We all know that giving your horse a quality and balanced diet is essential to its well-being and performance, but it is alos very important to quantify and adjust its ration according to its weight and its workload or its physiological stage for the breeding part.
How to adapt the ration of your horse?
Why should I share my horse’s ration during the day?
Despite its size, the horse has a small stomach that requires regular gastric drainage. Too frequent drainage can overload the enzymatic digestion capacity of the small intestine, increasing the risk of diarrhea and pain from intestinal stasis. It is therefore essential to divide the daily ration into several meals so as not to exceed approximately 3L per meal.
Give your horse a feed ration adapted to its weight
The rations usually described on the instructions have been pre-calculated for horses weighing on average 500 kg; and for ponies weighing 250 kg, divide by 2 the quantities indicated. A simple way if you know the weight of your horse is to make a rule of three which is a good safeguard against making mistakes in the quantities. If you don’t know the weight of your horse and you don’t have a scale at the stable you can estimate the weight of your horse with a small margin of error with two measurements, the height at the withers and the thoracic perimeter and refer to the following article where you will find the formula to estimate the weight of your horse.
Choose the right feed for your foal
From birth to 1 year of age, this period is essential for the musculoskeletal development of your foal. Foals must be given feed specially designed for breeding, supplemented with limiting amino acids such as lysine and energy. An exclusively grass diet is not enough to build a future athlete.
With an often ill-adapted or unreasoned diet, too many foals develop joint and tendon problems making a future sporting career impossible.
Give your young horse an appropriate ration
After 2 years, energy requirements are proportionally higher than protein requirements compared to the first year. Rations must cover growth needs and have a balanced mineral and vitamin content to prepare your horse for his future career.
For racehorses that start working at a much younger age, a specific feed intake should be set up with different programs than other leisure or sport activities so that these horses mature at a younger age.
Give your horse rations adapted to its workload
Stable feed rations in quality and quantity are essential for a balanced intestinal flora. They must be adapted to the average workload of your horse, without any random fluctuation likely to disturb the delicate balance of the intestinal flora. In response to any type of activity and to limit the consumption of concentrates, Royal Horse offers a wide range of products classified by energy level and by type of effort (long or short) according to the discipline you practice.
Discover the Royal Horse application to personalize your horse’s ration.
