ANNOUNCING A FREE EQUINE NUTRITION SPECIAL REPORT

Basic Concepts in Nutrition

Forages

Grains

Pasture Management

Supplements

Equine Athlete Diets

Feeding the Horse with Special Needs

ANNOUNCING A FREE EQUINE NUTRITION SPECIAL REPORT

Read or download four articles on equine nutrition in The Horse's Equine Nutrition Special Report sponsored by Platinum Performance. These are PDF files you can download separately or as one file at no charge. We hope you enjoy these educational articles. MORE...

BASIC CONCEPTS IN NUTRITION

The options and opinions on what to feed your horse are numerous. The horse is considered a "post-gastric fermenter," meaning that after the simple stomach and small intestine, a large portion of the horse's digestion comes from the fermentation of fiber within the later portions of the digestive system. MORE...

FORAGES

Analyzing Forages
We all know a horse's primary food is pasture grass and/or hay (forage). The quality of the forage is thus a major factor affecting his health. Do you know if your horse's forage meets his needs? Truly, most of us don't--but we should. MORE...

Nutritional Value of Forages
To feed your horse the best forage for his needs, you have to understand the plants and what affects their nutrient content, said Jerry Chatterton, PhD, Research Leader of the USDA Agricultural Research Service, Forage and Range Research Laboratory in Logan, Utah. MORE...

More information about forages:

GRAINS

The Scoop on Feed
Sweet feeds, pelleted feeds, textured feeds, concentrate mixes, processed mixes...many novice (and seasoned) horse owners are confused over what these feeds are, the purposes they serve, and which horses benefit from them. Read on to learn how you can separate the wheat (or grain) from the chaff to see what is right for your horse. MORE...

Processed Feeds 101
Perhaps you've never thought about why your horse's grain looks the way it does, whether it's a molasses-bathed mix of cracked corn and crimped oats, alfalfa-enriched pellets, or chunky nuggets. If you're like most modern humans, you're accustomed to buying prepared and processed foods for yourself--from fast food meals on the fly to the pre-made soups and sauces on your grocer's shelves. MORE...

More information about grains:

PASTURE MANAGEMENT

The Grass Can Be Greener
Now is the time to make improvements to your pastures in order to have the best and most nutritious grazing for your horses next spring. A well-maintained pasture also offers a practical and economic break for you, as well. Through pasturing, your feed and supplement costs are likely to be reduced, particularly if you have a mature, idle horse, or a mare in the early stages of gestation. MORE...

Preserve Productive Pasture
Your horse's favorite activity could be time spent with "Dr. Green"--the horseman's name for turnout on pasture. Left on his own in a field, your horse nibbles for long periods of time. Grass forage is an important part of most horses' diets; therefore, it is up to you to maintain pasture quality. The amount of nutrition your horse gets depends on the amount of time and effort you spend on your pasture. MORE...

More information about pasture management:

SUPPLEMENTS

Feeding Hope or Hype?
You notice that your competition horse is starting to shorten his stride occasionally. He is stiff and takes longer to warm up. Perhaps he's showing other signs of physical discomfort. Your veterinarian examines him, and the result is what you expected--he is developing arthritis. Now what? Should you start him on a joint supplement of some type? You know that every time you open a horse supply catalogue, there are pages of advertisements devoted to oral joint supplements. What are all those ingredients, how do they work, and (most importantly) do they work at all? That last question is the big one, and the jury is still out. MORE...

When Should You Supplement?
Look around any barn and you'll see the evidence. Do you know a feed room that doesn't have a collection of jugs and buckets, pails and little plastic scoops, pellets and powders in a rainbow of colors? The ingredients range from high-tech chemical formulas, to "all natural" mixtures of herbs. And their presence next to the bags of grain and bales of hay says that we don't believe that our feed programs are delivering all the nutrition our horses need. MORE...

More information about supplements:

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EQUINE ATHLETE DIETS

High-Octane Diets
It probably comes as no surprise that a horse taking on the rigors of a 100-mile endurance race or a three-day event might need a different diet from one that ambles the trails around home or carries a child through the occasional weekend show. The question is, just how should the feeding plan differ for these high-performance equine athletes? MORE...

Antioxidants for Exercising Horses
Could feeding antioxidants to your horse help him through a performance problem? Antioxidants, whether found in the diet or supplemented, could potentially help exercising horses experiencing oxidative stress, said Catherine Dunnett, BSc, PhD, a nutritionist at Independent Equine Nutrition Ltd. in Newmarket, United Kingdom. MORE...

More information about diets for equine athletes:

FEEDING THE HORSE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

Feeding Weanlings
Feeding young horses is a serious business. If we underfeed, we risk problems stemming from malnutrition. If we overfeed, there is the risk of developmental orthopedic disease that can affect bones and joints. Somewhere in between the two extremes there is a correct balance that results in orderly growth and development as the horse reaches its genetic potential and remains healthy while doing so. MORE...

Feed Needs of Older Horses
Our horses are living longer now than ever before. Improved parasite control, better nutrition, and advances in veterinary care combine to give us more days with our animals and improve the quality of their lives as they reach their third and even fourth decades. In fact, an estimated 20% of horses in the United States are over the age of 15. MORE...

More information about feeding the horse with special needs:

MORE ARTICLES ON NUTRITION

Brought to you by:

An official Educational Partner of the American Association of Equine Practitioners

Compiled by Rachael Filkins

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