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Nutrition is very important in the feeding of horses, as the nutritional needs depend on the use of the horse. For example, if you have a horse you are using for show and performance purposes you will feed him differently than one for racing.
The horse has a relatively small, simple stomach and has a large cecum and colon located between the small and large intestines. The cecum and colon serve the same purpose for the horse as the rumen does for the cow. The cecum is located toward the end of the digestive tract and this will reduce the horse's overall digestive efficiency. To feed one properly you need to have a superior knowledge of the horse's digestive system.
The mouth, stomach, small and large intestine (cecum, large colon, and small colon) are the main parts of the digestive system in horses. The mouth is the beginning of digestion as the feed is masticated by the teeth and mixed with saliva. It is known that at least ten gallons are saliva are secreted daily in a mature horse. The food moves down the esophagus in to the stomach. A horse's stomach can hold 8 to 16 quarts: as the stomach secretes the gastric juices the proteins and fats are broken down and food is passed out of the stomach and into the small intestine. This is a tube that connects the stomach to the large intestine. In this large intestine enzymes of the liver and pancreas assist in breaking down the proteins, sugars and fats. This large intestine is composed of the cecum, large colon and small colon. The cecum is where digestion will continue and some vitamin synthesis occurs, and nutrients are absorbed. The large colon will prove a continuation of digestion, absorption and bacterial action and in the small colon, the contents of the digestive tract become solid and feces are formed. Small amounts of the cellulose of feed are digested so the horse should be fed less roughage, and higher quality proteins and more concentrates.
First of all, to feed any horse you will need a well-balanced ration but you will need to constantly be aware of the nutritional needs of each horse or group of like horses. The feeding will depend on the condition of the horses, the growth and also the amount of activity. Horses need to be feed on a regular schedule at least two times per day. If you want to change the feeding schedule it should be done gradually. If you change the feeding or feed abruptly you can cause certain digestive disturbances and also colic can result from over feeding. Keep the feeding area as clean as possible as old, spoiled, moldy or dusty feed should not be fed to horses.
You will want to be sure that your horses have plenty of exercise and also lots of water. Keep a good clean water supply available and estimate at least 12 gallons of water per day per horse. This may vary depending upon the work they do daily or their exercise. Try to give the horse time to rest and cool down if you have been working him before he drinks.
Pastures are the natural feed for horses but you
can not get enough nutrients for each horse from just being on pasture. You can check with your state agricultural college to see what can be grown in your area for your horses to have in the pastures.
Grass hays tend to be lower in vitamins, calcium and protein but don't mold or get as dusty as legumes. There are certain types of hay you may have in your pastures such as Timothy, Prairie, Bromegrass, or cereal hays. Legume hays are also higher in protein and minerals and are easier to digest than the grass hays. These hays include Alfalfa, Clovers, and Lespedeza. You can use various types of silage to replace half of the hay ration, but be sure it is top quality and does not have mold, also be sure it is chopped very fine. Corn silage is best but milo and grass silage are being used.
You will need to supplement with grains as these are high-energy feeds to be used with hay to regulate the growth, reproductive performance and work. Oats are usually the first to be fed among grains as they are very high in protein and are useful when fed along with low protein hays. Corn is used a lot also as it has a high energy content and also low fiber but it must be fed with care to avoid horses getting colic. If you were to combine corn and oats in equal portions this makes an excellent grain ration. Milo can be used instead of corn and is more economical than corn. Barley is an excellent choice when it is ground and will reduce the chances of colic when fed with twenty five percent oats. Wheat bran is very bulky and high in protein, high in phosphorus, and also low in calcium.
There are many meals that you might use to supplement the pasture feeding of your horses, such as cottonseed meal as it is high in phosphorus content. Alfalfa meal, meat meals, dried milk products and corn gluten meals are used as protein supplements. Soybean is used more than linseed meal as it is higher in protein and has a balance of amino acids as lineseed meal has a laxative effect and mixed with roughages it becomes very poor quality. You might also want to try some commercial supplements for a specific feeding program.
Most of your common farm feeds will provide minerals but your horses will need extra calcium, salt, iodine and phosphorus. Daily a horse will require about 2 to 3 ounces of salt, 0.5 percent calcium and 0.4 percent phosphorus. You can use a free choice mixture of equal parts of dicalcium phosphate and trace-mineralized salt in a box that is not subject to the weather.
Horses sometimes that have great pastures won't need any vitamin supplements as they won't have deficiencies as horses without good pastures and you may need to add Vitamin A and also Vitamin D.
You can mix supplements of vitamins in the feed, inject it, or have it in mineral blocks.
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