiamine is vital for nerve transmission and carbohydrate metabolism.

It is often very difficult to nail down the exact cause of founder, but obviously something tipped your mare over the edge. Some possibilities might be the growth of grass caused by the rains (which would be very high in sugars), fever, or even the combination of a fresh trim with the high-sugar grass. This may be a one-time problem or a recurring one.

Understanding how to diminish the risk factors may help prevent it from happening again. Keeping your mare at the ideal weight and not letting her gain too much weight is key to preventing further problems, particularly if she is insulin resistant. You may have to be prudent about time out on grass during any fresh growth (spring or fall, or when the grass turns green after a rain from a drought).  Muzzling the horse while turned out may decrease the consumption of grass to the point where it is not a problem.

Feed as little concentrate as necessary to meet the energy and nutrient requirements of the horse. Choose a feed that is high in digestible sources of fiber and low in starch.  Maintain a consistent exercise program.

Your feeding program seems very sound for a horse that may be susceptible to founder.  KER Team Member Brooks Feed has two Phase V products, one textured and one pelleted.  The pelleted version is ideal for this type of horse. There is a slight difference in nonstructural carbohydrates (NSC) between the two, with the pelleted being lower. Because you are feeding such a small amount, it should make no difference whether you feed the pelleted or textured. 

I like that you are adding the All-Phase to compensate for feeding less Phase V than recommended, which is ideal, and All-Phase is low-NSC as well.  If you cut down the amount of Phase V you feed, then you will need to feed more All-Phase.  In general, for every pound (0.5 kg) below the recommended feeding rate add ¼ pound (1 cup) of All-Phase. Match the intake to the body condition needs of the horse, and your horse should do well.

There have been few studies on the effect of energy sources on the reactivity of horses. The one major study that had significant results compared a high-fat diet to a classic low-fat diet, finding that horses were less reactive when fed a high-fat feed.  You’re feeding a high-fat, high-fiber feed, so it would theoretically help him be less reactive. Obviously, the feed is not having the desired effect for you. 

That is not to say that you need to change the diet; in other aspects it appears that you are doing the right thing for him. You may consider adding a vitamin and mineral supplement to balance the supply of micronutrients, because you are feeding below the recommended feeding rate of the concentrate feed.

There are some nutrients or herbs that are thought to have calming effects on horses like magnesium, thiamine (B1), L-tryptophan, inositol, valerian root, and chamomile, just to name a few. In-depth studies on these nutrients and herbs have not been performed in horses. There are numerous combinations of these products available on the market. Whether or not they have a calming effect depends on the individual horse, and how a horse will respond can only be determined by trying different products.

Some horses are just wound a little tighter than their peers, and regardless of what you feed, they are going to react as they see fit to protect themselves.  

From your description, it sounds as though you are doing all the right things to help this horse gain weight. Is he, by any chance, a cribber? One thing I can recommend, since you are feeding such a large amount of grain per day, is a hindgut buffer.

A hindgut buffer is much different than a probiotic. If the pH of the hindgut is too low, it is difficult for the fiber-digesting microbes to efficiently derive energy from the forages in the diet. Probiotics do not improve the pH, and certain types can actually make the pH lower. By balancing the pH, the microbial population becomes more effective and the horse tends to gain weight. One example of a research-proven hindgut buffer is EquiShure.

Like humans, horses have individual metabolisms, and a diet that maintains one horse in average body condition might make another horse of the same breed, size, and age roly-poly. Some horses will not ever carry a lot of excess weight, regardless of the caloric density of the diet.

 Forage pellets are a popular way to feed high-quality forage to horses, especially in the western United States. Corn is likely added to the pellets to boost energy, but as you probably suspected, it’s likely the starch-laden corn that is inciting the tying-up episodes.

 I would suggest going to your feed manufacturer and asking if another pellet is available, one that does not contain corn. Many manufacturers will have an alfalfa-grass blend that contains fortification without starch-rich cereal grains. From a nutritional standpoint, this reduction in cereal grain consumption is an important first step for managing tying-up.

 Because these horses are in work and need more energy, you should probably look into alternative energy sources. The first one that comes to mind is fat, and it can be provided to the horse several ways. Apart from feeding a fat- and fiber-rich concentrate, the addition of soy oil is probably the most popular way to add calories through fat. Horses find it palatable, and it can be drizzled over the forage pellets. It might be difficult to get sufficient oil into the horse in this fashion, considering a goodly portion of it might end up in the bottom of the feed trough. Oil can also be poured over any long-stem forage that’s being offered. Supplemental calories from fat may also be derived from the addition of stabilized rice bran or flax.

 Supplemental vitamin E would also be a worthy addition to these horses’ rations. Because of its antioxidant properties, natural-source vitamin E is a robust cell protectant that seems especially helpful in horses with myopathies such as tying-up. When choosing a vitamin E supplement, select one that is natural, as these are scientifically proven to be absorbed more efficiently than synthetic versions.

 Tying-up is a broad term, and feeding strategies for your horses might differ depending on the cause of the disease. For a review of the various forms of tying up, go here.  More management tips are included here.

 Working with an equine nutritionist as well as a veterinarian to work out the diet that is best for your horses will ensure their comfort and will help maximize their performance.

You mare is lucky to have you in her life again. She is balling up and spitting out hay (called “quidding”) because she has probably lost a significant number of molars (those teeth at the back of her mouth) and cannot actually chew the hay like she should to be able to digest it properly. Unfortunately, this will probably not get any better.  

The ration you are currently feeding looks like an excellent alternative diet for the mare in light of her inability to chew hay.  It is important to keep adequate amounts of alternative forages like the chopped hay, alfalfa pellets, and beet pulp in her diet to keep her digestive tract functioning properly.

As long as your mare is steadily gaining weight, this diet should serve her well.  It appears to be meeting her nutritional requirements. The only minor adjustment to the diet you might consider is to add more selenium; about 0.5 mg per day would meet the optimal recommendation in our diet analysis.

If her manure becomes too loose, you may consider adding some type of yeast product to the diet.

Without having a detailed description of the feed and hay the mares receive, it is impossible to determine if your mares are being properly nourished. If the mares are consuming a properly fortified feed for their stage of life and production and are being offered good-quality hay to maintain body condition, I would say nutrient inadequacy is likely not the issue. Therefore, adding dicalcium phosphate would not be advised.

Because your mares just traveled a long distance and are now in unfamiliar surroundings, stress might have played a part in the development of gastric ulcers. Some horses will begin engaging in vices such as wood chewing or cribbing when the stomach is irritated and painful. Limited access to forage will decrease saliva production and therefore reduce its buffering capacity in the stomach, possibly leading to ulcer formation.

Stress might also be the case if the mares were integrated into a well-established herd. Rearrangement of the social hierarchy might take some time, and certain mares might not handle this stress as well as others. Dominant mares may also be driving away more passive herdmates from forage sources. Observing the mares as they interact might go a long way in determining if there is a behavioral cause. Separation of certain mares may be necessary so that each mare consumes sufficient feed and hay to maintain body condition and mental well-being.

Wood chewing is quite possibly more related to the type of forage provided. Perhaps the mares are not receiving sufficient fiber or the right type of fiber.

Nothing should be done to encourage wood chewing, so avoid setting out cedar posts. Instead, providing an alfalfa-mix hay might encourage them to eat more forage (it is very tasty to most horses), and researchers believe that alfalfa hay has buffering properties that other forages do not provide, which will help with any gastric irritation that is present.

Athough Re-Leve was not designed specifically for horses with ulcers, it can be useful for those horses recovering from them. Because high-starch diets have been implicated as a cause of ulcers, it seems logical that high-fiber, high-fat feeds be used during recovery.One drawback with high-fiber, high-fat feeds is that the fat tends to slow the passage of the feed through the stomach, which might make the horse more uncomfortable, particularly if the ulcers are active (not being treated), but would be advantageous during treatment because the presence of feed in the stomach helps to absorb some of the acid being produced. The high calories from the high-fiber, high-fat feed are particularly useful for maintaining or regaining weight. Horses with ulcers can be very selective about what they eat, so whether the individual horse will eat a high-fiber, high-fat feed such as Re-Leve can only be determined by trying the product. 

Re-Leve comes in two formulations: Original, which has a feeding rate of 6 pounds or more per day, and Concentrate, which has a feeding rate of 3 to 6 pounds per day. If the horse is an easy keeper, I recommend Concentrate, but if the horse has an issue with weight loss or has a high metabolism, I would recommend Original.

It sounds as though your gelding is not getting enough calories for the amount of work he is doing and for the condition you’d like him to carry. Offering slightly more grain increased the calories but perhaps not enough. Although it is impossible to offer exact recommendations based on the general description of your gelding’s diet, workload, and environment, I can offer a few suggestions.

There are several ways of getting additional calories into the horse:  increase forage, increase grain, or add a calorie-dense supplement.  They each have the identical goal of adding calories but work in different ways to accomplish this.

The horse can get calories from the hay, so the first thing I would suggest is to increase the amount of hay being fed. This is the safest way of increasing caloric intake. It does depend on the quality of the hay.  If the hay is poor quality it will do little to increase calories. It may take 3-4 more pounds of hay per day to meet the caloric needs of a 1000-pound horse in moderate work.  I realize in a boarding situation that it is often difficult to get the horse extra hay, but if he will eat more and not waste it, it would be less likely to cause digestive disturbances than the next two options.

Another option for increasing calories is to increase the amount of grain being fed and/or switch to a feed that has more calories. Feeding more is always an option when trying to increase calories and grain is more calorie-dense than hay, so you don’t have to feed as much to get the same amount of calories in the horse. In order to meet the caloric needs of a 1000-pound horse in moderate work with the amount of forage you are currently feeding, it would take 2 additional pounds per day to meet the horse’s energy requirement. If you find a more calorie-dense feed, one with at least 3.3 Mcal/kg, you would not have to feed as much, probably only 1 pound more per day. To find a higher calorie feed look at the fat content on the feed tag: the higher the fat, the greater the number of calories. 

The other option is to add a high-energy supplement to the diet. Examples of high-energy supplements are rice bran and vegetable oil. To get the calories needed it would take 1.6 pounds per day of rice bran.  If adding vegetable oil, it would take 1¼ cup. High-energy supplements add less bulk to the diet, but they tend to be the most expensive option for adding calories.

Any combination of the different calorie sources would also work.  Remember that it takes more calories to gain than to maintain weight, so once the horse reaches the weight that you desire, it would be a good idea to decrease the amount being fed slightly so that the horse doesn’t continue to gain weight. 

It is difficult to discuss dietary recommendations without knowing specific amounts and types of feed and hay you’re feeding and without knowing the body condition of your horse.

Generally speaking, if your gelding is maintaining his weight on his current diet, then he is likely receiving optimal nutrition for his condition, considering Re-Leve was formulated with muscle problems such as PSSM in mind. When reviewing various feeds for your gelding, the percentage of calories from fat sources is the most important factor, not the total amount of fat in the feed. Re-Leve derives about 30% of its calories from fat, and this is ideal for a horse with a diagnosis of PSSM.

Exercise management is a large part of managing a PSSM-affected horse. In your question, you mention that your horse is kept stalled all day. This would be appropriate if he is recovering from an episode of PSSM. However, if he has not had an episode recently, it is important to allow the horse as much turnout as possible, preferably with other horses as this will encourage movement. Return to work requires a careful, thoughtful approach. An example of an appropriate exercise plan can be found here. (Discussion of PSSM begins on page 479 of that document.)

Synchronous diaphragmatic flutter, also known as thumps, is usually caused by low blood calcium, but it can be brought on by low levels of other electrolytes. The phrenic nerve, which signals the contraction of the diaphragm as the horse breathes, runs through the chest and over the base of the heart before it enters the diaphragm. When there is an electrolyte imbalance, the electrical signal for the heart to contract is also conducted through the phrenic nerve and the diaphragm contracts with each heartbeat. When looking at the horse, it is possible to see the thumps or contraction of the diaphragm with each heartbeat.

Because your mare had been doing well, this may be an isolated incident as thumps is not an uncommon finding in endurance horses. Anything that causes a decrease in blood electrolytes (calcium especially, but also potassium and magnesium) can result in thumps, such as sweating excessively to the point of dehydration, being off feed before a ride, or performing at a longer distance than usual. So begin by thinking of anything that may have been different with the horse for this particular ride and that may be the cause.

The recent feeding of alfalfa could be the cause because it is rich in calcium. It seems counterintuitive to think low calcium is usually to blame for thumps and feeding calcium can make it worse. However, when there is plenty of calcium present, it can impair the body's ability to mobilize calcium from body stores such as bone when the horse most needs it. The same thing happens in dairy cows, and less commonly in horses, that are fed an abundance of calcium in late pregnancy and are then diagnosed with lactation tetany or milk fever.

If calcium from alfalfa is the culprit, then I would reduce the amount of alfalfa fed by 50% beginning one week before a ride and supplement with a grass hay. Keep doing the other things that I am sure you already do, such as keeping the horse on feed, giving electrolytes, and paying particular attention to water intake.

Exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH or bleeding) occurs when minute respiratory structures such as capillaries rupture during intense athletic effort, resulting in the presence of blood in the airways. Very few horses demonstrate overt bleeding from the nostrils during an episode of EIPH. Instead, the bleeding is much more subtle, occurring completely internally. A definitive diagnosis is made through visualization of the lower airways by endoscopy and bronchoalveolar lavage.

EIPH occurs predominantly in racing breeds, but horses involved in other disciplines are often affected. Therefore, it is not unheard of for an eventing horse, especially one with a history of racing, to be diagnosed.

Most veterinarians rely upon pharmaceuticals for treatment and prevention of EIPH. However, researchers are investigating the promising connection between omega-3 fatty acids and EIPH prevention. Omega-3 fatty acids play a role in the flexibility of cell walls. Flexibility of the red blood cell (RBC) membranes is crucial, especially during exercise, when heart rate increases, blood thickens, and packed cell volume rises. Increased elasticity of RBCs allows easier passage through narrow blood vessels in the lungs and muscles, thereby improving blood supply and oxygen delivery.

Improved elasticity of RBCs may reduce the incidence of EIPH. Promising results in human medicine have led researchers to explore the effects of a combined dose of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), two omega-3 fatty acids, on reducing signs of EIPH and pulmonary inflammation in horses. Scientists at Kansas State University reported a reduction of EIPH in Thoroughbreds after the horses were fed a diet enriched with fish oil for 83 days. Researchers at the Universityof Liegein Belgiumrecently reported an increase in RBC membrane fluidity in exercised horses fed a diet enriched with DHA and EPA for four weeks. Both of these studies illustrate the possibility that a diet high in omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the incidence of EIPH.

Fish oils (cold-water species) and flaxseed (linseed) oil are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Fish oil is a direct source of EPA and DHA, whereas flaxseed contains alpha-linolenic acid, which must then be converted by the body to EPA and DHA. Though fish oils are typically not as palatable as vegetable oils to horses, new deodorization and flavoring technology has made some fish oils more palatable.

Cotton is grown primarily for its fiber, yet cotton production yields two important byproducts, cottonseed oil and cottonseed meal. Cottonseed meal is not commonly used as a protein source in premium horse feeds because it lacks the amino acid profile found in superior protein sources like soybean meal. Protein quality is determined by the amount and balance of amino acids that make up the protein.

The protein quality of cottonseed meal is considered low because it has about half the amount of lysine normally found in soybean meal. Lysine is essential for proper growth and a healthy immune system, so its presence is particularly critical in feeds intended for growing horses.

Thoughts are mixed as to whether unprocessed cottonseed meal should be fed to horses, as it may contain elevated amounts of gossypol, a toxin that is thought to bind iron and interfere with protein digestion. Gossypol might cause sudden death if ingested in sufficient quantities.

The younger the animal, the more susceptible it is to gossypol toxicity. It should be noted, however, that several studies involving young horses have been conducted using cottonseed meal as a protein supplement. The cottonseed meal fed in those studies had a known level of gossypol, generally less than 0.2%, and no symptoms of toxicity were noted in these trials.

Modern processing methods and production of low-gossypol varieties of cotton have reduced this risk. However, before using large amounts of cottonseed meal in horse rations, horse owners should verify that the gossypol content is within an acceptable range.

Certain feed manufacturers use cottonseed meal in processed feeds. The heat treatment inherent to some processing procedures such as pelleting would most likely inactivate the gossypol, making cottonseed meal safe for inclusion in horse feeds.

 High-protein alternatives to soybean and cottonseed meal exist. The gold standard for protein supplementation is milk casein but it is expensive. Canola meal is a source of good quality protein, and it is used often by feed manufacturers. Other protein sources are sunflower meal, peanut meal, distillers grains, brewers dried grains, linseed meal, and dehydrated alfalfa.

Depending on what other raw materials your local feed manufacturer has available, a combination of different protein sources may provide an appropriate balance of amino acids to a ration balancer. Consultation with a knowledgeable equine nutritionist will alleviate any concerns you may have about providing your soy-sensitive horse with an adequate diet. --Dr. Kathleen Crandell

There is a limited shelf life with commercial feeds, and the expiration date is not always the most accurate guide to when they are no longer usable. Most feed companies would expect a product to be safe to feed for up to two months from the date of manufacture, and it may be reasonable to expect it to be nutritious and safe for three months when kept in the correct environment.  Atmospheric moisture (humidity) is most detrimental to an open bag of feed, with temperature having the next most damaging effect. Once a feed is dumped into a bin, it is exposed to not only higher moisture and possibly heat, but also invasion by insects or rodents. From your description, the feed was probably beyond suitable for consumption if it was losing its color and shape.

With the very small feeding rate (less than 1 cup per day), however, even moldy feed should not have the effect you are seeing on his feet. Palatability decreases as feed deteriorates, and horses tend to refuse to eat moldy feed. The usual effects of mold consumption are colic rather than laminitis.  If the feed is stale but not moldy, it will have an unusual smell, much like the smell of stale crackers. If it is moldy, it will have a strong acrid smell, similar to moldy tack. 

If you are concerned about the horse not eating the feed quickly enough, I would keep it indoors.  Are you feeding any type of vitamin and mineral supplement to your horse? Because he is getting an amount well below the recommended feeding rate, he will not be getting the balance of vitamins and minerals that might be expected. He may be better off with a ration balancer.--Dr. Kathleen Crandell

Assuming you have ruled out a behavioral cause for your mare’s anxiousness in the stall (for example, separation from her herd mates), her irritability, discomfort, and occasional lack of appetite might have their origins in the gastrointestinal tract. Her return to work, possibly more stressful for her than you realize, could exacerbate her anxiety, which might manifest as discomfort.

Gastric ulceration and hindgut acidosis are the two possibilities that come to mind. Though these syndromes are usually the result of feeding management issues, some horsemen believe that anxiety might play a role in their development. A veterinarian can perform an endoscopy to definitively determine if your mare has gastric ulcers. If ulceration is found, the veterinarian will prescribe an appropriate treatment to heal the ulcers, and then you can follow up with an over-the-counter ulcer preventative.

There is, however, no surefire method to ascertain if the mare is suffering from hindgut acidosis, but her symptoms suggest it. A time-released hindgut buffer especially manufactured for horses will likely ease the symptoms of acidosis.

Because your mare is a Thoroughbred that is returning to work after an extended layoff, would not entirely overlook the possibility of some mild form of tying-up. In addition to a well-planned exercise regime of slowly increasing demands, switching her to a low starch, high-fat diet has been known to eliminate the ill effects of tying-up in many horses. Adding a quick-acting natural-source vitamin E supplement such as Nano-E may also provide the additional antioxidant protection she needs to reduce muscle damage during and after exercise. If the muscle soreness continues or worsens, certainly a veterinarian should be consulted.

 Solving problems such as these sometimes requires the cooperation of both veterinarian and nutritionist, working together toward the common goal of finding comfort for your mare.

Cotton is grown primarily for its fiber, yet cotton production yields two important byproducts, cottonseed oil and cottonseed meal. Cottonseed meal is not commonly used as a protein source in premium horse feeds because it lacks the amino acid profile found in superior protein sources like soybean meal. Protein quality is determined by the amount and balance of amino acids that make up the protein.

The protein quality of cottonseed meal is considered low because it has about half the amount of lysine normally found in soybean meal. Lysine is essential for proper growth and a healthy immune system, so its presence is particularly critical in feeds intended for growing horses.

Thoughts are mixed as to whether unprocessed cottonseed meal should be fed to horses, as it may contain elevated amounts of gossypol, a toxin that is thought to bind iron and interfere with protein digestion. Gossypol might cause sudden death if ingested in sufficient quantities.

The younger the animal, the more susceptible it is to gossypol toxicity. It should be noted, however, that several studies involving young horses have been conducted using cottonseed meal as a protein supplement. The cottonseed meal fed in those studies had a known level of gossypol, generally less than 0.2%, and no symptoms of toxicity were noted in these trials.

Modern processing methods and production of low-gossypol varieties of cotton have reduced this risk. However, before using large amounts of cottonseed meal in horse rations, horse owners should verify that the gossypol content is within an acceptable range.

Certain feed manufacturers use cottonseed meal in processed feeds. The heat treatment inherent to some processing procedures such as pelleting would most likely inactivate the gossypol, making cottonseed meal safe for inclusion in horse feeds.

 High-protein alternatives to soybean and cottonseed meal exist. The gold standard for protein supplementation is milk casein but it is expensive. Canola meal is a source of good quality protein, and it is used often by feed manufacturers. Other protein sources are sunflower meal, peanut meal, distillers grains, brewers dried grains, linseed meal, and dehydrated alfalfa.

Depending on what other raw materials your local feed manufacturer has available, a combination of different protein sources may provide an appropriate balance of amino acids to a ration balancer. Consultation with a knowledgeable equine nutritionist will alleviate any concerns you may have about providing your soy-sensitive horse with an adequate diet.

That small amount of fish oil (60 ml) should not give a horse diarrhea, especially if it is divided into two feedings in a day. However, there may be the sensitive individual that reacts differently than the majority of the population. 

If you think your horse might be sensitive, remove all the fish oil from the diet until the diarrhea is resolved. Then start by adding a small amount (10 ml) to the diet for a couple of days to see if the diarrhea returns. If there is no recurrence of diarrhea, then increase the amount in the diet gradually until you are feeding the desired amount.

Though fish oil is an excellent way to furnish omega-3 fatty acids, it is an expensive way to feed fat. About 60 ml per day of fish oil should be enough to supply the necessary omega-3 fatty acids. If you want the horse to consume more fat in the winter, you may consider giving the horse some canola or soy oil as well as the fish oil. With these oils you can feed nearly one-half liter per day if needed.

There has been a long-recognized association with the feeding of high-starch meals and the occurrence of tying up. Consumption of high-starch meals is commonly thought of as the cause of Monday morning disease, seen in work horses that were fed full rations on their day off and then suffered from tying up the following day when pulled out to work.

More recently, researchers have been able to link high-starch intakes to tying up in horses with certain genetic muscle disorders like polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM) and recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis (RER). A horse with PSSM builds up too much sugar (glycogen) in the muscle tissue, and thus responds well to removal of as much starch as possible from the diet. RER horses can tolerate a moderate amount of starch, but a narrowly defined threshold often tips them over the edge.

There are a few nutrients that when deficient or imbalanced can lead to muscle problems such as selenium/vitamin E or calcium. Also when a horse becomes dehydrated and has lost a lot of electrolytes through sweating it can bring on a bout of tying up.

To avoid tying up, make sure the horse has a well-fortified diet with the proper balance of minerals and vitamins; back off or slow down if the horse becomes dehydrated; replace electrolytes when the horse is sweating intensely; and avoid high-starch meals if the horse is suspected of having either PSSM or RER.

There is nothing better for a tired horse than to allow him to graze fresh grass, if it is available. Grass has the benefit of having the right combination of nutrients for energy and a lot of water for rehydration. Letting the horse eat with his head down is also relaxing for the horse and stretches the tired back muscles from carrying the weight of rider or pack. If there is no grass, then hay is the second best. Feeding the hay on the ground and dousing it with water may sneak a little moisture into the horse. Make sure there is fresh water (not too cold) available for the horse. Fiber from the forage in the gut should trigger the thirst response and make the horse want to take a good drink. The fiber and water in the gut form a reservoir of energy and electrolytes for the horse to draw upon to replace what was lost during the long trail ride. Once the horse has gotten a belly full of forage, it would be reasonable to offer a small concentrate meal.

Horses are fed hay in trailers without incident all the time, but there is a slight chance that a horse could choke.  There are a few things you can do to reduce the risk.  Tying the horse so that it is able to get his head down and chew in a more natural swallowing position is one idea. It may seem very convenient when the trailer has a built-in feed bunk, but it can be very uncomfortable for the horse if he cannot step back from the bunk and lower his head. Hay bags work better because the horse can take a bite and then drop his head to chew.  Wetting the hay before putting it in the trailer not only reduces the dustiness in the trailer but also provides moister bites.  Because horses do not particularly like drinking in the trailer, moistening whatever they are eating may ease its passage down the esophagus.  Feeding the same hay the horse is getting at home may be wise if the horse has a tendency to gorge when offered something that is different or more palatable.

Good-quality forage found in pastures goes a long way in meeting a horse's nutrient requirements. Nutrients abundant in green grass are water, digestible fibers, protein, vitamin A (in carotenes), vitamin E and vitamin D (from sunlight). There can be sufficient amounts of macrominerals such as calcium, phosphorus and magnesium. Microminerals like zinc, copper and manganese are present but may be inadequate. Selenium can be deficient, adequate or excessive depending on the area of the country. Sodium is usually low in the forage, so free-choice salt (sodium chloride) should always be available. If the pasture is poor, either in quality or quantity, then the supply of the above-mentioned nutrients would be less. 

Three general types of supplements may be used to balance nutrients that are deficient or missing in the forage, and these vary in what nutrients they offer: vitamin/mineral fortified salt (formulated for horses), vitamin/mineral supplement (fed in small quantities, only appropriate if more calories or protein are not necessary), or commercial concentrate (contain additional calories and protein; the amount of calories needed will dictate whether it would be a low-intake balancer type or a regular commercial feed). 

There is not much difference in the vitamin, mineral and protein requirements between trail horses and other performance horses. The biggest differences would be the amount of calories needed and the form in which the calories are consumed. Forages (grass or hay) provide an ideal source of energy that is constantly available as the horse goes down the trail. Forages are also necessary for a properly functioning digestive tract and act as a major stimulus to the thirst response for water intake. All of these are important for the trail horse.  If the trail horse can get enough calories from forage alone, then the ideal diet would be forage with a vitamin/mineral supplement and salt to supply the other nutrients that are low or missing in the forage. Only if the horse cannot maintain his weight on forage alone is it necessary to add some kind of more calorie-dense feed. 

I understand your concern about the protein intake of your youngster because adequate protein and the proper amino acids are essential for healthy growth. Protein is not the only essential nutrient, however; there are many minerals and vitamins that work together to provide the substrates for optimal growth and development. All of these nutrients combine to produce a sound individual.

In looking at your yearling's diet, it might be deficient in certain nutrients. First, the feed is obviously designed for adult horses and does not supply adequate protein (amino acids), minerals, or vitamins necessary for growing horses. Second, the horse is receiving an amount of feed well below the recommended feeding rate, so the feed fails to deliver the nutrients in the quantities promised on its tag.

I have used KER's innovative ration evaluation software program, MicroSteed, to evaluate how all of the different components of the diet combine to meet the requirements of the horse. The results are given in different forms: one graph shows the amount of each nutrient relative to the requirement at 100%; another graph shows whether each nutrient is being supplied in optimal amounts; a pie chart shows relative contributions to energy from fat, fiber, and carbohydrate; a ratios graph for key minerals; two tables show the amounts of each nutrient supplied and the percentage of the nutrients; and a nutrient-by-nutrient evaluation.

The first report is your horse's current diet. This report is an approximation because I do not have an analysis of the forages or of the concentrate, but I used average amounts of nutrients for the types of forages you described in your question. In the reports, the concentrate feed is a generic 11% with 6% fat, not necessarily the one the horse is consuming, but I feel confident that the values for this feed are most likely very similar to the values of the one your colt is actually receiving. Looking at the intake bar graph, the part of each bar in green represents the portion your horse is receiving from the forage and the yellow represents the portion from the feed. As you will see, the feed offered at 1.5 lb/day does not supply a whole lot of any single nutrient. The protein is actually pretty good because of the quality of forage the horse is eating. You can see that 85% of the requirement for protein is supplied by the forage alone.

The major problem with this diet lies in the mineral nutrition. Bones are made of minerals, and without adequate supplies in the diet, the horse might not develop bone properly. Sodium (Na) and chloride (Cl) make salt, so if the horse has access to free-choice salt, that requirement may be filled. The iodine, selenium, copper, and zinc are particularly problematic. The following reports are included to show three options to balance your colt's diet.

Recommended Diet 1 is the simplest solution, but it might not be feasible if changing the feed is not an option. There are products on the market for the easy-keeper that not only reduce starch and sugar in the diet but also supply the other nutrients needed in a concentrated amount. The product I chose is called Pennfield All-Phase Balancer, and if you look at the report, you will see that with just 2 lb per day, all the nutrients are being supplied at the recommended amount or above. Looking at the pie graph, you can see that a switch in feed does not radically change the energy sources. Also added in this diet is plain white salt. I included this report primarily to show you what a difference it makes in the balance of the diet when the right type of feed for the needs of the individual is fed.

Recommended Diet 2 shows how to balance the current diet with soybean meal and a vitamin-mineral supplement. The horse would need 1/3 lb of soybean meal per day to meet the protein requirement not supplied from the 11% feed. To balance out the minerals, I used a KERx product called I.R. Pellet fed at 90 g per day (90 g = 0.18 lb = 3 oz). Compared to Recommended Diet 1, this diet is weak in calcium and phosphorus content. Of course, whether this is a problem will depend a lot on the forage you are feeding, both the hay and grass.

Recommended Diet 3 uses the Pennfield All-Phase as a protein supplement to top off the protein deficit of the 11% feed, fed at 1/2 lb per day. Using the All-Phase helped the calcium and phosphorus situation a bit over Recommended Diet 2. The vitamins and minerals were still a little low, so I added some of the I.R. Pellet here also, but only 60 g per day (60 g = 0.125 lb = 2 oz) because the All-Phase added to the minerals.

I hope this is of some help to you in understanding your horse's diet.

• Current Diet.pdf
• Recommended Diet 1.pdf
• Recommended Diet 2.pdf
• Recommended Diet 3.pdf

Getting weight on a horse can be frustrating, especially if the cause for the inability to gain is not known. An underlying condition often makes it hard for a horse to efficiently digest the feeds offered. The most common condition is gastric ulcers, but less common afflictions include damaged intestinal lining from persistent parasitic infections, hindgut acidosis, Lyme disease, colonic ulcers, enteroliths, chronic disease, and cancer.

Horses that crib are sometimes difficult to put weight on, and cribbing has been linked to gastric ulcers in certain horses. Your horse does not sound like one that is at high risk for ulcers (24-hour turnout), but it may be something to consider. If you are interested in a supplement that moderates the pH of the digestive tract (stomach and hindgut), KER makes a product called RiteTrac that will be helpful.

I have entered the information you supplied into MicroSteed, KER's state-of-the-art ration evaluation software. The report generated from MicroSteed includes graphs that illustrate how your horse's diet stacks up against his requirements.

Some of my observations:
Because I do not have analyses of the exact feeds you are giving, I used average values for each type, so this is an approximation to identify trends in the diet. The first thing I should explain is that I used oat hay in the evaluation because I could not find information on "four-way grain hay." Another substitution is Triad for the probiotic, as you did not mention the brand you use. The other ingredient I used was rice bran without added calcium. The results of the evaluation would be very different if the rice bran you are currently using has added calcium, because my first observation is that there is a poor calcium-to-phosphorus ratio (0.8:1). This may not be a factor for your gelding's reluctance to gain weight, but it certainly could be a problem for the health of his bones. A skewed calcium-to-phosphorus ratio, for instance, can lead to nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism. 

The calcium-to-phosphorus ratio should never be below 1:1 and ideally should be closer to 2:1. The diet has sufficient amounts of calcium but way too much phosphorus, due largely to the inclusion of oats and rice bran, which bring the ratio out of balance. You should add more calcium to correct the imbalance. If you feed a rice bran product with at least 2% calcium, there would not be an imbalance issue. If that is not an option, then adding calcium carbonate or limestone at a minimum of 2 ounces per day would bring the calcium-to-phosphorus ratio back to normal.

Your horse is receiving calories well beyond his requirement. This is an indication that the horse has a high metabolism, works harder than perceived, runs a lot in the pasture, or, most likely, that he is not digesting his food well enough to get sufficient calories to maintain moderate weight. This could be due to one of the aforementioned problems or just the way the horse is physiologically hardwired.

The way to deal with this is to increase the energy density (calories) of the diet. There are roughage sources that are more calorie-dense and digestible than cereal hays such as the one you're feeding. Examples are alfalfa, alfalfa pellets, or beet pulp. For some senior horses, feeding the more digestible forages is the only way to maintain proper body condition. You may want to try to replace 5 pounds of the cereal hay with alfalfa hay. Another option would be to include 1-2 pounds per feeding of alfalfa pellets with the oats and rice bran. If you choose to try beet pulp, soak 1 pound (dry weight) and feed it mixed with the oats and rice bran. 

Another option includes increasing the amount of oats and/or rice bran to boost calories, but I am a firm believer in trying to maximize the amount of calories from forage (roughage) before increasing starches or fats.

The vitamin E level in your gelding's diet is a little low, so you may consider a natural vitamin E supplement like Nano-E. This may have a positive effect on the horse's immune system. In my nutritional analysis, I assumed light work but if in fact he is in heavier work you may want to consider some type of vitamin/mineral supplement like I.R. Pellet. This product would supply additional nutrients to meet the requirements, especially those that were borderline for a horse in light work. 

I have entered the information you supplied about your horse's diet into MicroSteed, KER's state-of-the-art ration evaluation software.  The report is tailored to the breed, age, weight, metabolism, and activity level of your horse.
 

Since I do not have analyses of the exact forages your mare is getting, I used average values for each type, so this is an approximation to identify some trends in the diet.  I did have all the information for both the Fibregized and the All-Phase for the ration evaluation, as Pennfield is one of KER's valued Team Members. You did not mention whether she has access to salt, but it is recommended to allow free-choice salt, whether it is white or mineralized, block or loose. 

As you suspected, Fibregized is not the right feed for your mare because the feeding rate is too high for her caloric needs, and she is currently not consuming sufficient trace minerals for optimal health. Your mare is the perfect candidate for All-Phase, as 1 pound per day (1/2 lb per feeding) is all that is needed to meet requirements. Should you choose to feed All-Phase, please remember to weigh it because the All-Phase pellets are denser than the Fibregized and may fill the scoop differently. Pennfield has some convenient All-Phase feeding cups that measure out exactly one pound; ask your feed dealer to get one for you.

If you get to the point where you think that even 1 pound per day of All-Phase is too much, KER has another option for the super easy keeper called I.R. Pellet. This is designed to be fed at 4 ounces per day alone or mixed with a handful of feed.

You're correct in thinking that your mare is not receiving all of the nutrients she requires from the lite feed you've been giving her. In order for that to happen, you'd have to feed the minimal amount listed on the feeding directions. Though I cannot be sure, the feeding rate is probably 4 or 5 pounds daily. In feeding that much, you're upping the calorie-density of her diet, exactly what you'd like to avoid.

Kentucky Equine Research (KER) developed a supplement called I.R. Pellet that was specifically designed for situations like yours. Your mare would receive 60 g of I.R. Pellet each day and that would provide all the vitamins and minerals she needs without the additional calories that come from using a feed. I.R. Pellet is packaged in a 4.5-kg bucket and lasts 75 days. It works out to be about $1.00/day.

If you're looking for a slightly less expensive option, you can switch her to a well-formulated balancer pellet that would provide her with essential nutrients at a feeding rate of about 2 pounds per day. One such product is Stamm 30, manufactured by KER Team Member Hallway Feeds. Of course, this will increase her caloric intake.

The nutrition and exercise physiology studies conducted at Kentucky Equine Research (KER) help our nutritionists formulate the best products for KER Team Members. Located on six continents, our Team Members are usually regional feed manufacturers that seek advice and formulation assistance from the equine nutritional experts at KER. For the most part, Team Members are spread out over the globe with little territory overlap, but some of our larger and more progressive Team Members are branching out into new markets.

Since both feeds are formulated by KER and produced by KER Team Members, you can be sure that the feeds are optimally fortified with a KER micronutrient package (a blend of high-quality minerals and vitamins) and provide top-notch nutrition. These feeds will meet KER's recommended intake of each nutrient when fed as directed, in combination with an appropriate amount of good-quality forage, to the class of horse for which each feed is intended.
 

While feeds from both companies might have similar ingredients, the ingredients might be added in varying proportions or processed differently. For example, one feed producer may choose to use whole grains while another manufacturer might process grains by steam flaking, rolling, crimping, or cracking. So, while there are likely differences between the composition of feeds and manufacturing processes, products from both companies are outstanding, top-drawer choices. You won't go wrong with either product.

I hope this explains why you have found KER-formulated feeds in the same area of the country.

Adding weight is oftentimes a long-term goal. It seems you've done all of the health maintenance necessary to ensure he's physically capable of gaining weight such as attending to his teeth and administering an antiparasitic agent.

The feeding program you've devised is a great place to start. Re-Leve Original is an appropriate feed for this laminitis-prone gelding. You should be able to safely feed him up to 12 pounds per day. Because you don't want any single meal to be over five pounds, it would be best to divide this amount into three or four feedings. Many horses seem to do better with smaller, more frequent concentrate meals, especially when an increase in body condition is the goal.

The forage component of the diet might need to be tweaked. When he is stalled, he should have access to as much high-quality hay as possible. The alfalfa cubes will add calories to the diet as well. Even though turnout is important for all horses, it does little good for an underweight horse if there is not sufficient forage to eat. Is there a way to increase forage consumption when he is pastured? Can he be fed hay during his 12 hours of turnout?

Competition for the hay would the principle concern; if he is not at the top of the pecking order, you might end up feeding a horse you didn't intend to. Can he be placed with another underweight horse so that both might benefit from additional high-quality forage?

If it is not possible to increase forage intake during his turnout time, you might want to consider leaving him stalled for more hours of the day, with just a few hours outside. Once he has gained weight, he might be able to go back to the 12-hours-on/12-hours-off arrangement.

Cooperative Plus Inc. (CPI) is a valued Kentucky Equine Research (KER) Team Member, so I was able to find out that the amount of lysine in CPI Equi-Balancer is 1.9%. Lysine is an essential amino acid, especially important for growing horses.

Recommended amounts of CPI Equi-Balancer for young growing foals will depend somewhat on the expected mature weight of the foal. For a foal with an expected mature weight of 1000-1200 pounds, the following would be appropriate:

Age 4-8 months:  1 pound Equi-Balancer per day, and

Age 8-12 months:  1.25 pounds Equi-Balancer per day.

You should not need any other supplements as long as you have quality hay/pasture available. You can feed the amount of oats and/or beet pulp needed to maintain the foal's weight and support adequate growth. A general rule of thumb is 1 pound of feed for every month of age up to six months (including the CPI Equi-Balancer) and 6-8 pounds per day for foals 6-12 months of age. The advantage of feeding CPI Equi-Balancer or any other balancer pellet is that you can supply all the essential vitamins, minerals, and protein without extra calories. Then you can control calorie intake with the amount of oats and beet pulp you feed.

Here are some reasons why the mares in your area are not coming into estrus.

1.  Because of your proximity to the equator and little change in daylight hours, mares will often cycle year-round. However, reproductive specialists have found that mares near the equator will sometimes shut down for 3 or 4 months to reset their reproductive tracts, much like what mares in the temperate areas experience. If everything else appears normal with the reproductive tract, then perhaps what you are seeing is a temporary shutdown. If this is the case, then the best plan of action is to just wait and let them come back when they are ready.

2. If mares are in poor body condition or are losing weight, they are less likely to show signs of estrus. Also, mares that are protein-deficient may not ovulate. This is Mother Nature's way of helping mares so they do not get pregnant at a time when they cannot physically support a growing fetus or nursing foal.

3. When mares have been given anabolic steroids (commonly used on the racetrack and with halter show horses), it wreaks havoc on their estrous cycles. After ceasing use of the steroids, it may take up to a year to get the mares' hormonal cycles straightened out.

4. Physical problems or states will keep mares from coming into estrus: pregnancy, cystic or damaged ovaries, uterine infection, endometritis, pseudopregnancy, etc.  All of these should be diagnosed and treated by a veterinarian.

Suggestions:

1.  Make sure the mares have a balanced diet so there are no deficiencies or excesses.  The diet should also provide plenty of energy so that mares are gaining weight if they are too thin. For obese mares the diet should maintain weight, but it is not the time to try to slim down the mares. The particular nutrients to pay attention to are vitamin A and vitamin E. Omega-3 supplementation may also be useful.

2. In the United States, it is very common to use artificial lighting to lengthen the daylight hours so that the mares start cycling in December and January. The goal is to have the mares spend 16 hours in light and 8 hours in dark. At the equator, the day and night are equal in length--12 hours light and 12 hours dark. I am not sure how much your daylight differs from this. Perhaps putting the mares under lights for 16 hours may have an effect. The light needs to be strong enough to have an effect; a 200-watt bulb is sufficient for an average stall. 

3. Hormones can be used to regulate estrus in mares. If mares are not showing signs of estrus, progesterone (injectible, implant, or the oral product Regumate) can be given for 10 to 14 days and then followed with prostaglandin. Mares should come into heat in 3-5 days. This method is used commonly to synchronize herds that are scheduled for artificial insemination (AI).  This may not work if mares are in anestrus, but it is useful if mares are in the transitional phase (moving from anestrus to estrus).

4. The presence of a stallion on the farm, especially if he is in close proximity to the mares, can help to bring mares into estrus. Even if there is no breeding stallion, a teaser stallion or a hypermasculine gelding can be useful, particularly if he is vocal and will call to the mares. Bringing the stallion or teaser up to the mares on a daily basis has been shown to increase signs and detection of estrus. 

5.  I am not aware of any herbal remedy or specific nutrient that would help jumpstart mares into cycling. Tryptophan was tested as a supplement for reversing winter anestrus and was not successful in the Northern Hemisphere. Perhaps it may have a different effect on mares that are already in sufficient daylight hours, but I am not aware of any studies on mares in the equatorial region. 

Thank you for your interest in KER.  If you are referring to the All-Phase mentioned on the KER website, it is not available in the United States, only internationally. However, several of the KER Team Members carry similar products, so be sure to ask your feed supplier for a comparable feed. 

Because your gelding is growing, it is critical that he consume more essential vitamins, minerals, and protein than most adult horses. So, while he may grow on a hay-only diet, to ensure proper, healthy bone growth and development, a supplement of some sort is recommended. I use software called MicroSteed developed by KER to evaluate the nutritional adequacy of a diet. The program uses information about the horse (age, breed, growth rate, etc.) to establish a custom set of requirements specific to that horse.

I found it difficult to meet the energy, protein, and calcium requirements for your gelding when I used timothy pellets instead of alfalfa. Some nutritionists recommended avoiding alfalfa, but for the growing horse, it is an excellent addition to a balanced diet when fed in limited quantities. For illustrative purposes, in the evaluation I used 12 pounds of bermudagrass hay, 6 pounds of alfalfa, and 1 pound of a ration balancer. If your horse is showing signs of physitis, this would be an appropriate diet.

Using timothy pellets, it would take 10 pounds per day as well as 12 pounds of bermudagrass to achieve a similar level of nutrition that the diet with alfalfa provides. I would be surprised if you could get a yearling to eat that many hay pellets.  

The recommendation for a growing horse with developmental orthopedic disease (DOD) is to feed a restricted diet by reducing the amount of starch in the diet, limiting calories, and supplying all the protein, vitamins, and minerals needed by the individual for healthy growth. KER-formulated ration balancers supply these essential nutrients missing in forage-only diets without adding significant amounts of starch. More information on feeding foals to prevent DOD.

If your horse has been examined by your veterinarian and there is no reason for weight loss caused by his injury, any drugs that he may be receiving, or any other medical reason, then increasing calories should help with weight gain. Another reason horses sometimes lose weight when kept up is the expenditure of calories while engaged in stall vices such as weaving or stall walking.

One safe way to increase calories is to keep hay available at all times, which also gives the horse something to do and usually improves any stable vice behavior. Simply feeding more of what he is already eating would also boost caloric intake. I usually recommend gradually increasing the amount fed every 2-3 days to prevent any gastrointestinal upset. Fat can also be added to the diet as either rice bran or corn oil. Fats contain many more calories on a per-weight basis than carbohydrates. There are several commercially available rice bran-based pellets. Corn oil can be fed beginning at 1/2 cup twice a day for one week, then increased to 1 cup twice a day in the feed. Some horses will eat up to 2 cups of corn oil in their feed twice a day.

If the horse is not eating, it is possible that he has gastric ulcers, which can only be diagnosed with gastroscopy. A trial with omeprazole or other anti-ulcer drugs may also improve his appetite, if ulcers are present.

I recommend feeding to ideal body condition, a weight in which the horse's ribs can be easily felt but not seen. If there are no medical problems to affect weight gain, gradually increase calories with either more feed or by adding fat to get back to ideal body condition.

Creep feeding, a feeding system that ensures mares do not consume concentrate meant for the foals, is still practiced, but there have been changes in how much and what type of feed is offered in the creep feeder.

Years ago the all-they-can-eat approach to creep feeding was commonplace. Horsemen would offer foals as much concentrate as they would consume in an attempt to induce maximal growth. One obvious peril of this approach included over consumption, which would sometimes lead to accelerated growth and its associated effects such as contracted tendons. Aside from growth and soundness issues, certain foals would become too fat. Young horses should be kept in moderate body condition, as extra weight places unnecessary stress on the dynamic musculoskeletal system. In addition, constant access to feed could be detrimental to gastrointestinal function. Some foals might consume far more feed than is healthy for optimal digestion.

Most well-formulated feeds intended for growing horses on the market today have feeding rates that are much more reasonable and healthy. Generally, foals and weanlings are offered about one pound daily per month of age. A six-month-old weanling would consume six pounds of feed each day, ideally split into two meals. The smaller meal size increases the likelihood that the nutrients will be properly processed in the gastrointestinal tract.

Perhaps even more important than how much feed is being offered to young horses is the type of feed. The source of energy for young horses should be evaluated, as hyperglycemia or hyperinsulinemia have been implicated in the development of osteochondrosis when certain young horses are fed high-starch concentrates. In a large-scale field trial conducted by Kentucky Equine Research, the effects of typical concentrates on glycemic response were measured on more than 200 Thoroughbred weanlings. A glycemic response test was carried out on each weanling after it was fed a meal of traditional concentrate.

A single blood sample was taken two hours after feeding to determine glucose and insulin levels. A high glucose and insulin response to a concentrate meal was associated with an increased incidence of osteochondrosis. Though more research is needed to substantiate the link between high-starch feeds and osteochondrosis, many feed manufacturers offer feeds that contain less starch and more fat and fiber to meet energy demands.

One goal of feeding young horses is to keep growth at an even pace, thus avoiding any significant growth slowdowns or spurts. This can be achieved by monitoring body condition on a regular basis and evaluating the diet with a professional equine nutritionist.

If your horse is being fed good-quality forage and a well-formulated concentrate and he’s staying in moderate body condition, then he is probably not a candidate for a low-starch concentrate.

Low-starch concentrates were created by nutritionists to help horses diagnosed with metabolic conditions such as tying-up (recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis and polysaccharide storage myopathy), Cushing’s disease, and equine metabolic syndrome. Scientific investigation revealed that horses with these conditions benefited from a reduction in starch intake. However, these horses represent only a small portion of the horse population. Because low-starch products are rather commonplace now and because they are unquestionably useful for certain horses, more and more horsemen believe their horses should be consuming them, even when there is no medical or nutritional basis.

Owners of overweight horses sometimes believe that a low-starch concentrate is appropriate, even necessary, for their charges. Just because a horse is obese does not mean that it is insulin resistant. Over time obesity might lead to insulin insensitivity, thereby setting the stage for health problems, but obesity without an accompanying metabolic condition can usually be managed without using a low-starch concentrate.

Successful management of obesity involves two key elements, a decrease in calorie consumption and an increase in exercise. Reducing calorie intake will typically involve feeding quality grass hay (not alfalfa, as it’s too calorie-dense) and a concentrated supplement that will supply the horse with the nutrients it needs for optimal health.

Exercise can take many forms, but there is no question it is an important part of the weightloss equation. Some researchers feel exercise might be the most critical component in sidestepping insulin resistance. This belief was recently supported when Kentucky Equine Research (KER) assessed a group of nearly 200 sport horses (hunters, jumpers, dressage horses), many of which where overweight.

Only about 10% of horses with a body condition score of 7 or greater (considered fleshy with noticeable deposition of fat) were found to be hyperinsulinemic (high levels of insulin in the blood). This differs considerably from a previous study in which 43% of horses with a body condition score of 7 or greater were found to be hyperinsulinemic.

The earlier study involved horses with inactive lifestyles. The horses in the KER study were subjected to near-daily physical conditioning. Therefore, it seems as though overweight horses in regular training are less likely to be hyperinsulinemic than sedentary obese horses.

While it might be tempting to jump on the low-starch bandwagon, be certain it is appropriate for your horse. Consultation with an equine nutritionist is the best way to ensure your horse is on an appropriate diet.

As you mention, it is essential to know a few specifics about the horses being fed in order to determine the amount of protein they require. Generally, mature horses that are asked to perform little or no daily exercise require less protein than young horses that are experiencing tissue accretion through growth or gestating mares that are nurturing a developing fetus. Horses in light work require a small amount of protein to help heal minute lesions that occur throughout the body as a result of everyday wear and tear.

I suspect those individuals that inquire about the protein level in a feed believe the nutrient is a key provider of energy. While energy can be derived from dietary protein, the conversion is inefficient. From a metabolic perspective, the breakdown of protein to energy produces more heat than the degradation of carbohydrates or fats. Though usually not a problem, excessive heat production might lead to disproportionate sweating and possible heat exhaustion during demanding exercise in warmer climates.

Excessive protein in the diet can increase urination and affect fluid balance, which can be cause for concern in performance horses. Customer education comes into play at this point. Explain to the customer that energy is better provided by the inclusion of carbohydrates and fat. Carbohydrates remain the principal sources of energy in horse diets and typically originate from forages and grains.

One subgroup of carbohydrates that has been receiving considerable attention includes certain feedstuff s called “super fibers” such as beet pulp and soy hulls. The amount of energy in super fibers is slightly lower than that of cereal grains but is considerably higher than that of typical forages. Super fibers are safer to feed to certain horses than cereal grains because their fibrous nature reduces the likelihood of carbohydrate overload.

Fats are being used increasingly to boost the energy density of rations and as a substitute for rapidly fermentable carbohydrates such as those found in cereal grains. Other benefits of feeding a fat-enriched diet include superior energetic efficiency, improved body condition, and diminished excitability.

In sum, I would like to commend you for taking the time to write. Counter employees at feeds stores are often the only people with whom many horse owners will ever speak about nutrition. Though many feed retailers like Kentucky Equine Research Team Members make a concerted effort to educate their employees, some do not. For that reason, it is important for horse owners to seek out reputable feed manufacturers that not only employ knowledgeable staff members but also have access to professional equine nutritionists.

You bring to the table an important topic in equine nutrition: oversupplementation. Most horse owners want their horses to receive the best possible care, even if this dictates that diets be augmented with nutritional supplements. First, you should realize that there is nothing inherently wrong with many of the nutritional supplements on the market today. Several fill critical voids in the nutritional profile. For instance, a well-formulated vitamin and mineral supplement might be perfect for an easy keeper that maintains his weight on only mid-quality forage. Other products target specific problems and these too might be quite useful in a particular situation.

Problems occur, as you allude to, when individuals not well versed in nutrition make decisions about a horse’s diet. While owners and caretakers may think they’re doing what is most beneficial for the horse, feeding too many supplements can backfire.

One of the most widespread problems with supplementation is the provision of excessive amounts of nutrients. This problem can snowball quickly, especially when multiple supplements are given over an extended period. Consider minerals, for example.

When nutritionists formulate feeds, they know well the ins and outs of mineral digestibility, including the various interactions that occur among minerals in the body. With this knowledge, they are able to determine how much of each mineral should be supplied in the daily ration to meet the horse’s needs without setting up a potentially harmful overload. If a concentrate is fed according to the directions on the feed bag, the horse receives appropriate mineral nutrition for its stage of life and workload. As supplements are added, however, the nutritional profile of that ration changes, sometimes considerably. If sufficient products are heaped into a ration, problems may ensue.

Aside from the health of the horse, oversupplementation is expensive. In this day and age, most equine athletes can benefit from supplementation at one time or another. Electrolyte preparations, for instance, are appropriate for horses that sweat on a near-daily basis.

On the other hand, a horse doing light work in a cool climate may not need an electrolyte. The cost of supplementation can skyrocket as more and more products are given, with some horsemen actually spending more money on nutritional supplements than they do on a well-formulated concentrate. As mentioned previously, these expenditures may be totally unnecessary.

Equine nutritionists are the go-to individuals anytime a question concerning your horse’s diet arises. Those nutritionists at the forefront of research can conduct a thorough nutritional evaluation of your horse’s diet and tell you exactly what your horse requires and what, if anything, is missing or being fed in excess.

The opinion of the veterinarian that oversees the health of your horse is a critical component of a nutritional evaluation, and that opinion can offer valuable insight into certain medical conditions that might affect nutritional status. Therefore, collaboration amongst the nutritionist, the veterinarian, the caretaker, and the owner is the best possible scenario in deciding what nutritional supplements your horse actually needs.

First and foremost, keep in close contact with your veterinarian. In addition to the general feeding guidelines I will outline here, your mare may require specialized care such as that given by a competent equine dentist. An appropriate deworming schedule, one based on your geographic region, should be formulated for the mare and instituted immediately. In addition to a vigorous deworming protocol, there may be a need to determine if the mare has gastric ulcers. Horses that have been cooped up in stalls or similar enclosures without access to fulltime grazing are prone to gastric ulcers, and their presence may hinder weight gain. Gastric endoscopy can be performed by a veterinarian to determine the presence of ulcers.

As far as a nutrition program for this mare, start with the foundation, which is always forage. If a way can be found, the mare should be allowed to graze as much as possible. In most areas of the country, pasture offers up little in the way of high calorie options at this time of year. However, being able to roam and nibble grasses at will should help any lingering problems with gastric ulcers, if they were indeed a problem. In addition to whatever pasture she can rustle up, the mare should be given plenty of good-quality hay at a rate of at least 2.5% of her body weight. Type of hay is not as important as quality of hay, though some high-calorie alfalfa may add a few more calories. If she cleans up her hay, be sure to throw her another flake or two.

 In the pursuit of weight gain, forage alone will not provide sufficient calories. Therefore, a well-formulated concentrate or grain mix must be supplied. Because of the mare’s condition and the desire for her to gain weight, a high-calorie feed would be appropriate. These feeds tend to have elevated levels of fat and fermentable fiber, dietary components that add much-needed calories to the diet. Though total daily intake should not exceed recommended levels, these feeds are generally safer to feed than traditional concentrates because of their low starch content. Remember, no more than five pounds of grain should be fed in any one meal.

Once the mare has acclimated to this new diet—and this may take several weeks—additional energy sources may be added. Typically, these include vegetable oils or rice bran, both of which are high in fat. The daily allotment of fat supplement should be spread between meals.

As soon as the mare arrives at a suitable weight for her frame, her diet must be adjusted to maintain that weight. The fat supplements should be the first components removed from her diet. From there, her concentrate intake can be tweaked. Be sure to always offer plenty of nutritious forage. An important thing to remember: Weight gain takes time.

There is no way to fuel weight gain except through increased consumption of calories in the slowest and safest way possible. Once the mare has been successfully switched to an appropriate diet and any health issues have been resolved, she will begin to gain weight and will then be in optimal condition to conceive a foal and carry it to term.

By the time a horse has reached its second birthday, there is little question that it has achieved the majority of its mature height. A horse may still grow a couple of inches, but vertical growth is nearly complete. Absolute skeletal maturity does not occur till much later in life, perhaps at around six years old.

As you allude to in your question, the two-year-old horse, particularly a Saddlebred, probably does not have the appearance of a mature horse because it might lack the width and breadth across the chest and quarters, and the depth of barrel and flank. The volume of muscling is also likely not near that of an adult horse.

While vertical growth might be almost complete, the skeletons and other tissue systems of the two-year-old horse are far from mature. Therefore, in feeding two-year-old horses, owners and trainers must take into account the nutrients needed for growth and performance.

Little research has been done to quantify the nutrient requirements of horses this age. Requirements for two-year-olds are derived largely from combining information about the nutritional needs for growth and performance. Kentucky Equine Research (KER) found that the quantity of a well-formulated, properly fortified concentrate necessary to sustain moderate exercise often contains sufficient nutrients to support growth. Because of a fairly high level of intake (but never more than five pounds in one feeding), most high-quality concentrates contain adequate protein, calcium, and phosphorus for two-year-olds. Though it doesn’t appear to be the case in this instance, if calorie intake must be restricted in two-year-old, higher levels of vitamin and mineral fortification might be indicated.

As you pointed out, there are risks involved in feeding large concentrate meals. You can replace a portion of the concentrate with a high-fat supplement such as vegetable oil or rice bran. These energy-dense supplements will add calories to the ration but not much volume, so meal size stays the same or decreases.

Another strategy is to feed the same amount of grain but separate it into more than two meals. A midday meal will significantly decrease the size of the morning and evening meals. Be sure horses have high-quality hay to eat at all times during the day. Not only will this decrease boredom and reduce the likelihood of gastric ulcers, but it will increase calorie consumption.

In conclusion, the nutrient requirements of the two-year-old are intermediate between the growing foal and the adult performance horse. If a two-year-old is in training, it can be fed any high-quality concentrate that would typically be fed to adult performance horses. The elevated level of feed intake needed to meet the energy demands for exercise will provide the nutrients needed for growth.

Congratulations! Owning a horse may be one of the greatest joys in your life. I think what your parents are trying to convey is that responsible horse ownership does not require that you know how to resolve every challenge of horse management. What is critical, however, is that you know where to go to find competent answers. That quality is called resourcefulness, and it is a gift that should be nurtured and used throughout life.

Are you involved in 4-H, FFA, or Pony Club? Adult leaders of these groups are often knowledgeable horsemen and horsewomen with horses of their own, and they will be glad to help you should you have a question about feeding your horse. The advantages of becoming a member of one these groups are incredible. Fellowship and educational opportunities abound for children and young adults. I encourage you to find out if one or more is available in your area. If possible, join and learn!

Where will you purchase your horse’s feed? If you’re like most horse owners, you will become loyal to a local feed company. Sometimes these stores will employ an individual that has many years of practical experience in handling and feeding horses.

This person should be able to recommend a feed that is appropriate for your horse based on the forage (hay or pasture) that it is consuming, but he or she may not be able to answer more convoluted nutrition questions.

Often, locally owned feed companies work with large consulting firms that employ scientists devoted entirely to horse nutrition. So, if the employee at the feed company cannot provide an answer to a given question, he may be willing to pass along your query to a more knowledgeable individual.
 

Don’t forget your veterinarian, the very person that has made a lifelong commitment of caring for animals. As you know, veterinarians do more than stitch wounds and administer vaccinations.

They often possess a wealth of information about feeds and feeding management, and how mismanagement might adversely affect a horse’s health. Occasionally, a veterinarian will not feel comfortable dispensing in depth nutrition advice but will gladly give you the name of a nutrition expert to contact.

With a little resourcefulness on your part, you will find that many people are willing to help you make the right nutrition choices for your horse. All you have to do is ask!

Horsemen can learn lots of interesting tidbits by simply observing horses. You’ve come across a worthy fact yourself: horses find the flowering heads of thistles flavorsome. Horses typically stumble upon thistles as they investigate their surroundings, rarely seeking them out as they might a patch of tasty clover. Interest in thistles wanes quickly, and few horses will spend considerable time devouring them if more succulent plants are available. The prickles and spines of thistles may deter some horses, but determined browsers, with their mobile lips, can pluck off the flowered head without getting so much as a prick from spiky plant structures.

For the most part, members of the thistle family—those with blue, pink, or purple flowers—are harmless and safe for horses to nibble. However, a few species of thistle are toxic to horses. The most widespread toxic thistle is the yellow star thistle, which is found in the western United States, especially California.

Thistles are a ubiquitous plant. Few farms in the United States are probably completely devoid of them. They are sometimes considered weeds because of their ability to spread quickly. Left unchecked, thistles can become quite abundant. Some stands of thistle become so thick that horses will refuse to walk through them because of their prickliness. The pasture specialist you plan to work with will become a valuable resource and will likely offer a sound line of defense for ridding your fields of thistles.

This individual should be able to explain safe herbicide options, which will mean less work for you in the future. Until then, it seems the only methods available for slowing the spread of thistles on your property involve manual labor. Eradication is simple though time-consuming.

With hands sheathed in heavy gloves, pull out individual plants. Young plants without extensive root systems will probably yield easily to a gentle pull or a quick yank, but mature thistle plants with sprawling roots might need to be dug out with a shovel or similar implement. Dispose of the plants away from any land that may be used for agricultural purposes.

 Timely mowing can also help prevent further plants from becoming established. If plants are mowed before the flowering stage, seeds will not be cast, making a future generation impossible.

Keeping your acreage clear of thistles is also a goodwill act towards your neighbors. They will appreciate your efforts in keeping the thistle population to a minimum. Winds disperse thistle seeds far and wide, and winds know nothing of manmade boundaries such as property lines!

An individualized approach to feeding horses is no doubt the best way to nourish them, but it takes considerable time, research, and perhaps consultation with an equine nutritionist or knowledgeable veterinarian to formulate a diet that is best for a horse in a particular situation.

Remember, boarding stables deal in numbers. The more horses on the premises, the greater the likelihood for profit. By supplying one all-purpose concentrate to horses, the farm manager can likely keep feed costs at a minimum by purchasing feed in bulk. Additionally, the use of a single concentrate also makes feeding time more efficient for those assigned to dole out the grain. Imagine how time consuming it would be if every horse in a 50-stall operation required a different feed.

Though this “cookie-cutter” management style is prevalent, it is certainly not the case at every boarding facility. Many farm managers will cater to their boarders’ needs if asked, understanding fully the specific needs of certain horses. Acknowledgement of individualism among horses is a prerequisite when faced with feeding horses of varying types. Deciding what and how much to feed a horse depends on numerous factors, the most basic of which are outlined briefly here.

Nutritional differences Horses of various ages have dissimilar nutritional needs. For instance, weanlings, yearlings, and other young horses have a physiological demand for certain nutrients that will promote the development of a strong, sound skeleton. Conversely, a retired horse that spends its days lazing about in a pasture has fewer nutritional requirements.

Work Two horses of the same age and breeding may have completely different nutritional needs based on the type and amount of work that is asked of them. A middle-aged gelding that is ridden or driven lightly once or twice a week may require far fewer calories than a middle-aged gelding that is asked to do strenuous work several times a week.

Metabolism Some horses are easy keepers, some are hard keepers. Easy keepers maintain appropriate body condition and health on a basic, minimal diet. Hard keepers, on the other hand, have difficulty maintaining their body condition, and weight fluctuations may occur between seasons or during stressful times. Hard keepers must be managed more intensely.

Health concerns The ill effects of particular health problems often diminish when veterinary care is coupled with appropriate diets. A horse diagnosed with Cushing’s syndrome, certain muscle disorders, or heaves, for example, can often continue its athletic career if offered a specific diet.

Temperament Disposition may also affect feeding choices. A “hot” horse, for example, may be given a feed that is low in starch and rich in fat and fiber in an attempt to direct his energy on his performance rather than on his nervousness.

These five factors are just a sampling of what must be thought about when formulating an appropriate diet for a horse. If boarding is the only option you have for owning and enjoying a horse, find a facility that will work with you in meeting your horse’s specific nutritional needs.

The number of horses allowed to graze a parcel of land is called the stocking rate. Optimal stocking rate is contingent upon numerous factors including grazing behavior, level of pasture management, forage species, seasons, and weather patterns.

Grazing behavior plays a pivotal role in deciding how many horses can graze a certain piece of land. Horses prefer young plants because they are usually more succulent and tasty. Immature vegetation also offers more nutrients than older, taller plants. As such, horses will often graze pastures spottily, causing conspicuous areas of short and long forage (called lawns and roughs, respectively). In places of congregation, such as in the vicinity of feed troughs, waterers, gates, and shelters, horses may trample and destroy all forages. These barren patches are called sacrificial areas.

Pasture management includes mowing, fertilizing, reseeding, and weed control. Timely maintenance of pastures can boost stocking rate. One important aspect of pasture management is selection of hardy forages. Plants conducive to high stocking rates should be productive over a long growing season, should grow aggressively, and should not be hindered by high traffic. Because no single species of forage meets all of these criteria, a combination of grasses and legumes will provide the highest yields and the greatest variety in diet.

Time of year and weather patterns affect stocking rate. More horses can benefit from a forage stand in times of high production such as during a flush of growth in the spring. As spring and summer progress, forage production may decrease and reduce the stocking rate of a pasture. Slow or arrested plant growth, such as that caused by drought, could limit stocking rate significantly.

Considering these factors, the stocking rate for properly tended pastures in temperate climates is one to three acres per horse. A four-acre pasture could easily withstand the grazing of one or two horses. If the pasture is managed intensely or if grazing time is limited, it may be able to offer sufficient forage to sustain three horses.

High-quality forage and salt blocks offer horses at maintenance (those that do little or no work) sufficient electrolytes, but hardworking horses require oral electrolyte supplementation for optimal performance. If your horse is sweating profusely on a daily basis, he should receive an electrolyte preparation designed especially for performance horses.

Many electrolyte preparations are available, but there are considerable differences among them. For the equine athlete, an appropriate electrolyte should contain sodium, chloride, and potassium, for these are the electrolytes lost in greatest quantity in sweat. An electrolyte that also contains calcium and magnesium is recommended to prevent metabolic disturbances. Read the label carefully to be sure useful amounts of critical electrolytes will be supplied. A word of caution: electrolytes should be administered only when your horse has water available to him, as both electrolytes and water are necessary to maintain optimal fluid balance.

Sound prenatal nutrition is instrumental in the production of nutritious milk. Because it constitutes the majority of the foal’s diet for the first 60 days of life, milk must be both nutritious and abundant, so a healthy concern for your mare’s maternal capabilities is to be respected. Rest assured, however, that mares are nearly infallible in their ability to produce adequate milk.

During the first two months of lactation, mares will produce approximately 3-4% of their body weight in milk daily. For a 1,100-pound mare, that equates to 33 to 44 pounds of milk per day. A gallon of milk bought at the grocery weighs about eight pounds. Using this as a gauge, mares in this weight range yield approximately four or five gallons of milk daily, though output is ultimately dependent on the individual.

Mares fed sufficient dietary energy throughout gestation and lactation should have no problem manufacturing enough milk of appropriate nutrient composition to nourish a foal. Even mares that are in suboptimal body condition continue to produce high-quality milk until their energy reserves are depleted. At this point, milk quantity decreases but quality does not.

How can you, as a small breeder, assure that your mare is receiving top-tier nutrition? First, be certain she is offered the highest quality forage available, be it pasture, hay, or a combination of both. Do not assume that mares need rich hay such as alfalfa purely because they are pregnant. While it’s true that legumes such as alfalfa often contain more energy and minerals than other forages, an energy surplus can leave mares overweight. Mares should be kept in moderate body condition (ribs felt but not seen), and outright obesity should be avoided.

Second, in this age of duty-specific feeds, it is imperative that you choose a feed formulated specifically for mares in late pregnancy and lactation. Feeds created by reputable companies normally have sufficient nutrients to guarantee sound fetal growth. Not only are energy and protein requirements met, but minerals are furnished in appropriate amounts. Due to skeleton building and the synthesis of other tissues, calcium and phosphorus are necessary in significant amounts. Trace mineral supplementation is important during gestation as well because the fetus stores in its liver the necessary iron, copper, and manganese to meet its requirements during the first few months of life. Interestingly, evolution has made this hoarding of trace minerals essential as mare’s milk is quite low in these nutrients. A well-fortified feed designed specifically for broodmares in late pregnancy and lactation will contain ample energy, protein, minerals, and vitamins to maximize fetal maturation and milk production.

A note about feeding concentrates: Read the feeding instructions carefully and supply the mare with the amount indicated. If the mare begins to gain weight on the recommended amount of grain during late pregnancy (and you wish her weight to remain steady), she should be switched to a feed that is more concentrated in protein and minerals so less can be fed per day.

Well-nourished mares produce approximately three to four percent of their body weight each day in milk for the first two months after foaling. A 1,200-pound mare, therefore, would generate about 36-48 pounds of milk at the onset of lactation. By the fifth month of lactation, mares are producing about half as much milk. By this time, milk consumption is less important as foals are deriving nutrients from other feedstuffs such as concentrates and forages, and caretakers are considering weaning.

Stacking up the milk production of mares against that of cows is much like comparing apples and oranges. Just as Thoroughbred racehorses have been selected for fleetness of foot and some Quarter Horses have been chosen for their cow sense, dairy cattle have been bred intensively for their ability to manufacture milk.

Horses are extremely social animals. When grouped in a herd, they arrange themselves in a well-defined social hierarchy, usually based on sex and age. As horses are added or removed from the herd, the pecking order typically shifts. Careful observation of interactions among horses reveals a slew of dominant and submissive behaviors. When it comes to feeding, these behaviors are in full show. In your situation, the middle-aged gelding seems to be the dominant horse.

Luckily, there are ways to keep the peace during feeding time. The most effective method is probably thoughtful arrangement of feeders. Whether they are hung from a fence or placed on the ground, feeders should be set at least 50 feet apart. At this distance, it is impossible for a dominant horse to control more than one feeder. Setting them significantly closer, which is convenient and therefore a common practice, leads to a dominant animal that rushes frantically back and forth in an attempt to claim both feeders.

When feeders are placed too close together, horses may learn to eat hurriedly. Horses that dive aggressively into their feed and swallow large quantities at once are said to "bolt" their feed. These horses might not get the most out of their meals, as sometimes feed is swallowed without being chewed properly. Bolting may also predispose a horse to choke, a potentially dangerous condition in which food becomes lodged in the esophagus.

In a study conducted at the Universityof Kentucky, researchers measured the time it took for dominant and submissive horses to eat an identical quantity of sweet feed, about two and a half pounds, out of feed tubs placed in a straight line or arranged in an equilateral triangle. Four groups of three mature horses were videotaped while they ate so behavior could be monitored closely. Dominant horses completed the meal in an average of 8.04 minutes.

Submissive horses, on the contrary, cleaned up their feed in 6.13 minutes, suggesting aggressive horses were considerably more casual about polishing off meals.

The research also indicated that passive horses had more time to eat when feed tubs were placed in an equilateral triangle compared to a straight line. Researchers believe arrangement in the triangle might optimize visual contact with other horses, more closely resembling the normal grazing behavior of pastured horses.

In a closed herd where animals are rarely added or removed, horses become quite familiar with the routine of feeding. While most remain intensely aware and respectful of the pecking order, out-and-out fighting rarely occurs.

The amount of water consumed by horses and ponies varies. Horsemen often use an old rule of thumb to determine water intake: one gallon for every 100 pounds of body weight. Using this as a guide, an average 1,200- pound gelding would consume 12 gallons of water per day. Research indicates this estimate may be slightly exaggerated. For those horses that do little to no work and consume primarily dry forage such as hay, water intake was measured at .3 to .8 gallons per day per 100 pounds of body weight.

Various factors affect thirst including diet, degree of work, climate, and general health of the horse. If your horse has access to lush pasture, which may contain 60- 80% moisture, for half the day, he is likely receiving adequate water from the grass. This may account for his lack of interest in the water available to him in his stall. Ease your fears about your gelding’s water consumption by ensuring he has access to fresh water at all times. As long as water is available to him, he will drink sufficiently.

Humans realized the necessity for ascorbic acid (known commonly as vitamin C) by the mid to late 1700s when hundreds of sailors enlisted with the British Royal Navy became afflicted with a condition that caused spongy, bleeding gums and loosening of the teeth. For reasons inexplicable at the time, the consumption of citrus fruits such as oranges and lemons provided relief from the symptoms. It was not until 1928 that scientists identified the chemical component within the fruits that boosted the health of those mariners: ascorbic acid.

In contrast to humans, most horses do not require ascorbic acid in their diets because sufficient quantities are produced in the liver from the breakdown of glucose.

Within the body, ascorbic acid is vital to antioxidant defenses, which protect membranes and other structures from free-radical-induced oxidative damage. Aside from its antioxidant properties, though just as important, ascorbic acid is essential for proper calcification of bone and formation of dentin (the principal component of teeth).

Old, ill, or extremely stressed horses may have plasma ascorbic acid levels below normal. Weaning, often a time of great anxiety, caused stall-confined foals to have diminished plasma ascorbic acid concentrations. Deficiencies due to illness and stress are normally transient.

While rare, long-term deficiency of ascorbic acid has been documented. Signs include poor hair coat, depressed immunity, delayed wound healing, vertebral malformations such as scoliosis (curvature of the spine) and lordosis (sway back), and hemorrhaging.

Researchers have tested the effect of ascorbic acid supplementation on common problems in horses. Because ascorbic acid deficiency causes bleeding, supplementation with the vitamin has been tried on racehorses in an attempt to alleviate exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhaging. Results of these trials, however, were inconclusive. In other studies, intake of ascorbic acid failed to improve fertility in mares or stallions.

Ascorbic acid supplementation may have a place in the management of aged horses, particularly those with Cushing’s disease. Scientists at RutgersUniversityfound that antibody response to vaccines was greater in old horses when they were supplemented with ascorbic acid. Aged horses with chronic infections may also benefit from ascorbic acid supplementation.

Voluntary salt intake among horses has not been researched extensively. A study conducted by Kentucky Equine Research measured the intake of loose and block salt and evaluated how salt intake affects water consumption. Results of the trial indicated that salt intake was more consistent from week to week when horses were offered a block, though total consumption of the loose form was greater. Water consumption was significantly increased when horses were given access to loose salt.

Horsemen typically prefer to offer salt blocks to horses because they are easier to maintain. By placing a large block in a pasture or a small brick in a stall, horses have immediate access to it, and it’s easy for caretakers to tell when a block must be replaced. Loose salt, on the other hand, requires more management. In outdoor feeding situations, loose salt must be placed in an easily accessible, covered feeder. The salt should be checked often and more added when necessary. In stalls, a separate bucket or corner feeder must be used to supply loose salt.

Encroaching urbanization has reduced the amount of available land for grazing, and horse owners have definitely felt the squeeze. The best way to manage horses that cannot be on pasture full-time is to mimic natural grazing conditions. In terms of nutrition management, horses should be allowed access to hay for the majority of the day.

Carte-blanche access to hay has numerous advantages. First and foremost, it keeps the gastrointestinal tract in fine fettle, working as it was designed to by continually processing long-stem forage. Horses with forage available to them at all times are less likely to colic than those on a strict meal schedule (feeding two or three times a day). Second, continuous consumption of forage stimulates saliva production.

Saliva buffers stomach acid, so gastric ulcers are diagnosed less frequently in stalled horses that have access to hay than those that stand for long periods without something to eat.

Third, providing hay keeps horses busy. Researchers believe that some horses may crib, weave, chew wood, or stall walk out of sheer boredom. A horse with a pile of hay in front of it may be more inclined to devour the hay than engage in one of these vices.

Care must be taken to choose hay that is most appropriate for the horse. Young horses, broodmares in late gestation or early lactation, and performance horses in hard work might need the energy afforded by alfalfa or another legume, while grass hay might be more suitable for other classes of horses. For additional nutritional advice for your horse, see the equine specialist at your feed store.

Assuming that the bread is made with wheat flour, yeast, salt, and water, there is nothing in it that is toxic to the horse, and it can contribute enormously to caloric intake if fed in large quantities. There is no harm in occasionally feeding bread, but it is not the most nutritious feedstuff when used as the sole concentrate. While bread is chock full of calories, it provides few nutrients.

When only bread is fed with hay, the major nutritional problem is an imbalance and/or deficiency of some minerals and vitamins. Wheat is deficient in vitamins A, D, and E, as well as trace minerals like zinc, copper, and selenium. All of these play important roles within the body. When horse owners purchase KER-formulated concentrates, there is no need to worry that sufficient essential nutrients are consumed as long as horses are fed recommended amounts. Conversely, when something is fed that is not specifically designed or formulated for horses, it might not supply all the nutrients needed by the horse and it might shift the nutrient balance of the total diet.

For example, if the calcium requirement for a horse is 32 grams per day and a given amount of grass hay supplies 20 grams, a fully fortified concentrate could easily deliver the remaining 12 grams of calcium. Because bread is not made to balance the forage-based diet of the horse, it probably does not have the calcium necessary to meet requirements.

In fact, wheat is low in calcium, so the chances of the bread providing the 12 grams of calcium are slim. Wheat is not, on the other hand, low in phosphorus, so it will probably supply sufficient phosphorus. When there is more phosphorus than calcium in the diet, interference in calcium absorption occurs and further exacerbates the calcium deficiency. Without enough calcium in the diet, the horse’s body will start pulling the mineral from its bones and weakening them and severe calcium deficiency can cause secondary hypoparathyroidism (big head disease). The chance of this type of imbalance happening increases with the amount of bread fed. Lucerne(alfalfa) is abundant in calcium, so if bread were fed with this type of hay, calcium deficiency would not be a concern. However, the same deficiency problems may occur because of insufficient intake of trace minerals. If bread is used as the sole source of extra calories, the addition of a complete vitamin and mineral supplement is necessary.

The protein content of bread flour (13-14%) is marginally adequate for a growing horse or pregnant/lactating mare as long as the hay or pasture available also has acceptable protein content. If the hay has a protein content below 6%, there would be reason to be concerned about inadequate protein intake. Some type of protein supplement would be necessary to support the proper growth of young horses, whether in utero or on the ground.

The high starch content of bread may be a potential problem if fed in large amounts. Diets rich in starch have been the focus of much research lately because of their possible connection to certain health problems such as rhabdomyolysis and developmental orthopedic disease.

Another concern with a high-starch diet is the limited capacity of the small intestine to digest it, allowing large amounts to pass through to be fermented in the cecum and colon. Starch fermentation causes a buildup of lactic-acid producing bacteria in the hindgut and a subsequent drop in pH. The results can range from inefficient feed conversion (weight loss) to colic.

It is not customary to feed wheat grain to horses because of the high gluten content. The problem with wheat gluten balling up in the stomach or intestinal tract and causing blockage (colic) is not a concern with feeding bread because the yeast and the heat of baking have altered the gluten starch.

In summary, feeding bread to horses may be cost effective and is not harmful in limited quantities, but it is not ideal nutritional management, especially for young horses or pregnant/lactating mares.

All fats are comprised of fatty acids that are linked together in long chains by chemical bonds. The number of bonds that join fatty acids to one another determines if a fat is saturated or unsaturated. Saturated fats are solid at room temperature and are derived from animal tissues or dairy products. In contrast, unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature. Unsaturated fats can be further separated into monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, which are obtained from fatty fish and plants.

Polyunsaturated fats are rich in two distinct families of fatty acids: the omega-3 family and the omega-6 family. The omega-3 family stems from alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), and the omega-6 family originates from linoleic acid (LA). ALAand LA are considered "essential fatty acids" because they cannot be manufactured in the body and must be obtained from dietary sources.

Significant members of the omega-3 family are eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Interestingly, the horse’s body can convert ALAto EPA and DHA when insufficient quantities of ALAare consumed. The lack of EPA and DHA in equine diets is understandable, as these two fatty acids are found almost exclusively in fish. The fish, namely cold-water species, are at the top of a food chain based largely on algae that manufacture EPA and DHA. ALA, on the other hand, is found predominantly in leafy plants, more traditional components of equine diets than fish by-products (fishmeal or fish oil).

Linseed oil is also a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids. The primary source of omega-6 fatty acids in the diet is LA derived from the oils of seeds and grains. Corn, sunflower, and safflower oil contain abundant quantities of LA.

Vegetable or plant oils are usually given to performance horses for one of two reasons: to increase the energy density of the diet and (or) to try to improve coat condition.

Because corn oil is chock full of calories, owners can increase energy intake easily by drizzling up to two cups per day over two or more grain meals. Oil is also used frequently to decrease the amount of feed needed to fuel exercise. As corn oil consumption increases, feed intake may decrease. Thus, corn oil is a safe, effective alternative to high-grain diets.

Much anecdotal evidence exists regarding the use of vegetable oil to add shine and luster to the horse’s coat. Some horsemen swear by its use.

Vegetable oil is not the only way to feed fat to horses, but it surely is the messiest. If dumping oil becomes too much of a hassle, horse owners should investigate other alternatives such as a high-fat rice bran supplement available in meal or pelleted form.

Yes, whole sunflower seeds are safe for horses and ponies when doled out in moderation, but the type of seeds fed should be chosen carefully. In North America, sunflower seed varieties fall into one of two categories, confectionery or oilseed. Confectionery sunflower seeds are primarily harvested and processed for human consumption, either as a shelled, roasted snack food or as dehulled seeds for the baking industry. Oilseed varieties, on the other hand, are grown to fill the demand for birdfeed and sunflower oil, a high-quality vegetable oil.

Characterized by black hulls, oilseed sunflower seeds are appropriate for horses; confectionery varieties usually have striped hulls and are slightly larger than oilseed varieties.

The hulls of the oilseed varieties are typically thinner and thus more digestible by horses. Oilseed varieties typically weigh more than confectionery types, likely due to the density of innate oil. This oil is a great source of dietary fat and is the primary reason most horsemen divvy out sunflower seeds to their charges.

The amount of fat in sunflower seeds ranges from 26 to 45%; this disparity is due to differences in sunflower varieties. Therefore, sunflower seeds contain slightly more fat than rice bran (20%) but significantly less than plant or vegetable oils (100%). If a horse has developed an aversion to other fat supplements, which is often the case with vegetable oils, whole sunflower seeds may be an appropriate alternative.

No hard-and-fast guidelines for feeding sunflower seeds have been established. From anecdotal accounts, feeding one pound (about two cups depending on seed type) per day seems to improve coat condition, one benefit of sunflower seeds. Giving more than this may present palatability issues, and horses, with their incredibly mobile lips, will be able to separate the seeds from other elements of the grain mix should they develop a distaste for them. As with the introduction of any new feedstuff to the ration, gradually increase the amount of sunflowers seeds offered over a period of several days.

The pain resulting from an accumulation of sand in the digestive tract that prevents normal passage of ingesta is called sand colic. As in other types of colic, the first sign of this ailment is usually gastrointestinal distress and inappetance.

Other signs include fever, depression, frequent lying down, pawing, rolling, and possibly thrashing. One sign that often forewarns of sand colic is chronic diarrhea that usually progresses in severity over several days or weeks.

Sand gains entrance into the gastrointestinal system inadvertently when horses overgraze sandy-soil pastures or are fed from the ground. Horses that are chronically underfed will likely procure more sand from the environment because they will scavenge for every stray stem of forage or kernel of grain. Because of the weight of sand, it does not advance normally though the colon or cecum of the large intestine and usually settles in the hindgut. Veterinarians can often determine if sand is present in the large intestine through ultrasound, radiography, stool samples, or occasionally abdominocentesis.

The key to preventing sand colic is astute management. Of foremost importance is where a horse is fed. Feeding systems designed specifically to reduce sand ingestion should be engineered. Instead of feeding horses off the stall floor, for instance, place large rubber mats beneath a manger or hanging haynet. The horse will consume the majority of the hay allowance from the haynet. Should he decide to delve into the fallen stems and leaves, he will be plucking them from a sand-free surface. In pasture situations, hay feeders can be secured on rubber mats or concrete or asphalt pads.

Textured feed and pellets should also be offered in an appropriate feeder, ideally one large enough to catch any grain that falls from the mouth. As with the hay feeders, these tubs or containers should be placed on a hard surface that is cleaned regularly.

In terms of a supplement that may rid the gastrointestinal tract of sand, there is only one that may be of benefit. Husks of the minute psyllium seed are often fed as a sand colic preventative. Such products come as pellets, powders, or granules and are top-dressed to the feed. Psyllium is thought to improve intestinal motility and remove sand by a process known as agglutination, which causes sand granules to bind to psyllium and move through the gut normally.

Occasional feeding of psyllium is recommended more often by veterinarians than daily feeding. Dosing once a week or for several consecutive days a month is thought to be more advantageous because the gastrointestinal tract will not have time to become accustomed to psyllium, thus reducing its effectiveness in clearing sand. Daily psyllium intake may also prevent proper absorption of some nutrients from the intestinal mucosa.

The scientific community does not agree on the benefits of psyllium. Numerous studies conducted on psyllium-dosed horses have ended in mixed results; some researchers have found psyllium useful in clearing unwanted sand, while others have encountered only negligible results.

When environmental temperature drops, water consumption of horses often declines. Inadequate water intake will often lead to decreased feed intake, and horses may not be able to maintain body temperature or weight during frigid weather. Without sufficient water intake, gastrointestinal problems such as impaction colic may occur. Therefore, it is essential to encourage horses to drink during cold weather. Large stock tanks are appropriate waterers for horses.

Tanks should be situated in an area that receives as much sunlight as possible. Insulating or partially burying the trough will help keep water from freezing. Covering a portion of the trough top while leaving a large enough hole for the horses to drink comfortably may also prevent freezing.

If ice does form, it should be chipped away and removed several times daily to allow free access to water. Water intake will usually increase by 40% when the water temperature is warmed from near freezing to between 45° and 65° F. Electric water heaters can decrease winter maintenance of stock tanks, but the water should be touched daily to determine the temperature of the water and to ensure the heater is not shorting out. A mild electrical shock will rarely harm a horse, but it will likely keep a horse from drinking. In addition to heaters, water turbulence created by pumps or aerators may aid in keeping troughs ice-free. Although automatic waterers freeze infrequently, they should be checked twice daily to ensure they are functioning properly. Because of limited grazing opportunities in the winter, horses are often fed meals of dried forages and concentrates.

It has been estimated that horses consume 75 to 80% of their daily water intake within one to two hours of eating. An adequate supply of mild-temperature water (45° to 65° F) should therefore always be available around mealtimes. Hot bran mashes do little to warm the horse in cold weather but may be a way to increase liquid intake, particularly if a supply of heated water is not available. Soaked beet pulp may provide the horse with some water as well. Horses should not be expected to meet water requirements by eating snow or chewing ice. It is estimated that for every gallon of water required

Forages such as hay and pasture are well-known sources of fiber. Other feedstuffs are considered “super fibers” because they have energy levels much higher than typical forages. In fact, their energy values are only slightly less than those found in cereal grains such as oats and barley.

In the United States, the two most commonly fed super fibers are beet pulp and soy hulls. Dried beet pulp is often used as an ingredient in textured feeds, or it is added by the handful to a premixed concentrate to boost the fiber content of a ration. The seed coats of soybean seeds are called hulls and are very much like the thin, skin-like structure that surrounds peas. These feeds are more digestible than traditional fiber sources. For instance, hay is 40-60% digestible, depending on its quality, and beet pulp and soy hulls are 80% and 75% digestible, respectively.

Horsemen feed super fibers for a variety of reasons. Some horses will not or cannot eat large enough quantities of hay to fulfill fiber requirements. Dental problems, for example, may keep aged horses from consuming sufficient hay or pasture. When adequate forage consumption is an issue, caretakers should offer fiber in other forms. Horses on diets composed largely of concentrates (grains) may be unwilling to eat large amounts of hay. In these instances, fiber can be introduced into concentrates as beet pulp or soy hulls. Due to their high energy content, super fibers are also ideal for horses that have difficulty maintaining weight.

Some performance horses also benefit from super fibers, especially those asked to perform at moderate speeds for long distances such as endurance horses. In addition to being a steady energy source for horses, super fibers help maintain intestinal health. Consumption of fiber can increase water intake, creating a holding tank of water and electrolytes in the hindgut. This reservoir may prevent dehydration and electrolyte depletion during an exercise bout. Endurance horses, for instance, have only limited time to eat during a ride. An appetizing, fiber-rich meal, such as a slurry made of beet pulp, wheat bran, and grain, can supply the horse with sufficient energy and water to remain competitive.

Horses that do not tolerate diets high in starch may also benefit from super fibers. Horses afflicted with recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis (RER) or polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM) often find relief when fed diets low in starch. When super fibers are fed to these horses, much of the energy necessary to support exercise is derived from fiber and not starch.

Silage is chopped forage that retains its succulence through anaerobic fermentation. Silage usually contains grain plants such as corn. Haylage is also a fermented forage but typically does not include grain plants; it’s made entirely from grasses or legumes. In the United States, silage is more often fed to cattle than horses, as you have observed. Horses are fed hay in the United Statesbecause the weather is typically dry enough to allow for mass cultivation. In countries such as Englandor Netherlands, rainfall may preclude the production of hay, and alternative forages must be sought.

When preserved properly, silage is an acceptable feed for horses. Silage should be green or greenish-brown, be uniform in texture and moisture content, and have a pleasant smell. Due to the high moisture content, silage may be an excellent feed choice for horses with respiratory problems such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (heaves).

If the fermentation process goes amiss, however, mold and bacterial toxins may proliferate in silage. Moldy silage has been implicated in cases of colic and botulism.

Therefore, horse owners must carefully weigh the benefits of feeding silage against the potentially fatal side effects of spoiled silage. Because of these risks and the abundance of hay available, silage is not commonly fed to horses in the United States.

A two-prong approach centering around nutrition and timely farriery encourages hoof growth and strength, and will in time rid hooves of unsightly and unhealthy damage.

Nutrition plays a significant role in hoof integrity. A well-balanced diet fed consistently over an extended period of time will do much to encourage hoof health. Daily supplementation with approximately 20 mg of biotin, a B-vitamin, has resulted in significant improvement in overall hoof condition.

Biotin only invigorates new hoof growth, though, and will not improve existing hoof wall. Because of this, the positive effects of biotin supplementation may take from eight months to over a year to surface, the length of time necessary for the hoof wall to completely replace itself. Whether or not the horse must remain on biotin supplementation throughout its life depends on the individual.

If poor hoof quality is a result of neglect, a horse may be tapered off the supplement following complete restoration of the hoof wall. If, on the other hand, hoof weakness is genetically linked, a horse may require lifelong supplementation.

Locating a farrier that is successful with problem hooves and allowing enough time for him to ply his trade are two important factors in hoof maintenance. It is unreasonable to think that a farrier can repair damaged hooves in one or two visits. The farrier may request more frequent visits than normal, particularly in the spring and summer months when hooves tend to grow faster and an increased likelihood of chipping and cracking exists. By offering a balanced diet and following the farrier’s instructions to the letter, owner should notice hooves becoming stronger and more resistant to breakage.

Keeping energy levels in check in wintry weather requires a few simple management changes. The first involves diet evaluation. Because the horse will be ridden less frequently, his workload will decrease, and there may be less demand for high-energy feeds such as concentrates in his diet. If the horse is an easy keeper, for instance, he may be fed a barebones diet of high-quality grass hay and an appropriate vitamin and mineral supplement. Coupled with whatever forage he can acquire during turnout, this may be sufficient to keep him in adequate body condition.

If the horse cannot maintain his bodyweight on forage alone, he may be fed concentrates that contain high levels of fat. Calories derived from fat do not cause a horse to become difficult to handle, as is often the case with feeds rich in starch. A high-fat concentrate will have a crude fat value of 6% or more on the feed tag. Alternatively, a fat-rich supplement can be added to the ration to boost calorie intake. Heat-stabilized rice bran is a popular supplement, and as with high-fat feeds, will not cause a horse to become unmanageable. By adding rice bran to the ration, the amount of concentrate fed will likely decrease due to the caloric density of the supplemental fat source. Any change in diet should be performed slowly over several days.

In addition to dietary adjustments, the horse should be allowed ample free exercise. If a horse is given sufficient time to kick up its heels daily—bucking, running, and playing—he will likely be more manageable. Turnout is also psychologically stimulating for horses, and those confined to stalls for extended periods of time often develop stable vices such as cribbing, wood chewing, and weaving. If a horse must be kept in a stall due to inclement weather or limited pasture availability, a rubber ball or one-gallon plastic jug suspended from the ceiling at about the height of the horse’s withers may alleviate boredom. Daily grooming and exercise, even if it is only hand-walking, may also relieve boredom in stall-bound horses.

As long as all other causes of have been ruled out (e.g., traumatic mouth injury, esophageal obstruction or choke, and viral infections such as vesicular stomatitis), profuse salivation is likely occurring because the horse is consuming legumes infected with the fungus Rhizoctonia leguminicola. This fungus grows on legumes of all kinds and not solely red clover, as some horsemen mistakenly believe. If harboring sufficient fungal loads, white clover, alsike clover, alfalfa, ladino, and lespedeza can induce slobbering. The fungus produces slaframine, and it is this mycotoxin that actually provokes the extreme salivation. In humid growing condition, the fungus proliferates quickly and is visible on plant leaves as gold, brown, or black spots or rings (thus the name “black patch disease”).

Excessive salivation will commence several days following initial consumption of fungus-ridden plants, and it is not unusual for horses to generate 12-15 gallons of saliva daily. Because of this hyperproduction of saliva, mild to severe dehydration can occur in horses, particularly during hot weather.

Slaframine content in stored forages such as hay decreases as time elapses. In one study of baled red clover conducted in the early 1980s, the amount of slaframine decreased from 100 ppm (parts per million) to 7 ppm over a ten-month period.

Although there is no treatment for slaframine overload other than removing infected plants from the diet, certain pasture management practices can minimize the occurrence of the condition: sow no more than 40% legumes in pastures; spot-check leaves of legume plants for telltale spots or rings during periods of high moisture; utilize a drylot for horses if affected pastures remain wet for an extended time and feed supplemental hay; and mow pasture grasses to maintain plant height at about three to four inches. If these recommendations cannot be worked into the pasture management scheme, horses should be offered free-choice salt and water during hot weather to counteract any dehydration that might occur with the ingestion of legumes contaminated with Rhizoctonia leguminicola.

Encouraging horses to consume water during competition can be difficult. Several different strategies may be used with the degree of success dependent on the individual horse. To get horses to drink out of natural water sources including rivers, creeks, and ponds, horses must be previously exposed to them. Under the pressure of competition it is difficult for some horses to drink from a source of water they may have never seen. In other words, horses that drink from automatic waterers their entire lives may not quickly understand that a creek is also a source of water.

These horses would rather rush through the water and continue on the ride. Horses should be conditioned to rest when water is available. Many endurance riders will slow horses when approaching a water stop to allow the horse to relax, slow its heart rate, and to promote drinking.

Consumption of hay or grass stimulates horses to drink. In research studies, water intake is linked to the amount of dry feed consumed, with water ingestion increasing as more dry feed is eaten. Endurance riders often try to couple feed and water intake by wetting feed prior to feeding. Soaking hay in water and adding water to grain mixes does enhance water consumption.

Finally, it is thought that feeding salt increases water intake. Horses that consume large amounts of salt will drink more water, but unfortunately feeding salt does not seem to stimulate horses to do it immediately. Further, giving electrolytes (salt) to horses that are dehydrated is not recommended.

Structurally, naked oats contrast with whole oats in one notable way. The kernels of whole oats are tightly enveloped by husks; the husks of naked oats are loosely attached to the kernel and fall away during harvesting, leaving the kernel exposed. Nutritionally, the absence of husks increases the concentration and digestibility of some nutrients in naked oats, namely energy and fiber. The energy content in naked oats is similar to that of corn. The husks constitute the majority of the fiber found in whole oats. Without husks, naked oats are inherently lower in fiber. Naked oats should not be confused with dehulled oats.

While naked and dehulled oats have similar nutritional properties, they are not the same. The husk is mechanically removed during the processing of dehulled oats. As dehulled oats are relegated to more intense processing, kernels may be damaged, resulting in possible rancidity and refusal by the horse.

Whisked away with the husk of naked oats is the comfortable margin of safety whole oats afford horsemen. In switching from whole oats to naked oats, equivalent volumes should not be fed. Due to their energy density, naked oats should be fed in smaller quantities. A horse eating 10 pounds of conventional oats would derive the same amount of energy from approximately seven to eight pounds of naked oats. As with other energy-rich feedstuffs, overfeeding naked oats could lead to colic or laminitis. While care must be taken in how they are fed, naked oats are useful for horses with high energy needs.

The by-product of linseed oil extraction from flax is linseed meal. Linseed oil is typically not used in the feed industry. However, linseed meal is a source of low-quality protein suitable for adult horses. Because it is deficient in lysine, an amino acid critical for growth, linseed meal is an inappropriate protein source for young stock. With superior protein sources available, namely lysine-rich soybean byproducts, more horsemen today use mechanically processed linseed meal to improve coat condition. Linseed meal produced by mechanical means has a higher fat content than that produced by solvent processing. The increase of fat in the ration adds much revered bloom to the coat.

The main benefit of adding fat to the diet is increased energy intake. Dietary fat is energy dense, containing 2.25 times as many calories, on an equal weight basis, as carbohydrate or protein. Therefore, fat is an efficient way of adding calories to the diet without increasing grain intake. This is particularly helpful for performance horses that may have difficulty eating enough feed to maintain body weight.

Another advantage of dietary fat is that its digestion does not increase blood sugar. Many performance horses seem to have behavioral problems associated with high-carbohydrate (grain) diets. Because digestion and absorption of grain produce large amounts of blood glucose, many people believe these fluctuations in blood sugar may be responsible for the behavioral changes. Blood glucose does not change with the digestion of fat, yet the horses receive the calories required for exercise.

Dietary fat is a safe energy source. For example, if fed too much concentrate in a single meal or during the course of a day, a horse can suffer from grain overload. This occurs when a horse is not able to properly digest the large volume of grain in the small intestine and the grain is fermented by bacteria in the hindgut. Unfortunately, rapid fermentation of grain in the hindgut can lead to digestive upset (colic) and laminitis (founder). Replacing some of the calories that would normally come from grain with fat decreases the chances of grain overload and adds a margin of safety to high-calorie diets.

Competitive 100-mile endurance horses are born, not trained. Every endurance horse must have a strong desire to cover the distance, so willingness is paramount. These horses and their riders must be properly prepared to withstand the journey.

Conditioning for a 100-mile ride is complicated and not easily explained in a couple of paragraphs. The conditioning process takes a minimum of two years. The first 12-18 months establishes base levels of fitness. This stage of conditioning gradually strengthens the heart, lungs, muscles, and bones. During this time, hundreds of short training rides (3-10 miles) and several 25-, 50- and 75-mile endurance rides are done. Horses are taught to pace themselves, negotiate all types of obstacles, and most importantly eat and drink throughout the ride. These horses will undergo changes in body condition and will have little fat cover over the body. Horses should not be allowed to become too thin or they will not have the energy reserves to complete a 100-mile ride.

For the six months leading up to a 100-mile ride, a horse’s fitness must be maintained. Training mileage during this period is usually 30-40 miles per week but varies depending on the horse. This mileage is usually obtained with one long ride and one to two shorter rides. When not ridden, the horse should be turned out so it can move around and not become stiff. The goal in the six months preceding to the race is not to over condition the horse, which could cause structural or metabolic problems.

During the two weeks prior to competition, the horse should be well rested with several short rides and a general reduction in mileage. This allows the horse to recover completely from all previous exercise and ensures its body is loaded with fuel for the ride.

Although not commonly used today, ear corn was once a popular feed for horses. While it remains a useful feedstuff for horses, ear corn does have three primary drawbacks.

First, in its natural state corn may be rather indigestible by some horses due to its hard kernel casing. Aged horses with poor teeth, for example, may not be able to crack the casing. Due in part to this resilient shell, corn is usually rolled, crushed, cooked, or otherwise processed before being added to feeds so horses can maximize its starch content during digestion.

Second, there is a risk for mold proliferation on ear corn, particularly on corn that has withstood drought or excessive moisture. Fumonisins are noxious mycotoxins that proliferate on corn. Only a small concentration of a fumonisin is necessary to induce a fatal neurologic condition called moldy corn poisoning or equine leukoencephalomalacia (ELEM). High-quality, processed kernels, those normally used in textured feeds, rarely harbor fumonisins.

Third, feeding straight corn can be a touch and go proposition as it contains twice as much energy as an equal volume of oats. Overfeeding corn (or any energy-rich meal) may cause obesity and high-spiritedness. Corn contains minimal fiber, so feeding large quantities of it may more readily lead to colic, diarrhea, or founder than feeding a meal of oats. The shortcomings of ear corn have curtailed its widespread use in modern feeding management.

Lush pasture can contain 30% or more digestible energy. When excessive amounts of highly digestible and fermentable sources of energy reach the hindgut, they can disrupt the normal balance of microbes that break down the fibrous portion of the diet. This disruption can lead to gaseous colic or, in the most serious instances, laminitis.

A few simple steps should be taken before a horse is allowed to graze unrestricted on a new pasture. First, assess the condition of the horse. A horse that has fat built up along the crest of the neck, over the withers and back, and around the tailhead is likely overweight. Such a horse may be predisposed to laminitis when given all-out access to abundant pasture. Ideally, a horse should be maintained in a leaner, more moderate condition. One way to determine condition is to feel along the barrel of the horse for its ribs. If the ribs cannot be seen but can be felt, a horse is considered to be in moderate condition. If, however, it is impossible to feel ribs, the horse is probably overweight. Obesity can cause numerous health problems, so maintaining moderate body condition is advisable.

How much pasture your horse requires is not only determined by his body condition but also by his metabolic rate. Is he an easy keeper or hard keeper? That is, does he seem to gain weight easily, or does he have a difficult time maintaining weight? His metabolic rate affects his energy requirements. Horses with low energy requirements (easy keepers) may require less time on pasture than horses with higher energy demands (hard keepers). Body condition will play an important role in how the horse is managed on pasture.

Second, the pasture should be evaluated. Horses prefer to eat young plants, and fresh growth provides more energy than older stands of forage. Pastures that are overgrazed or contain tall, seeded-out grasses provide little energy to the horse. Variations in pasture quality may occur from season to season and even within a season depending on rainfall and other climatic conditions.

Once you have determined the condition of the horse and pasture, you can develop a turnout schedule. In addition to the pasture, you should have a stall or drylot available to keep the horse in during periods of pasture restriction. Throughout the acclimation period other energy- rich feedstuffs such as grain or alfalfa hay should be offered sparingly, if at all. If your horse is in moderate body condition, begin turning out your horse for short periods of time (one or two hours) following a large hay meal. A horse may, for example, be allowed two or three periods of restricted turnout daily. Gradually increase the amount of time you allow the horse on pasture by hour or two-hour increments. In addition to a regimented turnout schedule, a grazing muzzle can be used to limit the amount of grass ingested. An overweight horse may have to wear a muzzle at all times when he is on pasture. The adaptation period may last 10 to 14 days, and the horse should be observed closely during this time for signs of colic and laminitis.

Horse’s unaccustomed to fresh grass may experience moderately loose stool due to the gastrointestinal tract’s unfamiliarity with the high moisture content of fresh forage. This is not cause for concern. Once the digestive tract becomes fully adapted to the new diet, this side effect will diminish.

After acclimation to the new pasture is complete, continue to observe the horse for weight gain or loss. If you have a question regarding the nutritional management of your horse, ask a veterinarian or equine nutritionist. The advice of knowledgeable professionals can help you avoid potential problems with your horse.

The grain portion of the diet should be digested in the small intestine of the horse. When large amounts of grain are fed in a single meal, the small intestine cannot digest and absorb it all. Unfortunately, leftover grain is dumped into the hindgut (cecum and colon) and fermented rapidly, forming acid and gas. These two products of fermentation can cause damage to the gut and can lead to colic and laminitis. To minimize the amount of grain reaching the hindgut, no more than five pounds of grain should be offered to a 1,000-pound horse at any one meal. If larger amounts of grain are required on a daily basis, the grain should be divided into two or more smaller meals.

My definition of foreign material is anything that cannot outrun the baler. This would include paper, plastic, aluminum cans, insects, rodents, and snakes to name a few. Any of these materials would make the hay unacceptable for horses. Foreign material can also mean weeds or other plants that are not intended to be in a particular type of hay. For example, grass or weeds are not supposed to be in pure stands of alfalfa. Some weeds can be toxic if fed to horses. It is always a good idea to carefully inspect hay for foreign material when it is purchased and to examine it again when it is fed to horses.

Most horses with EPM have spinal cord damage that leads to incoordination, stiffness, and weakness, which in turn may cause muscle atrophy or wasting. Conventional treatment for EPM is oral administration of drugs classified as folic acid inhibitors. These drugs are designed to prevent folic acid production in the protozoa responsible for the disease.

Folic acid deficiency results in the death of the protozoa. Drugs that prohibit folic acid production do not seem to cause a deficiency in the horse; therefore, supplementation may not be necessary. If folic acid is to be supplemented, it should be given several hours apart from the drug to prevent interference with drug absorption.

The influence of nutrition on healing of spinal cord damage and subsequent muscle atrophy is not documented.

Nutritional support with vitamin E has been recommended for horses with EPM. Horses should receive 7000 IU of supplemental vitamin E per day. In addition to vitamin E, the diet should be properly fortified with the essential amino acid lysine and adequate total protein to aid in muscle regeneration.

Choke is an obstruction of the esophagus and can be caused by almost anything a horse eats. Horses with choke often have saliva and wet feed material streaming from their nostrils. These horses will make gagging sounds and act distressed, frequently standing with their heads and necks stretched out in an effort to relieve the blockage. Repeated swallowing may relieve the blockage, but if this fails, a veterinarian should be called to assist in clearing the esophagus. Horses have been known to choke on hay, pelleted feeds, textured feeds, and treats such as apples and carrots. The main reason horses choke is rapid consumption of feed; they simply do not chew and moisten the feed properly prior to swallowing. Slowing the aggressive eater will often prevent further choke episodes.

In a free-roaming situation, horses graze throughout the day and night. Trying to mimic this natural feeding behavior is a good idea. Horses that are confined to stalls or small drylots should be fed at least two times per day, ideally with enough hay so that they can continually pick at it between feedings. For overweight horses, less hay should be provided at each feeding. Be careful not to restrict hay below 1% of body weight as too little fiber can lead to digestive upset. Horses that are in strenuous training may need to be fed the grain portion of their diet three to four times per day to keep meal sizes small.

If proper management strategies are in place, feeding large amounts of alfalfa pellets should not be a problem. Any feed material can cause a digestive impaction if it is consumed rapidly. Many horses are safely fed diets consisting solely of alfalfa pellets without problems. However, poor quality alfalfa pellets or a rapid change to an alfalfa pellet diet can contribute to colic symptoms.

The energy (caloric) intake of a horse can be visually monitored by watching the weight of the horse. If horses are being fed too many calories (too many groceries) they will begin to gain weight and eventually become fat. On the other hand, horses that are not getting enough calories in the diet will become thin and eventually will not be able to perform, athletically or reproductively.

The amount of energy we need to provide a given horse depends upon the size and activity level of the horse. From a caloric standpoint, activity includes a number of demands such as reproduction, growth, and work (exercise). Horses should have their daily energy requirement provided to them regardless of whether it is summer or winter. In the hot summer months, recent research has shown it beneficial to provide some of the extra calories required by horses as dietary fat.

Because fat (vegetable oil, rice bran, etc.) contains more than twice as many calories per pound as either carbohydrate or protein, a horse eating a fat-supplemented diet will need to eat fewer pounds of total feed. This lower feed intake results in less heat produced during the digestive process and less thermal load. All of these factors combine to keep horses cool and happy during the summer.

Yes, feed tags can be used to compare different feed products, and yes, they can be confusing. Government regulations mandate that feed tags are attached to all feed bags to reduce the incidence of fraud. Each state is responsible for monitoring tagging systems for all products sold in the state.

Over the last several years, feed tag regulations have been redefined and therefore have become more useful to consumers. Feed tags must contain the name of the product and a purpose statement, two pieces of information which should give the purchaser a clear understanding of the type of animal for which the feed is intended. All tags must list a guaranteed analysis for the following nutrients: crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, calcium, phosphorus, copper, zinc, selenium and vitamin A. Not long ago, feed tags were only required to list values for protein, fat and fiber. Feed tags must also include an ingredient list.

Ingredients should be listed in order of highest concentration to lowest concentration. Ingredient lists can be written in one of two ways, depending upon the state in which the feed is manufactured. First, individual terms can be used. If oats, barley and corn are ingredients in a feed, for example, each would be listed separately. Alternatively, collective terms can be used. In this instance, oats, barley and corn could be collectively referred to as “grain products” with no mention of them individually. Finally, a feed tag is required to list feeding instructions.

From a practical standpoint, a feed tag will generally explain what class of horse the feed is intended. For example, a tag may state a feed is “for maintenance of mature horses.” The guaranteed analysis tells the nutrient profile of the feed but does not indicate the quality of those nutrients.

The ingredient list does tell the different feedstuff components used in the formulation but will not tell the absolute amounts of those ingredients. Further, if a state requires only collective terms, a consumer may never determine the exact ingredients. More often than not, simple feeding recommendations are given with very little explanation or detail. If a horse is not being fed the amount recommended by the manufacturer, the feed may not be appropriate for that horse.

Eating bedding material could be a sign of a fiber deficient diet. The major criteria would be the amount of fiber in the pellet or cubes and the amount of the product being fed. The amount of fiber in a hay pellet will be similar to the amount of fiber in a baled product as long as the pellet does not contain low fiber additives such as grain. Many hay pellets contain some grain to help them stick together.

It is also common for pelleted and/or cubed hay products to consist of “rabbit quality” hay. Rabbit quality hay is typically lower in fiber than more mature hay. If the pellets contain both a low fiber content and added grain, they will be higher in energy. This will result in fewer pounds of product necessary to maintain body weight. Ultimately, one could get into a situation where the horse requires only a small amount of high energy pellet to maintain body condition, but this small amount of feed does not provide adequate gut fill to maintain a “full” feeling in the horse.

The horse may eat bedding to maintain a full digestive system. Another factor to consider is that horses are designed to graze and/or eat on a constant basis. Pelleted diets can be eaten rapidly and leave many hours of boredom, leaving a hay to graze on whatever is available. These grazing choices often include bedding and fence boards.

Yes, it is possible for an obese mare to get in foal; however there are several factors to consider. Research conducted in the mid-1980s set out to determine how body condition influenced reproductive performance in mares.

In this large study, moderately fleshy to fat mares (body condition score 3 - 4, 0-5 scale) cycled earlier in the year, had fewer cycles per conception, had a higher pregnancy rate and maintained pregnancy more often than thin (body condition 2 and below) mares. Research also indicated thin mares (ribs visible) with foals by their sides do not have enough stored fat to support efficient reproductive performance.

Mares in marginal or poor body condition are more likely to skip a breeding year as their bodies use dietary nutrients for milk production rather than for reproduction.

This study also pointed out that mares that become pregnant but receive inadequate nutrition have a higher rate of embryo loss. Reproductive performance can be improved in thin mares when they are fed to gain weight. However, pushing a mare that has been nutritionally neglected can lead to problems with digestive upset if feed intake and weight gain increase too quickly.

Foaling difficulty and rebreeding problems have not been scientifically linked to obesity in mares. However, there is no reproductive advantage in having mares extremely fat (body condition score 5). Hormonal changes associated with obesity may limit reproductive success, but the additional feed expenses necessary to keep mares extremely fat should be reason enough to keep mares in lighter body condition. Absolute weight is not the only important criteria by which to evaluate the horse. Appearance and condition have always been used as indicators of fitness and health.

There is good evidence that the injectable products such as cartrophen or Adequan used to help horses with joint problems really do have some benefit for the joint. In my mind, the tricky part is to know if you should use these products as a preventative in the horse that is showing no signs of joint disorders. With the feed supplements, there are not the same amounts of controlled data showing the benefit of the products. They tend to contain glucosamine and or chondroitin sulphate. There are data showing that glucosamine can get to the joint. Chondroitin is a very large molecule and it is doubtful if this is absorbed whole in the gut. There are also some test tube data showing that glucosamine can play a role in suppressing some of the enzymes that cause cartilage breakdown.

There are too many anecdotal reports that these products do work to ignore them. These come mainly from the USand Europebut there are some very good reports about a new product, Saddleworld Joint Food. Some previously lame and stiff horses are now jumping and working freely. If the oral products work they will be the best bet as they are cheaper and are not as invasive, but severe cases may need the injectable products.

There are several nutritional differences between legume hay and grass hay. In the United States, legume hays typically include alfalfa and clover. Grass hays include many varieties of grasses and can include the grain (oat) hays. One of the biggest differences between legume and grass hay is protein content. On average, legume hays contain much higher levels of protein. It is not uncommon for legume hays to contain in excess of 15% protein while grass hays typically will contain 10% protein or less. The extra protein contained in legume hays is not dangerous for horses since they break down the extra protein and utilize it for energy. The downside of this extra protein is the nitrogen must be eliminated from the body. The horse will drink more water and urinate more frequently.

The energy content is also different between legume and grass hay. Legume hays contain more calories per pound than grass hay. This higher calorie load in the legume hays translates into fewer pounds of hay necessary to maintain body weight. This is not particularly good news for those horses that already have trouble keeping their weight down. The reason for the higher calorie content in legume hay is a lower fiber content. The higher fiber level in grass hay allows horses to eat more feed without putting on weight. This is the reason that most nutritionists who want to reduce the calorie intake of horses advise that grass hay be fed.

The other major difference between legume and grass hay is the mineral profile. The calcium content of legume hays is typically very high in relation to the amount of calcium in grass hays. The phosphorus content is not that different between grass and legume hays. Since calcium is higher in legume hays and phosphorus is nearly the same, the ratio of calcium to phosphorus in legume hay is quite high. This ratio is important for proper bone growth. Hay containing an excess of calcium without adequate phosphorus can lead to bone anomalies.

Many horses gobble their feed. This is a condition often referred to as bolting their feed. Horses that bolt their feed run the risk of choking. The act of chewing adds saliva to the feed, which lubricates it and enables it to be swallowed.

If horses are not chewing their feed properly and adequate saliva is not added, the dry feed material can be lodged in the esophagus. Occasionally horses can clear the obstruction from the esophagus, but most will require veterinary intervention to resolve the problem. Your old horseman friend has offered a practical solution to your horse’s habit of consuming the grain portion of his diet too rapidly.

Simply adding large rocks to the feed bucket will force the horse to eat more slowly. The rocks should be large in size to prevent the horse from swallowing them. Another solution may be to offer the horse the hay portion of its diet prior to feeding grain. This will serve to fill the horse’s stomach prior to the grain being fed.

Continuous grazing is the natural feeding behavior of horses and most horses provided with that opportunity will be content to eat their feed slowly. Providing continuous access to grass hay will help to satisfy a horse that does not have access to pasture but the type of hay fed becomes very important.

Free access to alfalfa hay will certainly make the horse happy, but depending on its activity level (or lack of activity) it may make the horse fat. Feeding smaller amounts of high calorie, dairy quality alfalfa may leave the horse feeling hungry and encourage bolting.

One of the most prevalent causes of colic and/or digestive upset is a sudden change in diet. Dietary change should be made slowly over a two-week period. It takes at least this long for the digestive system to adjust to the new feed. A satisfactory method for switching horses from baled hay to cubes involves simply adding a few cubes on top of the baled hay at each feeding. Horses will take some time in learning to eat hay cubes; a certain amount of awkwardness should be expected in the transition.

Yes, you would start by feeding the same amount. Hay cubes and hay pellets are made of the same basic material (dried plants) as long stem baled hay. Research has shown that no differences in digestibility occur between good quality baled hay and the same hay made into pellets or cubes. If the type of hay used in the cube or pellet is different from the type of long stem hay currently being fed, you may need to adjust (increase or decrease) the amount of pellets depending on the body condition of the horse.

For example, if you are feeding grass hay and switch to an alfalfa cube the amount of calories in a pound of alfalfa cubes is higher than contained in one pound of grass hay.

Therefore, the horse may require fewer pounds of alfalfa cubes to maintain body weight. If the type of hay used in the cube or pellet is the same as what the horse had been eating, feed the same weight.

Blister beetles contain a poison (cantharidin) that is extremely toxic to horses. Unfortunately, there is not a specific antidote for cantharidin poisoning. Ingestion of even a few beetles results in severe colic and, many times, in death. The death of horses from blister beetle ingestion has been reported from Floridato Arizonaand as far north as Illinois. The states known to have the biggest problems with blister beetles are Texasand Oklahoma.

To date, blister beetle poisoning is not a problem for hay grown in the TreasureValleyregion of Idaho, one reason hay for the 1996 Summer Olympic Games was purchased from Idahohay growers. I agree with your neighbor, however, that regardless of your location or the incidence of blister beetle poisoning there a quick inspection of the hay you are providing to your horse is always a good idea.

There are many things that can be baled into hay that may not be good for your horses, including small, dead rodents that can potentially cause botulism, and aluminum cans that may cause digestive tissue damage.

Hay begins to lose its nutritional value at the time of cutting and continues to lose nutritional value while in storage. The nutrients most affected by harvesting and storage are vitamins, with the protein and mineral content of hay being quite stable.

All green parts of growing plants are rich in carotene and, therefore, have a high vitamin A value. In fact, the degree of green color in a plant is a good index of vitamin content. Approximately 50% of the vitamin A may be lost from hay during the first 24 hours of the curing process. If the hay is subjected to rain or other weather damage, the vitamin losses are greater. The losses of vitamin content continue during storage with the rate of destruction determined by temperature, exposure to air and sunlight, and length of storage time.

Under average conditions where hay is stored in a barn, vitamin content of hay can be expected to decrease by approximately 7% per month. If hay is left outside without cover, the vitamin losses will be greater. Again, the color of hay is the best non-laboratory means of determining vitamin content. The greener the hay, the higher the vitamin level.

Young horses often eat fresh manure from other horses, a practice known as coprophagy. It is thought the practice is a means for establishing a normal bacterial population in the digestive system. Therefore, a foal eating some manure is not a big problem although it will make you think twice about letting the foal nuzzle your face. It is not common for mature horses to eat their manure. Several factors could precipitate this behavior.

Horses that are eating a low fiber, high grain diet or a protein deficient diet may consume fecal material. An easy dietary adjustment is to increase the amount of forage fed and ensure the diet is providing adequate protein. Another factor that may cause horses to eat manure is boredom. Horses that do not get enough exercise or horses that have recently had their exercise decreased are prone to eating their manure.

Providing the bored horse with turnout or simply less stall time should help the situation. Finally, it is often thought that horses who are missing something in their diet will eat manure. This is true in the sense that most horses consuming manure are underfed or in poor condition, but occasionally horses on a well-balanced diet will pick up this behavior.

Since this behavior has been detected in your horse only at this stable, it probably is not a glaring nutritional imbalance. It is, however, simple to have your horse’s diet reviewed by a nutritionist. In the meantime, providing more forage and more turnout and perhaps providing the salt in loose form will help the situation.

Horses can develop cavities, but the incidence of cavities in horses and ponies is far less than in humans. Equine dentists report cavities in approximately one of every 15 horses referred for professional dentistry services. Diet composition accounts for the general lack of decay in horse teeth; horses eat less sugar than humans. Even horses that consume feed coated with molasses (sweet feed) ingest only small amounts of sugar because the staple of their diet is likely forage (hay or pasture), which contains only minimal sugar. Progression of a cavity is arrested in horses the same way it is in humans. The decay is eradicated and the subsequent hole is patched with a composite filling.

Yes, nutrition should definitely be considered in the conditioning phase of the training program. As a horse begins a conditioning program, the skeletal, muscular, respiratory and immune systems must adapt to the stresses of training. Nutrition is very important to insure a favorable response. For example, exercise stimulates the bones of the leg to remodel or adapt to the stress of conditioning. This bone remodeling requires a constant turnover of calcium and phosphorus.

The muscular system must also receive proper nutrition. The most obvious dietary adjustment is to provide energy (calories) so the muscle can contract and relax normally during exercise. In addition to energy, the muscle requires several minerals and vitamins to aid in its normal function and health. Critical minerals and vitamins include selenium, electrolytes (sodium, chloride, potassium, magnesium) and vitamin E. Without these minerals and vitamins, horses often suffer from “tying-up” syndrome and chronic fatigue. The respiratory system is responsible for delivering oxygen to and transporting waste products from, body tissues. Iron and copper are essential components of these transport mechanisms.

Finally, the immune system of the horse functions to fight off disease. Trace mineral deficiencies (copper, zinc, selenium and others) are thought to depress the immune system.

To summarize, proper nutrition during the conditioning phase of the training program is critical to help prevent bone, muscle, metabolic and immune problems in athletic horses. A standard diet of alfalfa hay and oats typically will not provide those nutrients in adequate amounts. The inclusion of a well-balanced supplement to oats or the feeding of a properly fortified grain mix will go a long way towards maximizing the performance potential of a horse.

It has been reported that sand buildup in the digestive tract of horses may be responsible for as high as 30% of colic cases, especially in sandy soil areas. Several different treatment schemes have been used to move sand through the digestive system. Recently, several research reports have been published that investigate movement of sand through the equine digestive system. A Universityof Floridastudy investigated inadvertent sand intake during feeding in which a sweet feed or a grass hay was fed on or above a known amount of sand. This study concluded that feeding programs which place the horse’s grain in potential contact with sand increase the intake of sand. In other words, horses that drop and attempt to retrieve grain from sandy soils accumulate sand in the gut.

Essentially no sand was consumed when grass hay was fed on sand. Researchers at the Universityof Floridaalso reported that horses fed small amounts of forage (0.75% of body weight) spent more time eating manure and thus probably consumed more sand. Treatments for removal of sand from the digestive tract are being tested. Researchers have put known volumes of sand into the horse’s digestive system and then measured the ability of different treatment protocols to remove the sand. A study conducted at the Universityof Illinoisreported that ponies dosed with psyllium in an attempt to remove sand were not any more efficient at sand removal than ponies given a control diet.

They concluded that psyllium had no apparent effect on sand removal from the horse’s large intestine. The Universityof Floridatested four means of sand removal: 1) hay fed at 1.5% of body weight, 2) hay fed at 2.5% of body weight, 3) hay fed at 1.5% of body weight plus psyllium fed in a single daily dose and 4) hay fed at 1.5% of body weight with psyllium fed twice daily. The results indicated that feeding large amounts of hay (2.5% of body weight, 25 lbs. for a 1000 lb. horse) uniformly produced the largest sand output. Other experiments studied feeding wheat bran and dosing with mineral oil as methods to remove sand. Both protocols proved ineffective for sand removal.

In summary, there does not appear to be any advantage to feeding or treating with psyllium, bran or mineral oil over a basic hay diet for removal of sand from the digestive system of horses. Are different sand clearance supplements miracles for the removal of sand? The answer seems to be no. Hay appears to be primarily responsible for movement of sand through the gut and the higher the hay intake, the faster the sand is moved through the digestive system. Do these supplements have adverse effects on the digestive system? To date, they have not been shown to have negative effects on the digestive system.

Years ago a wise horseperson told me that you can feed many things to horses to help the hair coat; all you have to do is brush them afterward. From a more scientific standpoint, several nutrients are involved in the synthesis of the protein found in skin and hair. Zinc, biotin, protein (and the specific amino acid methionine), and fatty acids from dietary fat (such as vegetable oil and rice bran) are all necessary for hair growth.

Most of these substances are found in the leading commercial hoof supplements on the market. This is not by accident since horse hoof is a form of modified hair. In fact, most testimonials regarding hoof supplements state the appearance of a “glossier” or “healthier” hair coat prior to seeing any influence on hoof quality.

A simple feeding program that includes a source of additional fat along with a fortified grain mix containing supplemental protein, vitamins and minerals should help horses slip their winter hair. If more speed is necessary in getting the horses to turn loose of their winter hair, provide a normal dose of a quality hoof supplement. With either approach, just remember to brush them afterwards.

Being able to control the mood of a horse through changes in nutrition is still being investigated in the scientific community. The key to successfully feeding your horse is to remember that horses are anatomically designed to digest fiber (hay and/or grass). Therefore, a horse’s diet should maximize the amount of fiber. By maximizing the amount of fiber in the diet, horsemen can decrease the amount of simple carbohydrates (sugar) the horse is eating. The best hay source for providing plenty of fiber without much sugar is grass hay. If the horse is unable to maintain body weight on a straight grass hay diet, grain, fortified with vitamins and minerals, can be added gradually to satisfy his energy requirements. Any grain fed should be divided into at least two feedings per day. The addition of fat (vegetable oil or rice bran ) to the diet is also a proven way to provide non-sugar calories to horses.

Whether to feed your horse in the trailer depends on the distance and length of time your horse is in the trailer. If the journey is scheduled to take six hours or longer, it is recommended to provide hay in the trailer. It is never recommended to provide the grain portion of the diet in the trailer. For trips less than six hours, it is generally recommended not to feed your horses in the trailer.

Unfortunately, many people are willing to provide horses with hay while traveling, but forget to provide adequate water. Research conducted by Kentucky Equine Research has shown that eating forage stimulates the thirst response in horses. Providing hay without adequate water gives horses a perfect chance to become dehydrated and potentially suffer from colic. Providing hay to nervous horses may provide a calming effect, but at the risk of the horse bolting (gulping) the feed and choking. If forage is to be provided while horses are in the trailer, it should be free of dust. Most hay nets are hung in what is known as the “breathing zone” around the horse’s muzzle. Dust blowing off the hay will be deposited directly into the lungs.

Therefore, it is recommended to soak the hay prior to placing it in a hay net. Providing hay cubes that have been soaked in water prior to feeding is an alternative to hay. Horses that are fed during transport need to be watered at least every four hours. If temperature and humidity are high, it is recommended that horses be provided with water at least every two hours. It may be helpful to carry water from home for horses that may be reluctant to drink from a strange water source. Ideally, horses should not be hauled for more than 12 hours at one time. If horses must be hauled between 6 and 12 hours per day, short periods of rest when the horses are actually unloaded from the trailer will not provide rest. It is best to stop and provide water, then continue on the trip without unloading the horses.

The term “dairy quality alfalfa” is used to describe alfalfa hay that is high in protein and low in fiber. These are desirable traits in hay intended for dairy cattle because it provides nutrients essential for milk production. Unfortunately, this is not the best hay for performance horses. In general, mature performance horses require a diet that is between 8% and 10% protein. Feeding dairy quality alfalfa hay will provide more than twice the recommended amount of protein in the diet. Excess protein in the diet can be utilized for energy during exercise.

The utilization of protein for energy produces three to six times more heat than the utilization of carbohydrates or fats. This can contribute to excessive sweating and heat exhaustion in performance horses, particularly in warm environments. In addition to being energetically inefficient, high protein diets will also increase the horse’s water requirement. This water is utilized to flush excess nitrogen associated with protein metabolism from the system. Therefore, a diet of dairy quality alfalfa hay is not the best choice for performance horses since it will increase heat and water requirements, two things that any performance horse can do without.

Does dairy quality alfalfa hay contain enough fiber? This is a more complicated question as it depends on how much total hay the horse is eating. For example, if you have an easy keeping horse (1000 lbs.) that is being limit fed alfalfa less than 15 pounds of hay per day, it is certainly possible for this horse to be fiber deficient. Horses are good about letting their owners know they are fiber deficient since they will seek other sources of fiber. Unfortunately, their alternative fiber sources often include wood fence materials, stall fronts or trees. On the other hand, if you are feeding alfalfa hay free choice (greater than 25 punds of hay per day) this horse will typically be getting enough fiber in the diet and will not seek out alternative fiber sources.

Heaves is the common name for the ailment “chronic obstructive pulmonary disease” (COPD). It is caused by a hypersensitivity to fungal spores which are found in bedding, stable and hay. For some horses it may be a sensitivity to summer pasture grass pollen. Many times the very first signs of the disease (decreased performance) go unidentified as COPD.

Controlling the dust in the horse’s hay can help COPD horses. The best way is to soak the hay in water for 5 minutes before feeding to reduce the fungal spores. Hosing the hay well will have the same effect. This has been found to be more effective at reducing the spores than feeding pelleted or cubed feed. However, the spores in hay cubes can also be reduced by filling the bucket of cubes with water (just enough to cover the cubes) and feeding them to the horse wet.

Yes, your horse can get enough roughage from hay cubes, provided you feed enough of them. The horse should be getting at least 1% of his body weight in cubes - which for a 1400 lb Warmblood mare is at least 14 lbs of cubes. There are many horses who survive on hay cubes because baled hay is not available. However, you may consider the alfalfa / timothy cubes rather than straight alfalfa if your horse is used to grass hay or you are concerned about the high protein or calcium in alfalfa.

Another fiber source used commonly in COPD horses is soaked beet pulp. Any concentrate (sweet feed or pellets) can be mixed into the beet pulp just prior to presenting it to the horse in order to cut down on the dust in those feeds.

For an answer to your question about breeding your mare, I consulted Drs. Kevin Dippert and Vito Del Vento of Equine Reproduction Concepts (Virginia). They explained that the problem with breeding may be totally dependent on the severity of COPD that your horse has. If the disease is well managed with the changes in diet, then there will probably not be any problem. The biggest time of concern for a COPD mare is as she becomes heavy with foal in the last trimester of pregnancy. If she has trouble breathing, the fetus may not receive enough oxygen. Their recommendation is to be sure that the mare is monitored by a veterinarian during this time. The veterinarian can recommend other treatments for the horse if she runs into problems.