What Do Horses Eat — Feeding Through the Year

The basis of a horse's diet is forage — hay and pasture. A horse should eat around 1.5 to 2 percent of its body weight in dry matter each day, which for a 500 kg horse means between 7.5 and 10 kilograms of hay.

A horse's stomach is small and produces acid continuously. That is why horses need to eat often and in small amounts. Long gaps without food are the most common cause of gastric ulcers, and ulcers are exactly what hides behind nervousness and refusal to work in many horses.

Grain and concentrates should be added only when the workload truly demands them. A horse in light work usually needs nothing beyond good hay, minerals and salt. Too much grain in a single meal disrupts digestion and raises the risk of colic.

Through the year, pasture is what changes most. Young spring grass is high in sugar, so the transition must be gradual — start with half an hour a day and build up over two to three weeks. In winter the hay requirement rises, because digesting hay warms the horse from the inside.

Water is the most important ingredient. An adult horse drinks 30 to 50 litres a day, and in winter it drinks too little when the water is ice cold. A heated trough or lukewarm water prevents more colic cases than any supplement.