Nutrients in Oats:

On average, oats normally contain around 12% Crude Protein, 49% NSC (non-structural…

Continue

There are different terms tossed around today in relation to gut health. Terms such as prebiotics, probiotics, and direct-fed-microbials are all used and sometimes cause confusion for horse people. The technical definitions are below.

Prebiotic – products that can't be digested by the animal but does promote the growth…

Continue

Last week we told you in part one of this blog that there were five factors that influence starch digestibility in the small intestine. Here they are in more detail.



1) Source of starch

Over 80% of the starch in oats is digested in the small intestine, whereas less than 30% of the starch in whole-corn and barley is digested in the small intestine. Starches are made of sugars, predominantly glucose. So why is glucose from oat starch digested differently than glucose from corn… Continue

With all the things we hear and read about cutting our carbs we automatically assume that these things apply to our horses too. When in fact, carbohydrates are a fundamental part of any horse's diet and therefore cannot be cut out of their ration. Carbs should make up anywhere from 55 to 75% of a horse's diet. So this means that we really need to understand the way carbs are broken-down and metabolism when making our horse’s ration.



Firstly, carbohydrate (CHO) is a chemical…

Continue

There are some truths, but numerous misconceptions regarding nutrition and your horse's attitude. The confusion comes from the challenge of measuring what "attitude" really means. There is limited proper scientific research regarding the link between nutrition and attitude. Furthermore, many practices used in the industry to change a horse’s attitude often cause secondary side effects that can be detrimental to your horse's welfare, one of the worst is to withhold…

Continue

The concept of a balanced ration in equine nutrition is similar to humans eating the daily portion of the four food groups.



The first step is to balance water intake. Here the balance is very much like money, you cannot have too much. Water is the most important nutrient in your horse’s diet and needs to be closely monitored.



The second nutrient to balance is long stemmed-fibre. However, much needed research is necessary to substantiate what long stemmed-fibre implies in… Continue

Winter is coming… Cooler temperatures are already here. This is typically when horses tend to decrease their water intake, which can mean trouble if nothing is done to "force’" them to drink. As explained in one of our previous post, adding pure salt (100% NaCl) to the ration is a must to prevent dehydration. Wetting the feed, especially if it’s high…

Continue

Do you know what is in your hay? Do you know what is lacking in your hay?



As winter approaches and pasture sources are no longer available, the selection and purchase of hay or other roughage sources becomes an important decision for horse owners. Owners that have horses on confinement face the same decision all year. The quality and nutrient content of the hay or roughage source is critical because it is the foundation of the horse's diet and provides 50%- 100% of the total…

Continue

Provide free access to clean fresh water at all times” is the advice given by most horse management or equine nutrition books. The simplicity and brevity of this statement fails to reveal the complexity and importance of water in equine nutrition. Water is the most important nutrient and it is too often overlooked in a horse’s diet. Deprived of all nutrients except for water, horses can survive for 20 to 25 days. Deprived of water but not feed, horses will only survive 5 to 6 days at best. More… Continue