Striking the Right Balance: Feeding Horses for Optimal Condition and Temperament
In a world with so many horse feed options, supplement fashions and the desire to give the best of equine care, it’s not uncommon for horse owners to prioritize the physical appearance of their steeds over their temperament and overall behaviour. While a well-fed horse can certainly look impressive, it’s crucial to recognize that feeds can significantly influence a horse’s temperament and energy levels. Striking the right balance between building up condition and maintaining a calm temperament is key to nurturing a healthy, happy, and manageable horse.
Understanding the Link between Nutrition and Temperament
Before delving into the specifics of feeding for condition and temperament, it’s essential to understand the intricate connection between a horse’s diet and its behaviour. The equine digestive system is designed for a constant intake of forage, primarily grass or hay, which keeps the digestive tract functioning optimally. Disruptions to this natural balance, such as an excess of concentrates, high sugar or starch feeds, mineral ratios or mycotoxin contamination, can lead to behavioural issues.
Balancing Nutritional Needs
- Forage is Fundamental – Horses are natural grazers, and forage should be foundational in the diet to provide essential fibre, promoting proper digestion and hindgut health. Chewing long stem forage from pasture and hay offers horses both physical and mental health benefits. Chewing produces of saliva to buffer stomach acid, reducing the risk of gastric ulcers. Grazing contributes to horse contentment as the process of chewing stimulates the release of endorphins for natural stress-relief.
Aim for a forage-to-concentrate ratio that aligns with the horse’s individual needs by limiting hard feeds to the minimum amount required to keep your horse in optimal condition with sufficient energy to perform.
| Recommended Total Daily Intake (% of Bodyweight) | % Forage | % Concentrate | |
| Spelling/Maintenance | 1.5 – 1.75 | 80 – 100 | 0 – 20 |
| Light Work | 2 | 65 – 100 | 0 – 35 |
| Moderate Work | 2.25 – 2.5 | 55 – 80 | 20 – 45 |
| Heavy Work, Lactating Mare or Breeding Stallion | 2.5 | 50 – 70 | 30 – 50 |
- Carbohydrate Levels Matter – While concentrates such as grains and pellets are often necessary to meet energy and nutrient requirements, the type and amount must be carefully considered. The best source of calories to keep condition on a ‘hot’ horse are those with a low glycemic index (GI). High GI foods such as cereal grains (e.g. barley, oats, wheat bran, millrun and rice) and those with added sugar, molasses or honey are rich in simple carbohydrates which, for many horses, makes them a ‘heating’ feed. ‘Cool’ feeds have a low GI value and are low in sugars and starch. Read the label on premixed feeds carefully and choose feeds made from the following ingredients or make your own feed by combining 2 – 3 from the “Cool Feeds” list.
Cool Feeds List
Super Fibres – high in digestible fibre e.g. Beet pulp, copra, soy or lupin hulls,
Legume Grains and Meals– e.g. lupins, soybeans and canola meal
Oils – energy dense, no carbohydrates.
- Protein Plays a Pivotal Role – Adequate protein supports muscle development, but excessive protein levels can lead to increased energy, overworked kidneys and excitability. This is often seen in horses given lucerne hay and legume grains when grazing pastures high in clover (all relatively high sources of protein). However, lucerne hay and legume grains fed to horses on plain grass hay or pasture, provide essential amino acids (the building block of protein) without negative impacts on behaviour.
- Healthy Fats for Condition – Including healthy fats in the diet, such as those from vegetable oils or flaxseed, balanced with algal or fish oils for omega-3 dominance when needed, can be beneficial for enhancing coat condition and providing a slow-release energy source. Fats are a concentrated energy source that can contribute to weight gain without causing the hyperactivity associated with excessive carbohydrates. Learn more about balancing the fats in your horse’s diet here.
- Micronutrients for Overall Health – Mineral deficiencies or imbalances can lead to various health issues, affecting both physical and mental well-being. All horses need to have microminerals added to balance their diets (especially copper, zinc, selenium, iodine). The correct balance of the macrominerals calcium, phosphorous and magnesium is important for muscle contraction/relaxation and normal brain and nervous system function. Vitamins and minerals can be supplemented by providing the full recommended amount of a quality pre-mixed feed, or by adding a balancer powder or pellet. When feeding a reduced rate of pre-mixed pellets or muesli, use a balancer powder to top up and balance your horse’s vitamin and mineral requirements. We recommend the Equine Vit&Min range of powdered or pelleted feed balancers. Find out which one best suits your horse here.
Monitoring and Adjusting
The keys to putting weight on your horse (when required) or ensuring you have enough usable energy to perform without ending up with a horse that looks amazing, but is too highly strung are:
- Body Condition Scoring (BCS) – Assess your horse’s body condition using a standardized scoring system every week or two. This helps track changes in weight and muscle development due that can occur when forage quality or quantity, or work levels change. RESPOND TO CHANGES IN BODY CONDITION as soon as you notice an unwanted change. In other words, if your horse is gaining unwanted weight, cut down or remove the grain/pellets/oil from the diet as a first step. If you need to reduce weight further, limit hay intake to 1.5% of bodyweight and feed mature grass hay or soaked hay with a low sugar and starch content. Likewise, if your horse loses weight, even with free choice grass or hay available, you will need to increase the energy component of the diet (pellets, grain, superfibres or oils). Small adjustments made often give a more desirable result than leaving it too late and needing to make a big dietary change. Read here for more information on how much to feed your horse.
- Behavioural Observations – Pay attention to your horse’s behaviour, both during and after feeding, riding and competing. If you notice increased excitability, restlessness, or other changes in temperament, reassess the diet. It may be necessary to tweak the forage-to-concentrate ratio or adjust specific feed types.
- Consulting Professionals – When in doubt, seek guidance from a qualified equine nutritionist or veterinarian with an interest in nutrition, who can provide personalized recommendations based on your horse’s individual needs, workload, and health status.For a detailed analysis of your horse’s ration, we offer an expert diet analysis service for $29.95 which comes with $30 worth of vouchers to use on the Farmalogic online store. You can access this service here.
Gut Health and Behaviour
Anxiety and stress are detrimental to gut health, and poor gut health exacerbates ‘hot’ behaviour. Sensitive horses usually benefit from extra care for good gut health as well to avoid the downward spiral caused by painful gut issues such as gastric ulcers, hindgut acidosis and dysbiosis (disrupted gut microbes).
Horses rely on a healthy gut microbial population to produce butyrate (a calm energy source with gut healing properties) and many B-group vitamins. Vitamin B deficiency can reduce appetite, affect the nervous system and influence behaviour. Trials show that supplementation with the live yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae prior to a stressful event reduces stress hormone levels helps gut flora return to a healthy state faster than horses not given the probiotic. We recommend Farmalogic Rejuvenate as a cost-effective gut health supplement with concentrated levels of live yeast probiotics.
The Role of Grazing and Turnout
In addition to a well-balanced diet, ample turnout and access to grazing contribute significantly to a horse’s temperament. Horses are social animals that thrive on movement, and restricted turnout can result in increased stress levels, greater susceptibility to gastric ulcers and undesirable behaviour. Regular turnout, especially in a herd, allows horses to express natural behaviours, promoting mental well-being and a more relaxed outlook.
However, some horses can exhibit “Grass-Affected” behaviour when on pasture as a result of mycotoxin contamination, high nitrates and macro-mineral imbalance, the presence of phytoestrogens or high sugar levels.
Management of pasture-related behavioural change may require feeding a mycotoxin binder supplement, supplementing extra salt and magnesium or reducing access to affected pastures during certain times of the year. We recommend Farmalogic Grazaid, designed to aid in the management of grass-affected horses.
Conclusion
In the quest for a visually stunning horse, it’s crucial not to lose sight of the impact that feeding practices can have on temperament and behaviour. Achieving the right balance involves a thoughtful combination of high-quality forage, appropriate hard feeds, and attention to nutrient levels. Moreover, providing ample turnout and monitoring your horse’s body condition and behaviour are integral components of making your horse a willing and cooperative partner in all your equestrian endeavours.