How many flakes of hay does a 20 year old horse need per feeding?

Answer 1

it depends what you are feeding and how often. if you are feeding straight alfalfa and feeding twice a day, i would do a flake in the morning and one in the evening if the horse is healthy. but if the horse is having trouble keeping his weight up i would do a flake in the morning with a supplement or a grain and two flakes in the evening. gradually wean him onto this schedule though because if you start right away you may risk him colicing beings his system is not used to the extra feed.

Answer 2

You should never feed a horse or pony by the 'flake and scoop' method. You need to feed them by weight. Any equine should receive between 1.5%-3% of it's body weight in food everyday. If the pony is not doing any work or only ridden one or two hours a week then only hay should be fed. If the pony is in light work then hay and a 'maintenance ration' should be enough. Light work would be light hacking and a lesson or two a week. For moderate work, which would be 4 hours or more of under saddle work you can feed 75-60% hay and 25-40% concentrates. For heavy work 60-50% hay and 40-50% concentrates works well. Heavy work is usually what racehorses, eventers and endurance horses do. need to determine your pony's weight then figure out his proper ration.

Answer 3

You should not feed by the flake but by the pound instead. Feeding by the flake is incorrect and can lead to obesity.

Answer 4

2 flakes