| Feeding horses correctly can be an art in itself, | | | | contain some water, even if the food has been |
| but by following a few simple rules it needn't | | | | artificially dried or appears dry like many hays do. |
| actually be all that difficult. | | | | For example, an 1100lb (500kg) horse at rest |
| Many people worry if they're giving they're horse | | | | would need to consume approximately 22lbs |
| enough feed, or too much feed, but there's one | | | | (10kg) of dry matter a day to maintain condition. |
| simple way to answer this question. If the horse | | | | But giving them 22lbs of hay, or a combination of |
| is fat (has a body score condition of 8 or 9), then | | | | 22lbs of hay and grain would not be enough as |
| you really need to cut back on their feed to avoid | | | | some of what you're feeding them contains |
| the increased risk of colic and laminitis. If the | | | | water. |
| horse is thin - the spine & ribs are prominent | | | | Fortunately it's not too difficult to calculate the |
| - with a body condition score of 3 or less, then | | | | dry matter content of many feeds. Most horse |
| you definitely need to increase their food intake. | | | | feeds have a dry matter content of 12% or less. |
| So how much feed should your horse need to | | | | As a rule of thumb, you can obtain an |
| maintain a healthy weight? | | | | approximate dry matter weight of food by |
| Some horses seem to live off the smell of an oily | | | | dividing it by 1.15. |
| rag, while others seem to need to eat everything | | | | For example, our 1100lb horse being fed 22lbs of |
| you put in front of them...even if it's twice what | | | | hay each day is actually only getting |
| other horses their size seem to consume. In spite | | | | approximately 19lbs of dry matter a day, well |
| of these differences as a rule of thumb, a horse | | | | under the 22lbs it actually needs. To obtain the |
| that is spelling, or not doing much, needs to | | | | 22lbs of dry matter, the horse would need to |
| consume 1.5% to 2.0% of it's body weight in dry | | | | consume just over 25lbs of hay or hay & |
| matter each day. All other horses will need to | | | | grain each day. |
| consume 2.0% to 3.5% of their body weight in | | | | If you're not sure where to start with your |
| dry matter each day. | | | | horse, try by feeding it about 2% of it's body |
| What is dry matter? | | | | weight each day and adjust it as needed. Some |
| Dry matter means the weight of the food | | | | horses will need more, but if you're lucky your |
| without any water present. All horse feed will | | | | horse may need a lot less. |