It’s extremely important that a horse owner should know the nutritional needs and diet, with respect to weight management and other factors that must be balanced to ensure that the horse’s growth is healthy and on the right track.
When working on the overall feeding program of a horse, you, as an owner, should ensure that all nutritional needs of the animal are taken care of. To make it easier, any good feeding program must be based on the following 3 principles;
- Meet the Nutritional Needs
- Maintain a Healthy Digestive System
- Offer Highest Quality Feed
What Are The Essential Nutrients That Every Feeding Program Must Contain?
They are:
Water: This is of course, the most important nutrient by far and is one that is also the most overlooked by horse owners. For healthy growth and development of the horse, it should be access to clean and fresh drinking water at all times. Without this essential nutrient, the horse may succumb to colic, dehydration or even death!
Water requirements for your horse may largely depend on the physiologic state, but generally speaking, a 500 kg horse will drink about 30-45 liters (approximately) in a day. Another factor to think about when approximating the right amount of water that a horse needs, is to view the diet of the animal.
Protein: The main function of protein is to provide support and ‘building blocks’ that are needed for healthy growth of tissues, muscles, hormones, and enzymes.
This is why, a high quality feed that is enriched in protein should be provided. This will ensure that your horse is also getting another essential nutrient and a by-product of protein i.e. amino acids, which is required for growth.
Fats and Carbohydrates: The main reason why fats and carbohydrates are included in anyone’s diet is because the nutrients are able to generate energy after being digested and metabolized. However, your horse’s feeding program must also include some specific types of the two essential nutrients as they will help with additional and important functions.
Minerals: The feeding program for horses must include several minerals, which are necessary for the proper functioning of several bodily systems including skeletal integrity and cellular communication. The minerals that are needed in high amounts i.e. macro minerals are; calcium, sodium, phosphorous, potassium, magnesium, chloride, and sulfur.
The minerals that are required in small amounts however are; copper, cobalt, zinc, iron, selenium, iodine etc. Horse feeds tend to contain the right quantity of the above minerals. However, due to the deficiency of sodium and salt, owner or caretakers should provide the animal with a salt block.
Vitamins: They are two types of vitamins; water-soluble or fat-soluble. Fat-soluble vitamins can dissolve in fat and include vitamin; A, D, E, and K. Water soluble vitamins on the other hand, include vitamin C and B complex.
When it comes to the nutritional needs of a horse, you will find them to be very different and unique from not only other animals but other horses as well. This is because every horse is different and such differences don’t only stem from their feeding program.
