What is the best feed for an overweight horse?

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asked Mar 12, 2022 in Horses by AndySteel (800 points)
What is the best feed for an overweight horse?

1 Answer

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answered Mar 19, 2022 by Chambliss (46,100 points)
The best feed for an overweight horse is grass or hay.

The grass and hay is a natural feed for horses that is lower in calories and can help a horse lose weight.

Also exercising the horse often can help the horse to lose weight as well.

To help your older horse keep from losing weight feed the horse some higher fat content horse feed and also add some weight gain supplements to the horses feed.

Try feeding the horse some apples, pears, carrots etc to help them eat better and help them stay healthy.

Some other ways to help an older horse from losing weight include.

Feed 1% of a high-quality forage daily (based on body weight).
Offer a complete feed specifically designed for senior horses with higher digestible fiber at a minimum of 0.5% body weight.
Feed a senior horse more frequently, at least three times daily.

Horses lose weight in the winter as the horse uses more energy to stay warm.

That energy the horse uses to stay warm makes them lose weight they have put on because the horse is burning fat when trying to stay warm.

Horses also have less grass to feed on during the winter as well.

Horses have special dietary requirements by the time they reach 2 years of age and then as they get older the horses dietary requirements can change some more.

As the horse reaches older age then they may need a special diet but not always.

The transition from grain supplemented forage to free choice forage occurs during the second year of the horse's life.

The average horse has reached 65 to 70 percent of its mature weight by the time it is a year old.

At this time, growth slows and nutritional requirements change

The worst things to feed a horse include, avocados, persimmons, chocolate, pitted fruits and potatoes.

Other foods that are considered bad for horses include.

Caffeine. While tiny amounts of caffeine probably won't hurt your horse, you should still avoid giving him any foods that have caffeine in it.
Avocado.
Fruits with Stones (or Pits)
Cauliflower, Cabbage, Broccoli.
Bran Products.
Potatoes.
Rhubarb.
Meat Products.

The mineral requirements for horses include.

Calcium (Ca)
Phosphorus (P)
Magnesium (Mg)
Sodium (Na)
Chloride (Cl)
Potassium (K)
Sulfur (S)

The nutritional needs of a horse include water, fats, carbohydrates, protein, vitamins,and minerals.

When feeding horses, it is important to recognize that there are six basic nutrient categories that must be met: carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamins, minerals and water.

Often, feed companies will balance the first five nutrients for us; however, it is critical not to forget about water.

You can feed your horse some high fat protein grain and also add some vegetable oil to the horses feed.

The vegetable oil added slightly to the horses feed can help them increase and gain weight.

You can also give your horse some weight gain supplements to help the horse gain weight.

The fastest way to put weight on a horse is to feed them a high fat diet and also give the horse some weigh gain supplements for the horse.

The best thing to feed a skinny horse is high protein and high fat grain combined with rich alfalfa hay.

High fat, high protein grain combined with a rich alfalfa hay can quickly put weight on a horse, if there is not an underlying medical condition.

Allowing 24/7 access to pasture or hay (or as much forage as possible).

If increased amounts of hay aren't enough, try offering a higher quality hay such as alfalfa or an immature grass hay.

Alfalfa tends to be higher in energy and protein and lower in sugar.

Alfalfa can be fed as hay or as cubes/pellets.

When your horse won't eat it could be that they are tired of the same old food you're feeding them.

You should try feeding your horse some other foods such as apples, carrots, etc.

Or even mix some of these foods into the horses feed.

Bran.
Honey.
Molasses.
Applesauce.
Grated carrot or apple.
Brewers yeast; or.
Lucerne chaff.

If the horse still won't eat then they may have some other health issues and you should have a vet see the horse to make sure they are okay.

Sometimes horses may stop eating for awhile and then go back to eating.

The horse may also have an upset stomach and may not want to eat.

When feeding your adult horse the adult horse should be fed at least one percent to two percent of the horses body weight.

The daily dry matter intake of an adult horse performing light work should be about 1.8% of its body weight each day.

At least 65% of this amount should be forage.

In other words, a 1,000 lb horse should be fed 18 pounds of dry matter each day.

The correct food for a horse is good quality hay, pasture, grass and good quality horse feed.

Also feeding your horse some carrots and other vegetables and even apples can help the horse stay healthy.

If hay isn't enough, grain can be added, but the bulk of a horse's calories should always come from roughage.

Horses are meant to eat roughage, and their digestive system is designed to use the nutrition in grassy stalks.

Hay for a horse can cost from $300.00 to $500.00 per month depending on how much hay your horse eats and the cost of hay in your area.

A horse eats on average of 15 to 30 bales of hay per month.

So you should have at least 30 bales of hay per month to feed your horse and if you have some left over they can eat it the following month.

It's always better to have more hay and feed than you need so you don't run out.

The most popular breed of horse is the American Quarter Horse.

The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances.

The American Quarter Horse's name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of a quarter mile or less; some have been clocked at speeds up to 55 mph.

Other most popular horse breeds include.

Arabian.
Thoroughbred.
Warmblood.
Morgan.
Appaloosa.
Pony.
Tennessee Walker.

Some of the best horse breeds besides the above are.

Hackney Horse.
Orlov Trotter.
Marwari Horse.
Gypsy horse.
Friesian Horse.
Morgan Horse.
Arabian Horse. This horse is the champion of all steeds.
Carolina Marsh Tucky.

One of the most useful horse breeds when it comes to living a long season into the woods in winter.

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