Is chocolate good or bad for them??

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Stacie_and_Jed

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My horse loves chocolate bars. His fave is dairy milk. Last night he had a cadburys cream egg bar and he almost ate my fingers in the process. He just couldnt get it in quick enough!

Is it good or bad for them???
 
Bad - it is a product that contains animal derivatives - horses are herbivores so not designed to digest this sort of thing.

That said, I doubt a small amount will do too much harm...
I had a horse that used to love creme eggs. It is because of the sugar content - after all, grass is mostly just sugar.
 
Bad.

I really can't understand why anyone would feed their horses/dogs chocolate. What's wrong with a carrot/bonio?
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Bad.

I really can't understand why anyone would feed their horses/dogs chocolate. What's wrong with a carrot/bonio?
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I dont feed my dogs chocolate as i know it is poisenous to them, they do gets bones! Jed also has carrots but like i said he loves chocolate. Its not like i give him a bar a day just now and then if i have some. Normally x-mas time when people bring tins of chocs to work, he has some dairy milk ones!
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i sometimes give my guy a little bit of whatever i'm eating... he doesn't like chocolate, actually! he likes digestive biscuits though, and loves dried mango...

i shouldn't think it's good for them, but if only given very rarely and in small amounts (like just the corner off a biscuit ect), i doubt it will do them any harm...
 
i think deadpan has the right idea - espec if he loves it.... a lttle bit every now and then won't hurt. one of ours loves cucumber and cheese sandwhiches - he can't see why we get sandwiches at an event but he doesn't and goes crackers to get your attention in the vain hope you'll drop it and he can eat it.

am wondering if he's part ADHD child, part pig and part labrador....
 
A little bit every now and then is ok. My old JA pony used to demand a 99 icecream everytime he won a class. If I didn't give him one he would sulk and refuse to jump the next round clear deliberately...
 
At YHL Ted the Clydesdale was fed a bar of chocolate by a kid, and proceeded to go slightly loopy resulting in his owner getting bashed quite badly in the back of the head and requiring stitches - so tempting as it might seem for me to want to feed it to Donks for a bit of fizz I will not be doing!!!
 
Chocolate is made of coaco solids, sugar, milk/vegeable fat.

Nothing wrong in feeding fat, coaco solids fine in moderation, sugar fine in moderation, milk fats are fine too!

The milk fats are of animal origin, but horses CAN be fed animal fats with no ill efects. Mares milk replacer contains dairy fats and many horses lives have been saved by feeding them lard or butter fat. EPSM PSSM horses and the like... many of whom are fed lard or other powderd fat in huge quantities.
 
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Chocolate is made of coaco solids, sugar, milk/vegeable fat.

Nothing wrong in feeding fat, coaco solids fine in moderation, sugar fine in moderation, milk fats are fine too!

The milk fats are of animal origin, but horses CAN be fed animal fats with no ill efects. Mares milk replacer contains dairy fats and many horses lives have been saved by feeding them lard or butter fat. EPSM PSSM horses and the like... many of whom are fed lard or other powderd fat in huge quantities.

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Wow that is so interesting. You learn something new everyday. Thank you Yorkshirelass.
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Its probably not "good" for them as it isnt generally good for anyone / anything. Unless its dark chocolate as thats meant to be rather good for you...

Im sure in moderation it wont do any harm but I wouldnt tend to be feeding a whole bar of the stuff! More like a square occassionally.
 
Yes, chocolate contains caffine, which is what gives you a bigger buzz when you eat chocolate as opposed to any other sort of confectionary. This is why serious chocoholics like myself go for the 72% coaco solids black chocolate like Green & Blacks.

As far as the caffine goes... if you consume to much you can make yourself very ill. When I was at collage a lad nearly gave himself a heart attack by drinking too much espresso. This also happens if people drink too much Red Bull or take too much PRO PLUS (caffine pills used by students who want to stay up late & work)

If you want to see what I mean... drink about 12 Red Bulls and you will find out!

As far as horses go, you would have to feed loads and loads of chocolate for the caffine to affect them, they are so big, and why waste good chocolate on a horse when they would be happier with a carrot!

I expect there is something in the FEI rules about caffine as it is a stimulant... anyone know?
 
crikey, i adore my horses, i spoil them rotten with carrots, apples, polos, etc, but the chances of one ever getting any chocolate from a chocoholic like me... jeez. in over 30 years i've never fed a horse even a tiny bit of chocolate! not a chance in hell, it has never even occurred to me!
 
When I'm travelling with mine in the trailer and have to stop at a garage, I often give her a small bit of chocolate, such as Maltesers or Galaxy Caramel. She is not keen on anything with biscuit in it, such as Kit Kat. But then, neither am I. I always open the groom's door. The result of this is that she now loves stopping at garages, doesn't panic or anything, but all you can see is her head sticking as far out of the groom's door as possible, amongst all the petrol pumps, with pricked ears and a sooky expression. She is far more relaxed than the invariably astonished other people who stare at her.

I wouldn't give her a lot of chocolate though as I dont think it would be good for her teeth, I usually give her apples as treats.
 
To be fair the sugar content shouldnt be any worse than polos.
As for the animal product side of things, polos contain gelatin which is derived from cattle bones I think ....

Am sure a small bit evry now and then isnt going to do any lasting damage!
 
We stopped outside our village shop to pick up a drink and some random woman emerged from within and promptly (without asking
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) fed my mare a handful of mint Matchmakers....result: a bit of ranting from me, and lots of very sticky brown dribble & major bit champing from my horse for the rest of our hack. I'm sure she liked it, but I don't see the point in feeding them clatty stuff that's not meant for them and that doesn't have at least a small amount of nutritional value....same with dogs really.

ETA Having said all that they do get the odd polo....which as far as I know were invented with human consumption in mind
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Why? Is it in Jaffa Cakes?

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Jo, theobromine is present in all chocolate so will be in jaffa cakes albeit a small amount. Theobromine (and caffeine) in chocolate is what's so deadly for dogs....Donkeymad was saying does that apply to horses too? I've no idea
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Why? Is it in Jaffa Cakes?

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Jo, theobromine is present in all chocolate so will be in jaffa cakes albeit a small amount. Theobromine (and caffeine) in chocolate is what's so deadly for dogs....Donkeymad was saying does that apply to horses too? I've no idea
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Ah I see. Prolly not real chocolate on Jaffa Cakes anyhoo!

I can't remember what for but I was once told by my vet to give my pony a teaspoon of coffee. Trying to remember what for.
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To be fair the sugar content shouldnt be any worse than polos.
As for the animal product side of things, polos contain gelatin which is derived from cattle bones I think ....

Am sure a small bit evry now and then isnt going to do any lasting damage!

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I'm almost certain that polo's do not contain gelatine anymore
 
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To be fair the sugar content shouldnt be any worse than polos.
As for the animal product side of things, polos contain gelatin which is derived from cattle bones I think ....

Am sure a small bit evry now and then isnt going to do any lasting damage!

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I'm almost certain that polo's do not contain gelatine anymore

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Just checked. Thought I was right! They are suitable for vegetarians. Changed about 10 years ago if I remember rightly
 
No she never had colic. I've got a feeling her circulation was a bit sluggish. Can't remember the outcome though. I was in and out of hospital at the time and she was on full livery.
 
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