How do you feed?

Ok, this is a question, but not a question.





How much do you feed your horse a day? And why?





I’m not trying to start a fight, or say someone’s wrong and someone’s right, I’m just curious. From reading some answers on here, I’ve noticed that a lot of people feed their horses differently. Not just hay and grain, but amounts. So I was wondering why.





I personally feed my horse two flakes (big, but not huge) of oat hay a day in the summer, alfalfa in the winter. Plus his hoof supplement. And sometimes cob or sweet cob in the winter. We have mild weather where I live, except heat, it can get really hot here, and he has an acre of grass to himself. He’s in good condition.





(And for those of who you’ll have something to say, he does have company.)

How do you feed?
Where I live i feed my horses alfalfa in the morning and oat pellets at night (they don't eat straight oat hay). I give my older horse senior grain to help his joints and coat. I sometimes give coat supplements to the others as well, but those are expensive. i used to feed straight alfalfa but that's bad for them, so i switched :)
Reply:We have 65 horses at my farm so each horse gets a custom feed plan designed for them. Some of them get no grain all year, some of them get grain all year long, some of them get hay all year, some of them get hay only in the winter (our grass dies completely during the winter). We are in a mild climate, lows usually no colder than 25 and hots not usually more than 95. Humidity is what kills us in my area.





The thing about feeding is that each horse is different in what they need nutritionally and what they can digest. Older horses when they can no longer eat hay easily need to be given a senior feed that is a complete feed with the forage (hay) in it so that they can get what they need.





Younger horses need more protein, vitamins, and minerals because they are still growing, but if you give them too much then they will grow too fast and could potentially get OCDs. Mares that are in foal or who are lactating will also need more. Stallions during breeding season will also need more, and so will horses in heavy training.





On average a horse should receive 1/2 to 1% (sometimes more depending on their job) of their total body weight in feed per day depending on what they are doing (pleasure, showing, breeding, lawn ornament, etc.). That means a 1000 pound animal will receive 20 pounds total a day if they are just being ridden lightly and to 40 pounds a day if they are working for 2 hours a day 4 days a week on average. It also depends on the quality of the grain and hay that you feed. If you use lesser qualities of these, you will end up having to feed more. Of this 80% at a minimum should be in forage and 20% or less should be in grains. That is for a horse that is in good condition already. If they are in poor condition they must start out slowly with little of both (if they have not had access to feed or hay) and then build them up to where they are gaining weight slowly. Gaining weight too quickly will cause lots of problems potentially including founder and laminitis.





Alfalfa is actually hard for some horses to digest, finer bermudas get caught in their digestive system and can cause a block or choke, and local grass hay (like from your neighbor or your own field) usually does not have the nutrients in it that a horse needs. When you talk about hays you talk about the RFV (relative food value). The higher the number the better the hay. This is something that your county extension agent can do a test for to find out the answer. Below 90 means that your horse is not getting what they need, 90 to 100 means that they are getting a little of what they need, a100 is an ok hay, a 110 to 120 is a good hay, over a 120 is pretty nice hay. If a hay is giving them most of what they need, that leaves grains up to giving them added energy, vitamins, and minerals.





When feeding grains always look at the labels of the feed. if it has grain meal (without a specific listed) or grain by-product (without a specific listed) DO NOT feed the feed. That means that the feed is not a fixed formula feed. That also means the the feed company can change which ingredients that they use according to what is cheapest on the market at the time. They are all about saving money but there are lots of feeds out there which are a fixed formula feed. I know this because we owned a feed store for several years and talked to the nutritionists for the top feed companies in the US.





The best thing to do if you are interested in how to feed horses and how you figure out what you feed your horse is to get some books on feeding and read. Read every article that you can find too, and ask your vet and your feed dealer questions about feeds. You can also probably find feeding and nutrition classes at your 4-H office or at other groups in your area. There is a very specific feed formula equation to use to find out exactly what you need to feed a horse based on how much energy they will be using, their size, their age, and the feeds (grains and hays) that you have available to use. Just because a horse is in good shape weight wise does not mean that they are getting what they need nutritionally. Often you do not realize that there is a problem until after they develop a disease or condition because of a deficiency.





Hope that helps.
Reply:I feed my horses with a pitchfork from big round bales, and generally just give them three big piles, and an extra bunch for good measure. As long as they clean it up each day, I know I'm not overfeeding, and they look round and sassy, so I don't think I'm underfeeding them.





I sometimes turn them out on grass for an hour or two, but not every day. Also, I feed a small amount (a pound, split between the three of them) of 12% sweet feed just for a treat. I am a firm believer in not giving riding horses too much grain or they'll act naughty. That's how I feed, and I don't care if others feed differently...my horses are healthy.
Reply:mine is simple...





a flake of alfalfa in the morning oats in the middle of the day occasionally, and a flake of bermuda at night





and occasional treats :)
Reply:It all depends on what your horses do. If they do heavy work they need more food and more supplements most liikely. My dad and I train TBs to race and they get 2 1/2 sccops of swwetfeed twice a day...and we mix in whatever supplements they need...then we give them a flake of hay in the mid morning...2 flakes in the afternoon and then to flakes when we leave around 530 6 oclock
Reply:well i have a horse and i feed it 1 gallon of grain in the morning and 1 in the evening as for hay i feed him 1 flake that is 4 or 5 inches thick, your horse might need more or less depending on its nutritional needs!
Reply:you fead them apples grass carrots and hay but fead them with the parm of your hand other ways they will bite your fingers of and you will never grow them back again








good look feading your horse
Reply:1 qt of feed twice a day, vets orders and some hay all the fresh water they want and a snack or 2 carrots mainly 2 quarter horses, momma and daughter 7 and 12 yrs old
Reply:i say you feed them enough where they get the energy they need, %26amp; you feed them enough to restore their energy after you work with them. It's so they don't get too fat or too skinny
Reply:I have two horses. My old QH gelding LOVES his stall, so is turned out during the day and in the stall at night. He gets free-choice grass while turned out, and two flakes of grass hay during the night in addition to a couple of pounds of sweet feed.





My paint mare is turned out 24/7 on pasture with a run-in shelter. In the winter when there is no grass, she gets free-choice grass hay. When she's worked hard, I give her a few pounds of sweet feed per day.





Both have access to a salt/mineral block at all times.
Reply:i let my horse eat freely in a pasture all summer, just salt and mineral supplements. in the winter they eat free choice hay. they are a little over weight but not obese. i only trail ride on weekends so they are not in competition or under alot of training.
Reply:it depends on the size, and if he is too skinny or too fat.


u might wanna ask the vet.


there are also special types of grain and things for specail disaplines... a race horse would eat different than a show horse...
Reply:Well my family usually feed Horseman's Edge by purina pellet feed 2x a day and 1 flake of hay when the horses are being kept in their stall during the night, or day if there is bad weather. But right now, in Texas, there has been tons of rain, which is keeping the grass from drying out and dying, so we keep them out all the time on 10 acres. Because they are getting so much grass my family is just feeding them 1x a day.





Hope this helps!
Reply:My horse gets 1 lb. of Lite Balance 12% protein 6% fat pellet to help her keep off the weight and be more energetic. in the AM she also gets cortaflex and MSM to help with joint issues.


Shes in during the day so she gets 6 lbs. (2 Flakes) of homegrown coastal bermuda hay with her morning feed and then another flake at 12 and another flake at 2


she gets the same feed at night minus the supplements and is on turnout all night long
Reply:feeding a horse
Reply:My filly gets - 8 lbs Alfalfa, 1.75 lbs 10% pelleted feed supplement, 1.75 lbs 14% pelleted feed supplement in the morning.


- 11 lbs bermuda grass hay, 1.75 lbs 10%, 1.75 lbs 14%, 1/3 cup Strongid C2x in the evening





My colt gets - 9 lbs bermuda grass hay, 2.5 lbs 14 % protein pelleted feed supplement morning and night plus 1/4 cup Strongid C2x in the evening





My mare gets 7 lbs alfalfa hay morning, 10 lbs grass hay %26amp; 1/3 cup Strongid C2x evening





All of the horses I feed get something approximating this based on their age, weight and activity level.
Reply:I have a quarter horse, and she eats like your horse but she also received two scoops of Purina Sweetina in the morning and evening. (You didn't mention grain for yours.)





It is, of course, very important not to change the horse's diet too rapidly or too frequently, as they can become colicky. Treats should be limited, and apples should be pealed, quartered, and have the seeds removed.
Reply:We have this bucket(im not sure how much it measures) that we fill up and we add a little more than a tablespoon of mineral powder and a little more than a tablespoon of garlic powder.





The garlic powder works GREAT for keeping flies away!
Reply:My mare has a month-old foal, so she's getting about 12 pounds of Nutrena Safe Choice a day plus 3 or 4 handfuls of chopped alfalfa at each feeding and Mare Plus twice a day, and free choice hay since my horses have very little grass.





My gelding gets hay, 4 lbs of Safe Choice, and 2 handfuls of alfalfa at each feeding.





The vet says they're both doing great and are at healthy weights.