A horse’s diet plays a key role in your horse’s ability to remain happy, healthy, and active. As the cold weather approaches this winter we have four easy feeding tips that will ensure they remain happy and healthy throughout the season.
1) Bring on The Festive Forage!
Hay is absolutely a key part of every horse’s diet when pastures start to fall off in colder months. It not only provides ample forage which helps your horse produce energy and stay warm, but it’s also a great source of protein which is used by our horses to repair and maintain their body tissues. Horses typically consume 1.5-2% of their weight in hay each day, however when temperatures drop drastically you may need to increase their consumption by 1% to ensure they receive the calorie intake required to maintain a healthy condition.
2) Don’t Turn Your Horse Into A Bodybuilder!
It is tempting in winter to up your horse’s protein intake, but keep in mind your horse probably needs less protein than you would expect. Your average easy keeper can maintain themselves on a diet consisting of 10% protein, and it is usually only the hard keepers, those who are still growing, or in training that need the additional boost. With most regular grass hays containing as much as 8-14% protein it is unlikely you need to source protein from another source. However if you decide that an increase in protein is needed consider supplementing your horses feed with alfalfa although it is often a feed that is greatly debated it is a fantastic high quality forage that can increase the protein of your horse’s diet without the need of processed cereal grains.
3) Be Nice, Consider Giving Rice!
For those horses who need to gain a little bit of weight, are still in training, or are picky eaters consider adding rice bran to your feeding regime. This wonderful safe feed provides a fat and fiber filled snack that increases your horse’s ability to keep warm, is a good source for energy, and will help your horse maintain body condition throughout the colder months.
4) Supplement Season!
There are multiple supplements on the market which claim to be the best choice for winter, however don’t be fooled by a fancy name and high price tag! Keep it simple! A standard multivitamin, and source of salt will often be enough to ensure your horse receives everything they need.