Why do people feed so much?

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EquiGirl1

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I'm curious as to why people feed as much as they do, do you prefer your horses fatter? Does your horse actually need it? If so why? Is it clever marketing by the feed companies telling us we NEED it?

For example the yard I am at has approx 25 horses, most would be classified as the good doer types, happy hackers, natives, only 5 sport horse / tb's / warmbloods.

I have 2 horses at both ends of the spectrum. 16yo retired ID x, gets 2 sections of soaked hay, net topped up with straw and a handful of pony nuts and chaff for dinner with vit supplement. This hasn't changed in years, even when in work and clipped/rugged.
At the other end I have a young ISH mare in full time work who gets as much food as I can stuff in her and is rugged in heavyweights, she like the other TB's/ISH up there is struggling to maintain her weight.

The reason I ask is because I overheard a livery telling another livery she was feeding her ID gelding calm and condition and adlib hay. To say the horse is fat would be being polite and I just wondered what the logic is behind feeding so much?

Its not isolated to her...there is a 15hh HW cob that gets a half a small bale of hay a night (I counted this morning 6 sections!) + two huge feeds, and another HW hunter type thats feed spills over the top of its bucket. Their fat pads only just start to go before the spring grass reappears.

Do you think its a culture of people not wanting to see their animals hungry? If I believed my pets each time they meowed, whinnied, or barked at me with big soppy eyes they'd all be huge... Likewise if I ate every time I thought about food I'd be considerably bigger! Do people read the back of the packets of feed and go "well I hack out 3 times a week for an hour and school once a week so my horse is in medium - hard work thus I must feed like he is competing at Badminton"?

Just interested to hear peoples thoughts.
 
My horses have a lot of grass but over a large area so are constantly moving and keep a nice weight grazing instead of gorging. I don't hard feed, if they need supplements it goes in small fast fibre. I don't like overweight horses and mine manage themselves well but if one put on I'd exercise more.

I don't think you can compare cats and dogs. Cats are hunters and dogs hunter scavangers so built to last between meals. Horses are grazers so should have food going through more frequently.

I think the problem with horses is that not many people know a healthy wieght and think overweight is a healthy size. I think a lot is down to ignorance. The number of people I know who do a large feed after riding because a horse has used energy is mad. If a horse's workload requires it fine. But a slow short hack on a good doer doesnt need a trug of food. I always give a thank you carrot or something though.
 
I dont think people know work load levels either. Chilled hacking 3/4 times a week isn't medium/hard work but people will feed to this. So food companies could make that clearer.
 
Perhaps it's not the quantity of food but the wrong food. Horses need access to forage and to deny them this, is detrimental to their well being.

However, I would agree that calorie intake should be related to energy output and increasing work to match consumption would be one alternative for the owners who love feeding.

Our yard is ok, most horses are in good condition but obese.
 
I think that clever marketing by the feed (and rug) companies has a lot to answer for but also many people buy horses without knowing anywhere near enough about how to keep them. They often buy completely unsuitable high maintenance first horses, and trying to do their best for the horse, stuff food down it.
But then I wouldn't be feeding pony nuts to a horse that needed to have its hay supplemented with straw. Instead, I'd give bit more hay, as IMO, that would be better for it.
 
i feel the same, I put my friends horses food out yesterday! she has lost weight but she had so much it should have been split into 4! she used my old rubber trug bucket and it was full to the top, I split it into two as I couldn't bring myself to give her that much in one go! gave her the first half then 2 hours later the 2nd half!

but there was so much that she is just wasting her money! there was far more than the horse could cope with, it would have just gone in one end and out the other! but my friend feels guilty because she's lost so much weight! I've not seen her unrugged properly so I can't cope! but she's not been able to ride her for about 7 months, so I'm guessing it more muscle than fat that shes lost!
 
I think a huge part of the problem is that when people are told that their horse needs access to forage at all times, which is true; but that forage usually needs to be resticted in some way by e.g. double netting so that the horse can't stand and gorge. Mine would be a right bloater if she had constant unrestricted access to hay, whereas my neighbours horse will wander off for a mooch about and slowly pick his way through a net.

I always find it surprising how few people actually weigh their hay or feed and have no idea of the actual quantities that they are feeding.
 
I find most people feed too much hard feed and not enough hay. I can't stand seeing horses stood in overnight having run out of hay after an hour or so. If they're fat, soak it and double net it. One cob mare at my old yard was sooo fat but was still being fed a feed bigger than my fit TB with linsead in it:eek:

Like you I've got two horses at opposite ends of the spectrum; one fat retired irish cob and one TB who can have as much as she can fit down her neck. The fatty still gets plenty of hay though, it's the grass I limit the most.
 
I second the idea that people don't know what appropriate feed for the level of work is, and also not knowing what 'normal' looks like for their horse's type.

Also, I think feeding can be a bit of a guilt thing? I mean, you read on here about how rugged horses are and how much they get fed (and I'm one of those- we have 3 TBs, and 2 of them are fed astonishing amounts of food and are very rugged up. The 3rd eats half a scoop of pony nuts and some chaff and looks bigger than the others combined...!) and you look at what you're feeding and worry.
 
People who stuff feed into fat horses do puzzle me. Feeding horses is actually astonishingly simple: if it's too fat, feed it less & work it more. If too thin, feed more. But I think people feed horses because it makes THEM feel good. And reading the recommended amounts on a feed bag is not a good plan either. But I also think the ad-lib hay mantra has a lot to answer for too; some, if not most leisure horses will be enormous if allowed access to huge amounts of hay / haylage. I simply cannot feed mine (all good doer breeds) as much as they want to eat or they'd all be the size of houses; using stemmy hay and straw bedding to nibble keeps mine in reasonable shape,
 
Don't get me started!! We should be feeding for the work the horse is doing. Overheard two people this morning saying how they had had to increase the hard feed their horse was having because it was staying in and they couldn't exercise it - they didn't want to use up all their hay so were increasing hard feed instead. She then went on to say how her horse has started doing handstands whilst walking it in hand round the arena as she wasn't turning out. So keep your horse in, stuff it full of hard feed so you don't use all your hay, and then complain about it acting up!!! Beggars belief.
 
I started off weighing high fibre cubes out and feeding to the 'light work' 14hh pony guidance and it was waaay out for my boy - far too much goodness. So now, instead of weighing and reading the bag, I look at my pony and adjust according to HIS needs. I use a measure though so I know it's consistent. I also weightape almost weekly and write this on my calendar as well as fat scoring weekly. He never changes weight or shape because I'm making alterations, not just doing what I've always done.


People need to look... think... adjust... review... it's a cycle.

Touchstone: there is a lot of truth in what you say about providing forage... as shown by my dilemma in a recent thread where I needed to ensure my pony wasn't standing on an empty stomach but didn't want to increase calories with more hay. Someone made the suggestion that I bulk out with a little straw, which I am now trying.

It helps when people are willing to get a second opinion / ask advice.
 
If I gave mine ab lib they would explode! Ok mine are being fed twice a day but normally once a day. We put a bale for both of them on the field today but normally 2-3 sections a day.... Bu mean, if hay left then no more....
 
Elfen said:
Don't get me started!! We should be feeding for the work the horse is doing. Overheard two people this morning saying how they had had to increase the hard feed their horse was having because it was staying in and they couldn't exercise it - they didn't want to use up all their hay so were increasing hard feed instead. She then went on to say how her horse has started doing handstands whilst walking it in hand round the arena as she wasn't turning out. So keep your horse in, stuff it full of hard feed so you don't use all your hay, and then complain about it acting up!!! Beggars belief.
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Fantastic post:D:D:D
 
Agree with Cortez - feeding them makes us feel good.

OP, why do you feed pony nuts? I'm just curious - if all you need to do is get supplements into him, doesn't just chaff do the job? I'm not saying you shouldn't, but if he doesn't need them (and at a handful, it sounds as though he doesn't) you're presumably feeding them because you like the idea of it?
 
When I recently attended dressage camp for the weekend with my 4yr old warmblood there was a session on nutrition with a rep from a leading feed manufacturer. Each horse was weighed on a weighbridge and feeding discussed for each individual horse. I told the rep the my philosophy on feeding was 'as little as possible'. By that I don't mean starving them but the minimum amount of hard feed to maintain correct body weight/energy levels. I was at the time giving him a couple of handfuls of basic nuts for something to reward after work as he was out on good grazing 24/7. She then recommended that a feed balancer on its own would be better as it would contain the correct levels of vits/mins. I started feeding this in September with the intention of giving some extra nuts if I felt he needed it. He is out at grass during the day with access to adlib hay via a ringfeeder and a netful of hay each night he is in and still looking ok on 500g of balancer! So why would I waste my money feeding him something he doesn't need. Confounds me why people feed compound feeds and then add this that and the other which only throws out the balance of the compound! Then there are those that feed them up which they then worry off with the extra fizz so that they get fed MORE. Surely then the feed causes the lost weight situation? The rep by the way agreed with my philosophy and in my particular case said she would rather see a young horse under than over!
 
Whilst i understand what your saying - have you thought about how others view you?

How you can say you keep a horse on the same feed come winter or summer, clipped not clipped in work and without it is beyond me. 2 sections of hay in the winter for a 16hh horse in my opinion is not enough.

As for your other horse - if your having to pump that much feed into him - then i would strongly suggest you look at the quality of hay and grass he is on.
 
Not having the luxury of a fat horse, I feed adlib hay to her and a big bucket of vet vitality, linseed, Alfa a and sups.
Unlike "normal" horses, she won't eat a feed in all one go and likes to pick constantly.

So if you wandered past at the time I'd just fed you you think I feed stupid amounts, but actually I don't!
 
Gingerwitch said:
Whilst i understand what your saying - have you thought about how others view you?

How you can say you keep a horse on the same feed come winter or summer, clipped not clipped in work and without it is beyond me. 2 sections of hay in the winter for a 16hh horse in my opinion is not enough.

As for your other horse - if your having to pump that much feed into him - then i would strongly suggest you look at the quality of hay and grass he is on.
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Well, you'd have to see the horse to know whether this was sufficient, surely? I feed mine really miniscule amounts according to all the guidlines (and my previous experience with different types of horses), but I can assure you they are all more than well covered on LESS than this poster's rations.
 
Cortez said:
Well, you'd have to see the horse to know whether this was sufficient, surely? I feed mine really miniscule amounts according to all the guidlines (and my previous experience with different types of horses), but I can assure you they are all more than well covered on LESS than this poster's rations.
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yes i totally agree - but then i would have to see the horses the op was on about too - but if a horse can be out on spring grass unclipped and need 2 sections of hay in the summer... then i would have thought it pretty obvious that the horse could not sustain on the same amount on winter grazing, and in this cold.
 
When mine used to be stabled, I dare say many people would look at what I fed with utter horror. She got both hay and haylage, a feed, and seperate buckets of alfa and readi grass. She is not a gorger, and picks over night. However, she was a perfect weight, as really not a good doer. Now she is out, has ad lib haylage, and gets some oil in some alfa with some fibre pencils, and looks perfect. I do think that the labels on the back of feed bags are well out, and that people also have no idea what the level of work that they are doing actually is, most horses are in light work, but fed as if they are in hard work.
 
Mine gets 2 x cups of Fast Fibre with 2 handfuls of Happy Hoof also her hay is weighed & soaked, the past 3 days though I haven't been able to soak.

Some of the horses on the yard are fed far too much, huge buckets of feed and they don't get ridden. We've had quite a lot of colic on the yard too.....I wonder why?
 
"The eye of the Master keepeth the horse fat" is good advice (although originally intended to stop grooms stealing and selling on a horse's rations!); keep an eye on your horse's condition and, as before, if too fat feed less; if too thin feed more; and feed acording to work. In the present cold weather, with horses not working at all and on restricted turnout, all hard feed has been cut. They are getting a bit more straw to nibble on.
 
Horse rider. Im not sure what you mean by good condition but obese? Obese is not good condition to me, good condition is a suitable weight/condition score/fitness etc for the seasons. Underweight and obese are not good condition in my eyes.
 
The quantities on the back of the feed bags are how much you need to feed to ensure your horse is having a balanced diet with the correct level of nutrients. If you don't want to feed that much feed a balancer or a supplement in some chaff.

Also horses should have access to forage adlib. They have a pyscological and physiological need to chew and a lack of forage in the diet is linked to crib biting, wood chewing and ulcers. If you have a fatty soak hay for a minimum of 3 hours, put in a double net, and place nets around stable to keep horse moving. Horses should never have less that 1.5% bodyweight in forage per day but this comes from grass, hay and any chaff in feeds not just hay.
 
xxRachelxx said:
The quantities on the back of the feed bags are how much you need to feed to ensure your horse is having a balanced diet with the correct level of nutrients. If you don't want to feed that much feed a balancer or a supplement in some chaff.

Also horses should have access to forage adlib. They have a pyscological and physiological need to chew and a lack of forage in the diet is linked to crib biting, wood chewing and ulcers. If you have a fatty soak hay for a minimum of 3 hours, put in a double net, and place nets around stable to keep horse moving. Horses should never have less that 1.5% bodyweight in forage per day but this comes from grass, hay and any chaff in feeds not just hay.
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Yes, but what do you do when the horse is obese, greedy and underworked? Do you still let it stuff it's face all day?
 
It is strange. At our yard there is a 72 lady with a bad hip she owns a welsh sec B 13.3 She cant ride much due to pain in her hip. He is in as she is paranoid that he will get laminitis. He is fat and has a huge cresty neck She feeds him hay ad lin and 2 big feeds a day. I think she does it because she knows what she is doing is cruel and thinks feeding him will make him happy:confused:
 
Inexperienced horse owners ruining horses that have them as status symbols and look the part(definitely in the boom time). They think that buying and paying for Fancy feeding stuff that they are giving their horses the best in life that money can buy when in fact most horses dont need all the gadgets and fandangled rugs, feeds etc. Most horses are not worked either and are field ornaments. Hence the fat ponies.Its that simple. Incorrect management and good feed company marketing.
 
I feed my 15.2 cob (we think section D cross most likely) 6 sections of hay at night and this is the perfect amount for him! Sometimes he has a tiny bit left in the morning so I know it's about right. Hard feed wise though he has one or 2 small handfuls of safe and sound for breakfast and tea literally to have his supplements. He usually gets 3x 50 minute schooling sessions a week with a lot of trot and canter and one or 2 hacks 1-2 hours with a lot of trot and occasional canter and he is a good weight you can feel his ribs but not see them.
 
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