Feeding Differences
The nutritional needs of a growing horse compared to an adult horse that gets light work are very different. Horses need to be fed according to age and use. All grain manufacturers give recommendations on the bag or in supplemental literature. You can also talk directly with the feed sales representative.
“Mature” refers to the horse that is beyond growing age, which varies from breed to breed but is usually around four years old. The idle horse is one that is ridden only a couple hours per week and spends the rest of his time hanging out with pals in the corral or field. This horse does not need to be stuffed full of food. Often, he can exist on high-quality hay alone; however, always have the hay tested to be sure it contains all the nutrients a horse needs. If it does not, you will need to include grain in his feeding program.
An adult horse of five years or older that is ridden three to five hours per week most likely will need some supplemental grain to meet her nutritional needs. Again, you need to be sure of the quality of your hay and consider your horse's individual characteristics to feed her enough but not too much.
The horse that is ridden five or six days out of seven days a week will definitely need to have his hay supplemented with a grain ration to get the proper amount of nutrients.
The horse under heavy work, typically a performance horse ridden a few hours every day, will need to be fed hay, grain, and probably supplements. Her feeding program should be carefully constructed and constantly re-evaluated. The type and amount of feed the horse gets will depend on the type of work — jumping, dressage, eventing, trail riding — that the horse does.
The broodmare should be fed according to her age and activity level except during two critical periods: in the last three months of pregnancy, when the fetus is under rapid growth, and while nursing a foal. During the last three months of pregnancy, her need for protein, calcium, and phosphorus increases dramatically and these will probably need to be given to her as a supplement rather than simply by increasing overall grain ration. Continue the same sort of regimen while the mare is lactating, but pay particular attention to the mare's decrease in lactation. As the foal begins to eat grain and hay more seriously (in two to three months) and starts to wean, begin to decrease the mare's feed accordingly.
Nursing foals, weanlings, and yearlings all need access to high-quality hay. They often need to be fed grain to supplement hay, and they may need additional supplements beyond that. And like all horses, these youngsters will need twenty-four-hour access to fresh water and mineralized salt.
