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Horse Diet and Nutrition
Horses have a unique set of dietary needs. Find out what foods are good, bad, or even toxic when caring for your horse.
500 Questions
What is the name of horse food?
Asked by Wiki User
fodder is a general term for food provided by humans. Examples of fodder include sweet feed (customized mix of grains, fiber, supplements and molasses), grain, and hay).
RGW
How much amoxicilian do you give a horse?
Asked by Wiki User
First off, you should consult a equine veterinarian about correct dosage for your horse. Secondly Amoxicillin should only be available through a prescription provided by your equine veterinarian, and if not it shouldn't be used.
What is dingle berry?
Asked by Wiki User
A dingle berry is a slang term for a small piece of feces that gets caught in anal hair, most often at the end of defecation. Dingle berries can happen to anyone: human, horse, dog, cat.
Dingle berry can also be used as term of stupidity or an insult. As in, "You are as smart as a dingle berry," or "You have the personality of a dingle berry."
How much does registration cost for horses?
Asked by Wiki User
The cost of registration to a particular breed of horses is dependent upon several things. Each breed has their own schedule of fees charged for registration. Additionally, the fees may go up if the horse ages, is being transferred, or was conceived by artificial insemenation, etc. To find out the answer to this question, contact the breed registry in which you are interested for complete details and information.
How much does the average bridle cost?
Asked by Wiki User
A bridles price can vary. The lowest you will get a good leather bridle for is around $60 online. Bridles can get very expensive. The bridles price may also change depending on wheter it is Nylon or Leather. Typically a bridle will range from 70- 150 dollars. You may also get low prices from Ebay... but i do not suggest buying a used bridle. (Even if the item says brand new people can stretch the truth.) I also suggest leather bridle because they are easier to punch holes in. Nylon is alot more complicated.
What weeds should a horse or mule not eat?
Asked by Wiki User
Obviously that person that wrote the answer before me never owned a horse.
A horse's diet should consist mainly of hay/grass and grain or feed of some sort. Sugar cubes should NOT be fed to horses. People think it's okay, but it's really not. Horses shouldn't have any people food like gingersnaps or whatever. My friends give their horses people food all the time, but it's really not good for the horse.
Some tree leaves are poisonous to horses like oak, maple and yew tree leaves. There are plants poisonous to horses, but usually horses don't eat these plants anyway. For example, buttercups are poisonous to horses, and though they exist in almost every horse's field, horses don't eat them.
There's a lot of things horses shouldn't eat. I think the question should've been what can horses eat. haha.
How many times should you get horses teeth checked?
Asked by Wiki User
It varys Some horse only need there teeth seen once in their life time, others, may need it once a year and the "horse dentist" will just rasp the teeth so np sharp points will cause eating problems or pain in their mouth.
Do Andalusian horses have chestnuts on the inside of their legs?
Asked by Wiki User
All horses have the chestnuts on the inside of the legs.
How much for metal horse shoes?
Asked by Wiki User
The cost of shoes varies because of the materials used. Steel is usually a bit cheaper, but last about 3x longer than aluminum. Aluminum shoes don't last long and cost more over the long run, but are lighter and easier on the feet. The prices for metal shoes are not set due to the fluctuating market value of metals.
Why is chocolate bad for horses?
Asked by Wiki User
That would probably be alright as a treat not an everyday diet kinda thing. I fed my horse granola bars with chocolate in them and he still lived. I fed him just plain chocolate too, he liked that. Non-chocolate granola bars should not hurt your horse unless it has a very sensitive stomach.
Can a pony eat alfalfa?
Asked by Wiki User
Yes. But you need to consider a few things before you decide on how much to give...age, weight, amount of exercise (very important...this is a high calorie food), and the weather is another factor...hot weather and too much alfalfa can cause your pony to colic.
(see related question)
Talk to your vet to make sure you are giving the right amount.
Alfalfa is great when you need to get a horse to gain weight. It is like McDonald's to them: they love it and it is fattening.
If your pony is one to eat a LOT, make sure it has plenty of "grass hay"...this is a much less fatty food, and is easier to digest on a regular basis. It is also better in the summer time than alfalfa, especially when it gets really hot.
How do you bottle feed a baby horse?
Asked by Wiki User
If you have the right milk, get a livestock bottle (large version of baby bottle) and fill it with the (warmed) milk. You might have to rub the foals lips with the nipple a bit to get it to open up, but eventually, it will open its mouth and begin drinking. (let the foal suck on the bottle, and do not force the foal to drink.) Ask a vet if your foal is not responding to bottle feeding.
Why restrain horses?
Asked by Wiki User
Restraints are used as a substitute for training, and force the horse into something, rather than teaching it. Tie downs are used to force the head down, rather than teach the horse to hold his head down. Twitches are a force, used to distract a horse so he will hold still while the farrier or whatever is doing something to him, instead of training him that the person will not hurt him, and teaching him to hold still on command. Hobbles also force the horse to hold still rather than training.
In my opinion, any good horseperson will not use restraints, but rather teach the horse. Restraints may be used in an emergency, when you need the horse to do something, and have no time to teach him, but he shoudl be trained after the emergency has passed, so that next time, you will not have to use a restraint.
What to do to a foundered horse?
Asked by Wiki User
To help your foundering horse, get immediate veterinary assistance. Medicines can be given to reduce inflammation and pain, and a good horseshoer or farrier can apply special blocks and shoes to ease pain and help the horse heal. In some instances, surgery is necessary. Remove the cause of the founder. ex: If a horse is foundering on grass, remove him from the grass and feed hay only. 100 years ago, foundering horses were tied to a tree next to a cold stream and made to stand in it, sometimes for days.
What is the best kind of riding horses?
Asked by KarimHisham
Any breed can be a good trail riding horse. An athletic and calm horse with good endurance can be an excellent trail horse.
The most popular competive trail riding breeds are Arabian, Quarter Horse, Paint, Appaloosa and Morgans. Off the track race horses like Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds can be retrained to make nice trail horses. Mustangs, ponies and grades can also be good trail horses.
Some people prefer the gaited breeds for their smooth and comfortable gaits: Tennessee Walker, American Saddlebred, Peruvian Paso, Paso Fino, Tiger Horse and others.
Some horses are better suited to the job of trail horse than other based on temperment and fit with the rider. Ideally a trail horse should be suited to the rider, so really any breed can do the job if the individual horse is suited for it.
How much food can horses eat before they become foundered?
Asked by Wiki User
It depends on the individual animal and the food they are eating, as well as how active the animal is.
A very fit animal burning a lot of calories in competition, for example, could eat quite a lot with no risk of founder. On the other hand, a fat pony with little exercise could eat just a couple of pounds of grain a day and founder on it.
Ponies are more likely to founder than horses.
Fat animals are more likely to founder than fit ones.
Animals who suddenly eat too much or who colic are more likely to founder.
Typically, what you see are fat old ponies foundering in spring when the grass suddenly turns green and they pig out.
How can you prevent the spread of colds?
Asked by Wiki User
Anwser; 1. Wash your hands and wash them often. The Naval Health Research Center conducted a study of 40,000 recruits who were ordered to wash their hands five times a day. The recruits cut their incidence of respiratory illnesses by 45 percent.
2. Wash your hands twice every time you wash them. When Columbia University researchers looked for germs on volunteers' hands, they found one handwashing had little effect, even when using antibacterial soap. So wash twice if you're serious about fending off colds.
3. Use this hand-drying strategy in public restrooms. Studies find a shockingly large percentage of people fail to wash their hands after using a public restroom. And every single one of them touches the door handle on the way out. So after washing your hands, use a paper towel to turn off the faucet. Use another paper towel to dry your hands, then open the door with that paper towel as a barrier between you and the handle. It sounds nuts, but it's an actual recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control to protect you from infectious diseases like cold and flu.
4. Carry hand sanitizer with you. Colds are typically passed not from coughing or kissing (although those are two modes of transmission) but from hand-to-hand or hand-to-object contact, since most cold viruses can live for hours on objects. You then put your hand in or near your mouth or nose, and voilà! You're sick. Carry hand sanitizer gel or sanitizing towelettes with you and you can clean your hands anytime, even if the closest water supply is 100 miles away. It works. One study of absenteeism due to infection in elementary schools found schools using the gel sanitizer had absentee rates from infection nearly 20 percent lower than those using other hand-cleaning methods.
5. Use your knuckle to rub your eyes. It's less likely to be contaminated with viruses than your fingertip. This is particularly important given that the eye provides a perfect entry point for germs, and the average person rubs his eyes or nose or scratches his face 20-50 times a day, notes Jordan Rubin, Ph.D., author of the book The Maker's Diet.
6. Run your toothbrush through the microwave on high for 10 seconds to kill germs that can cause colds and other illnesses. You think it gets your teeth clean -- and it does. But once you're done brushing, your toothbrush is a breeding ground for germs. Sterilize it in the microwave before you use it, or store it in hydrogen peroxide (rinse well before using), or simply replace it every month when you change the page on your calendar and after you've had a cold.
7. Get a flu shot every fall. The Centers for Disease Control recommends flu shots for anyone 50 years old or older, residents of long-term care facilities, people of any age who have chronic medical problems (heart or lung disease, asthma, diabetes, etc.), pregnant women, and people whose immune systems have been weakened (by cancer, AIDS, or other causes). Also, people who work or live with a high-risk person should get a flu shot so they don't spread the flu. Of course, anyone who just wants to avoid the flu should also get one. Hate shots? Ask for the nasal spray vaccine.
8. Stop blaming yourself when things go wrong at work. Believe it or not, blaming yourself makes you more likely to catch a cold! At least, that's what researchers found when they studied more than 200 workers over three months. Even those who had control over their work were more likely to begin sneezing if they lacked confidence or tended to blame themselves when things went wrong. Researchers expect such attitudes make people more stressed on the job, and stress, as you know, can challenge your immune system.
9. Put a box of tissues wherever people sit. Come October, buy a 6- or 12-pack of tissue boxes and strategically place them around the house, your workplace, your car. Don't let aesthetics thwart you. You need tissues widely available so that anyone who has to cough or sneeze or blow his nose will do so in the way least likely to spread germs.
10. Leave the windows in your house open a crack in winter. Not all of them, but one or two in the rooms in which you spend the most time. This is particularly important if you live in a newer home, where fresh circulating air has been the victim of energy efficiency. A bit of fresh air will do wonders for chasing out germs.
11. Lower the heat in your house 5 degrees. The dry air of an overheated home provides the perfect environment for cold viruses to thrive. And when your mucous membranes (i.e., nose, mouth, and tonsils) dry out, they can't trap those germs very well. Lowering the temperature and using a room humidifier helps maintain a healthier level of humidity in the winter.
12. Speaking of which, buy a hygrometer. These little tools measure humidity. You want your home to measure around 50 percent. A consistent measure higher than 60 percent means mold and mildew may start to set in your walls, fabrics, and kitchen; lower than 40 percent and the dry air makes you more susceptible to germs.
13. Sit in a sauna once a week. Why? Because an Austrian study published in 1990 found that volunteers who frequently used a sauna had half the rate of colds during the six-month study period than those who didn't use a sauna at all. It's possible that the hot air you inhale kills cold viruses. Most gyms have saunas these days.
14. Inhale air from your blow-dryer. It sounds nuts, we know. But one study conducted at Harvard Hospital in England found that people who breathed heated air had half the cold symptoms of people who inhaled air at room temperature. Set the dryer on warm, not hot, and hold it at least 18 inches from your face. Breathe in the air through your nose for as long as you can -- 20 minutes is best.
15. Take a garlic supplement every day. When 146 volunteers received either one garlic supplement a day or a placebo for 12 weeks between November and February, those taking the garlic were not only less likely to get a cold, but if they did catch one, their symptoms were less intense and they recovered faster. 16. Eat a container of yogurt every day. A study from the University of California-Davis found that people who ate one cup of yogurt -- whether live culture or pasteurized -- had 25 percent fewer colds than non-yogurt eaters. Start your yogurt eating in the summer to build up your immunity before cold and flu season starts.
17. Once a day, sit in a quiet, dim room, close your eyes, and focus on one word. You're meditating, a proven way to reduce stress. And stress, studies find, increases your susceptibility to colds. In fact, stressed people have up to twice the number of colds as non-stressed people.
18. Scrub under your fingernails every night. They're a great hiding place for germs.
19. Change or wash your hand towels every three or four days during cold and flu season. When you wash them, use hot water in order to kill the germs.
20. At the very first hint of a cold, launch the following preventive blitz. Here's how:
* Suck on a zinc lozenge until it melts away. Then suck another every two waking hours. Or use a zinc-based nasal spray such as Zicam.
* Take one 250-milligram capsule of the herb astragalus twice a day until you are better.
* Cook up a pot of chicken soup.
* Roast garlic in the oven (drizzle whole clove with olive oil, wrap in tinfoil, roast for an hour at 400°F), then spread the soft garlic on toast and eat.
Studies find that all either reduce the length of time you suffer with a cold or help prevent a full-blown cold from occurring.
21. Wipe your nose -- don't blow. Your cold won't hang around as long, according to a University of Virginia study. Turns out that the force of blowing not only sends the gunk out of your nose into a tissue, but propels some back into your sinuses. And, in case you're curious, they discovered this using dye and X rays. If you need to blow, blow gently, and blow one nostril at a time.
22. Sneeze and cough into your arm or a tissue. Whoever taught us to cover our mouths when we cough or sneeze got it wrong. That just puts the germs right on our hands, where you can spread them to objects -- and other people. Instead, hold the crook of your elbow over your mouth and nose when you sneeze or cough if a tissue isn't handy. It's pretty rare that you shake someone's elbow or scratch your eye with an elbow, after all.
23. Don't pressure your doctor for antibiotics. Colds and flu (along with most common infections) are caused by viruses, so antibiotics -- designed to kill bacteria -- won't do a thing. They can hurt, however, by killing off the friendly bacteria that are part of our immune defenses. If you've used antibiotics a lot lately, consider a course of probiotics -- replacement troops for friendly bacteria. [ Note that these are just TIPS, you DO NOT have to do them all! ]
How much do Tennessee walking horses cost?
Asked by Wiki User
This will vary widely depending on the age, health, training and experience of the horse. A cheap Tennessee Walker can be had for as little as $1000 US; a well-trained top show Walker may cost you up to $100,000 US.
How long does it take a horse to eat a round bale?
Asked by Wiki User
There is no one answer to that question. It's dependant on too many things, such as the season and weather temperature, the size and eating habits of your horse, as well as how much other grazing or food he or she is getting and if they have unlimited, 24-hour access to the round bale, (which is not recommended) Generally, (and this can vary quite drastically) one round bale of hay will last an average sized horse 5 - 6 weeks. Two horses - about a month or so, Three horses - about 2 1/2 to 3 weeks, etc. *This is assuming that the round bale does not get ruined by rain and the horses urinating and defacating on it, etc.
Why is buttercup bad for horses?
Asked by Wiki User
The buttercup (Ranunculaceae family) is potentially poisonous because it contains a compound called protoanemonin, which acts a powerful irritant to almost all grazing animals including horses. However most animals know to keep away from it due to the poor taste of the plant. The most common effect of Protoanemonin is to cause ulseration of the mouth, soreness of the mouth and sometimes colic. This 'effect' is the harmful side effect of the buttercup plant, as the effect stops the horse eating. As mentioned it is unlikely that a grazing animal will eat enough of the butercup to cause this effect due to the plants poor taste. A possible exception to this could be in the case were a horse had limited grazing and was also not getting fed regularly from its owner. When no other food is available to a grazing animal it will tend to eat what is there in order to survive even if it tastes bad. If you are concerned it is always advisable to contact your vet.
How many times a day do you feed a horse or poney?
Asked by Wiki User
You must feed a horse at least once in the morning and once at night with grain, oats or whatever the veternairan recommands. Hay is very important to give it nutriens and letting it out in the feild to eat grass keeps it from not being hungry. So on average a horse never stops eating.....if it gets the chance it will
There is evidence that supports the popular opinion that feeding once a day is fine for horses. "Mature, idle horses or horses used infrequently can be fed once a day." - Doyle G. Meadows, Professor, Animal Science Basically make sure your horse gets enough food and is healthy, and if you have questions, ask your vet!
How often should a horse's hoof be clipped?
Asked by Wiki User
Horses don't really 'need' to be clipped. If you won't be riding or showing in the winter it is best for the horse to allow them to grow out a winter coat. If however you do show or ride during the winter you would want to clip the horse in the fall when the coat begins to come in thicker than in the summer. Once you begin to clip you must keep the horse blanketed to prevent chills. If the horse lives out at pasture even during the winter you may want to try a partial clip instead of a full body clip. To tidy up the whiskers on their muzzles, and long hairs on the chin and pasterns you can clip these down about once a week to every two weeks depending on how fast they grow back in.
How much do horse medicine cost?
Asked by Wiki User
There is no "one-size-fits-all" vaccination program for horses. The recommendations vary depending on geographic location, age of horse, type of vaccines recommended, use of the horse and other factors. Horses generally require vaccines of some type at least yearly. Horse owners should consult their veterinarian and discuss the specifics of their horse's care and use to determine what vaccinations are appropriate and how often they should be given.
