How long should horses be left with nothing to eat?

[Goldenstar]

In Spain horses are mostly fed a very stemmy, almost straw-like hay as a base ration, with pure alfalfa (not mucked about with oil or molasses) and maybe some (often quite a lot!) whole oats. The mares and foals usually go out in the spring onto irrigated pasture or seeded alfalfa fields. It is VERY different to how English horses are managed, yet the horses look well in general, and I don't think there is any greater incidence of colic/ulcers/whatever. I do know that an awful lot of PRE horses in the UK are ENORMOUS, and suffer a very high incidence of sweetitch and other allergic skin reactions.

A little off subject but I bought a enormously fat ID who had awful skin issues a strict diet( has taken over two years ) has completly eradicated the skin problem, theres certainly an big link between all itchy skin probs and fat and it's not called sweet itch for no reason.

 

[Slightlyconfused]

My old mare, she is 21, hasnt been on hard feed for over three years as she doesn't need it, not does the WB the lami however has some fast fibre with his metformin in morning and night and then 12 hour soaked hay.

 

[freckles22uk]

In Spain horses are mostly fed a very stemmy, almost straw-like hay as a base ration, with pure alfalfa (not mucked about with oil or molasses) and maybe some (often quite a lot!) whole oats. The mares and foals usually go out in the spring onto irrigated pasture or seeded alfalfa fields. It is VERY different to how English horses are managed, yet the horses look well in general, and I don't think there is any greater incidence of colic/ulcers/whatever. I do know that an awful lot of PRE horses in the UK are ENORMOUS, and suffer a very high incidence of sweetitch and other allergic skin reactions.

A lot of horses here are fed just straw, and a very high number get colic, not just because of them feeding it, but how they feed it, Ive heard of yards where the horses are stabled 24/7. no turn out, then the owner turns up at the weekend, blasts the horse out for a few hours, returns to the yard, chucks the horse in with a load of straw, a good friend worked at a yard and every week something would get colic.. also nearly all the feed here is bad quality, and often dusty, though it is getting better, and sugarbeet is rarely feed by the spanish, (though im looking and have found good feed)

The forrage is a bit like a cross between hay and straw (well what I get) and does put weight on them.. and sometimes I get bales of alfalfa.. and as said before, mine have straw in nets overnight... or they would real porkers otherwise

perhaps the food in the UK is to rich for the PRE's hence the skin problems..