|
Concentrates
Horses
required to work will require extra energy over and above their
maintenance requirement. Grains are the most commonly used
concentrates - oats, barley, maize. These grains are usually
treated in some way to make them more digestible. Oats and
barley are usually rolled or crushed, barley may be also be
boiled. Maize is often heat treated and flaked - it looks like
cornflakes and horses love it - but it can be very heating.
Soaked sugar beet pulp also contains good levels of energy and fibre
and can help considerably to put on body condition.
Feed
should be measured by weight - not volume - as there are considerable
differences in density. Abrupt changes in feed type (or
quantity) must be avoided and all concentrates should be kept clean
and dry.
Excessive
feeding of concentrates is one of the most common causes of
misbehaviour in horses. Reducing concentrates and increasing hay
(particularly if work levels are reduced for any reason) will prevent
a lot of problems.
Recommending
feed levels for horses (or ponies) without knowing quite a lot about
them can be a recipe for disaster. A horse doing an average
amount of work and receiving good quality hay is unlikely to need more
than .5 to .75kg of concentrates per 100 kg bodyweight. A horse
working hard and competing may need up to 1.5 kg per 100 kg
bodyweight. Ponies do not normally require concentrates unless
working quite hard - good quality hay and pasture is more than
adequate for the average child's pony.
|
