The weather is cooling down and although many have not yet had the rain they need, those cold months of limited pasture and mud are on their way. Although horse owners dread the winter months of mud, hairy ponies and increased feed bills, the horses for the most part don’t seem to care, and in fact, many seem to be energized by the crisp air and chilly breezes.
While very young, very old, or ailing horses may need specific changes in feeding routine, healthy horses with an intact coat can usually tolerate winter weather with few problems if owners pay attention to basic feeding and management principles.
Water If it’s not the most important winter consideration, water is at least near the top of the list. Even when the horse is not working and sweating, water consumption is necessary to prevent impaction of ingested material in the intestinal tract. Horses naturally tend to drink somewhat less water when the temperature drops, so every effort should be made to ensure sufficient intake. Owners can start with these management steps:
Provide a constant supply of clean water that is not too cold. Experts disagree on the exact “favourite” water temperature. Horses will drink water that is quite cold, but they tend to ingest a larger amount when water is warmed to around 4 to 15 degrees C. Water that is hot to the touch is not suitable.
Adding water to feed, giving occasional bran mashes, and sprinkling salt on feed to stimulate a thirst response are all useful techniques, but these measures by themselves may not ensure adequate water intake.
Forage Fermentation of fibre in the horse’s hindgut is the major heat source that keeps horses comfortable through the colder months. Therefore, a steady supply of forage (hay, pasture, chaff) is crucial. While many horses continue to graze some pasture, hay usually provides the majority of winter forage. Type and amount of hay will vary depending on a horse’s size, metabolism, and workload. At a minimum, start with the basic guideline of feeding enough hay to equal about 1.5 % to 2% of the horse’s body weight around 5-8 kg a day for a horse weighing 500 kg, and increase as needed when the temperature drops.
Good doers and horses doing minimal work get along well on medium-quality grass hay (can contain a few weeds, may have been cut when a little more mature than optimum, and containing more stalk than leaf).
Horses with average metabolisms will do better on good-quality grass hay (mostly free of weeds, made from grass that was not over-mature at cutting, and contains more leaf than stalk).
Heavily exercised horses or those with special requirements (older horses, thin horses, horses recovering from illness) may need a grass-legume mix or even straight lucerne hay.
As a general rule, shivering horses that regularly clean up every scrap of hay probably need to have their hay ration increased. Horses that simply enjoy eating will also consume every bit in sight, but increasing their ration is not a good idea. You can tell the difference by condition scoring your horse every few weeks through the winter to track changes in fatness. Remember a long winter coat can hide a multitude of things including ribs, so condition scoring heavy-coated horses in vital as many can appear fat when they are actually losing weight. Likewise, horses that leave some hay untouched may seem to have been overfed, but it is also possible they are leaving weeds, rough plants, or biscuits of hay containing mould. Inspect the rejected material and purchase better-quality hay if necessary.
Stabled horses have plenty of time to pick through their hay, munching a few mouthfuls now and then as the hours pass. Paddocked horses that eat hay in a group setting need to be monitored to be sure that low-status animals have adequate access to hay. Very timid horses may need to be fed hay separately or in smaller groups. Spacing hay piles widely in the field and offering several extra piles can minimise this problem.
Hard Feed Winter diets usually include additional hard feed for two reasons: nutrients and energy. Hay and dormant grasses don’t have the same nutritional value as fresh pasture, and this lack can be overcome by feeding a fortified textured feed or pelleted product. Concentrates also pack a lot more energy than grass or hay, and horses that are eating plenty of good-quality hay and are still not maintaining their weight may need additional calories in cold, windy, damp weather.
As with hay selection, the type of concentrate depends on the individual horse. Barastoc offers a variety of choices to meet the needs of young, senior, performance, or breeding horses. Feeds containing beet pulp or soy hulls (Barastoc Competitor and Barastoc Cool Command), so-called super fibres, include highly digestible fibre along with more traditional sources of energy. Vegetable oil, rice bran (KER EquiJewel), and other fat products boost the caloric density of a horse’s ration. The addition of a low starch, high fibre supplement such asBarastoc Equibix is another great way to add calories to your horse’s diet, which can help maintain condition during the winter months, but won’t fizz them up.
Overweight horses that need vitamins and minerals in a low-calorie package can be given a supplement or balancer pellet such as KER AllPhase that provides only these nutrients with minimal calories. Remember, to assist digestive health, feed no more than about 2.5kg of feed in a meal, breaking larger feedings into several small meals spaced throughout the day.
Beyond the basics Water, forage, hard feed…a winter diet containing these elements is a good starting point. Good managers, however, ensure the comfort of the horses in their care by attending to a few more details.
- Horses should have access to shelter from extreme weather. This can be a barn, run-in shed, windbreak, or even a line of trees. As with access to hay, low-status horses may be blocked from shelter by more aggressive animals, and alternative grouping may be necessary.
- Owners should be sure horses have proper dental care and regular dewormings so that feed can be properly digested and utilised.
- Daily inspection of horses in winter months should include a light grooming, an all-over check for injuries, and an inspection for skin problems.
- Water consumption and manure consistency should be monitored (very dry manure is a sign that the horse may be becoming dehydrated).
This article was written by Dr Clarissa Brown-Douglas and reprinted courtesy of Kentucky Equine Research. For more information about feeding your horses during the different seasons sign up for our free weekly equine nutrition e-newsletter.