Nutrition for Show Horses – The Horse

Q: I plan on touring to a number of exhibits with my new Quarter Horse this spring and summer season. What can I do for her nutritionally earlier than and through present season to attenuate the stress of touring and being in a brand new setting at exhibits? – through e mail

A: Diet is the muse of success on your equine athlete, and there are a number of dietary components to contemplate for decreasing the stressors of present season. 

Observe the fundamentals.

Horses developed consuming a number of small meals and grazing as much as 18 hours per day. Moreover, they should eat a minimum of 1.2% of their physique weight in forage to take care of correct gastrointestinal perform and motility. Begin with forage as the muse of your horse’s weight loss program and add focus solely as wanted to fulfill vitality, protein, vitamin, and mineral necessities. If it’s potential, secure, and applicable, supply hay whereas trailering to and from exhibits. Whereas at exhibits, make the most of hay luggage or nets on the trailer and within the stall to provide your horse the choice for fixed and constant forage consumption, which in flip can cut back nervousness and different digestive disturbances.

Begin with high-quality diet.

Present your horse with essentially the most applicable and high-quality forage and focus to make sure she will be able to carry out to her potential. Insufficient diet leads to elevated stress, diminished efficiency, and different deficiency indicators corresponding to lack of physique situation rating and muscle mass. Your present horse’s workload could have elevated from what it was previous to or firstly of displaying, so regulate her weight loss program as wanted to fulfill her dietary necessities.

Be constant together with your feeding routine.

You’ve got in all probability seen that your horse is a creature of behavior and deviating from her regular schedule leads to stress behaviors. It is best to feed near the identical time on daily basis, inside a variety of a few hours, and follow these feeding instances each at dwelling and on the highway. This may assist your horse really feel extra snug figuring out she doesn’t have to fret in regards to the timing of her subsequent meal, however it additionally provides you slightly flexibility if you end up competing round mealtime.

Keep on the identical dietary plan at exhibits as you’ve at dwelling.

It might be tempting to provide your horse slightly further feed whereas on the present, however you shouldn’t alter feed kind or quantity. Be sure you carry loads of your personal hay and focus, and don’t begin new dietary supplements on the present. For those who suppose you’ll need to feed an additional complement, begin it at dwelling to make sure your horse will eat it and to keep away from gastrointestinal disturbance on the present.

Don’t overlook about water.

Horse house owners generally overlook water consumption, however water is essentially the most important nutrient your equine athlete consumes. Sometimes careworn horses, particularly these in new or unusual environments, refuse to drink. Even the seasoned veteran could refuse water if it tastes completely different from what is on the market at dwelling. This could result in poor efficiency, dehydration, or different main well being issues. Bringing water from dwelling, utilizing a water filter, or including  flavoring to the water can assist remove points with water consumption. For those who do use a flavoring or filter, have your horse strive it earlier than you start touring and displaying. Water also needs to be provided to horses a minimum of each six hours when hauling lengthy distances.

Supply help.

Assess your horse all through the season for indicators of stress, deal with any dietary issues, and regulate her weight loss program as wanted. Horses touring and competing have an elevated threat of creating gastric ulcers. Supplementing them with a product that buffers gastric contents throughout meals, previous to train, and whereas on the present path can assist forestall gastric discomfort. Your horse ought to have every day entry to salt, which is essential for physique fluid equilibrium and triggering her thirst response. In some instances, particularly after intense work or sweating, you may also give electrolytes to hurry up muscle restoration and change misplaced electrolytes. Different merchandise corresponding to people who help muscle growth and restoration, immune perform, and intestine well being could be helpful for present horses. Search for merchandise with outcomes backed by analysis in horses.

Horse present season is an thrilling time and, as in each sport, we need to be sure we’re contemplating each angle to realize that aggressive edge. Guaranteeing you present the suitable diet on your horse’s wants and hold a constant dietary administration plan is crucial to managing stress through the present season.

Do you’ve an equine diet query?