Feed To Work - Work To Feed: Finding Your Horse’s Right Balance

Jun 20

3 min read

Ensuring your horse’s diet matches its workload is like fueling a sports car versus a daily driving car, both need quality nutrients but in different amounts. Balancing calories and nutrients keeps your equine athlete in top condition, whether they're out for a casual trot or gearing up for an endurance event. Establishing whether your horse as a hard keeper or easy keeper is important to work through what calories they require in training. Do not compare your horse to other horses as they should all be treated as individuals and at the beginning it is good practice to focus and record how your horse responds to a particular diet. Feeding guides on your feed bag or website should only be used strictly as a guide and can be adjusted up or down depending on the desired condition you are aiming for. But going below the minimum feed rate could put you under the recommended vitamin and mineral levels so a concentrated product may be more suitable.

Essential Nutrition for All Horses

Regardless of how much work your horse does, they need quality protein, vitamins, and minerals for overall health. This balances the nutrient shortfalls in pasture and hay. These nutrients support muscle tone, skin/coat colour, strong hooves, and immune system. Think of them as the foundational bricks that keep your horse sturdy and sound.

Feeding Strategies for Horses in Light Work

For horses that are lounging more than lunging, or those with a naturally hearty build, the easy keeper, “balancers and concentrates” are your best friend. These feeds provide all essential nutrients without piling on the calories, ensuring even ‘couch-potato’ ponies stay healthy without gaining unnecessary weight.

Adjusting Feed for Hard Working Horses

As your horse’s workload ramps up, so does their need for antioxidants, quality protein, and calories. Determining the right feed can be tricky, but this general chart below simplifies the guesswork:

Concentrated Power for Peak Performance

A horse can only munch so much—about 2-2.5% of its body weight daily. To meet high energy demands, concentrate feeds pack more nutrients and calories into each bite. Spread their concentrate ration into multiple small meals to prevent digestive overload and make changes gradually to avoid upsetting their stomachs.

Follow manufacturer recommendations for feeding levels to ensure a balanced diet. Don’t follow your friend's feed program as all horses are individuals due to many factors including genetics and metabolic rate.

Forage: The Essential Backbone of Every Diet

Even with calorie-rich concentrates, forage remains crucial. Horses should munch on forage freely to satisfy their need to chew and keep their digestive systems happy. Think of it as the saliva generator which lowers ulcer risk. Stomach acid continually rises and needs to be neutralised through the chewing action of long stem roughage generating many litres of saliva per day.

Cutting back on forage to avoid "bulky fiber" in hard-working horses is generally unnecessary. This includes Good-doers or overweight horses on a calorie-controlled diet needing managed forage intake, grassy hay types are the best, but never less than 1-1.5% of their body weight.

Managing the 'Good-Doers'

Just like people, horses have different metabolisms. While calorie needs depend on workload and body condition, good-doers usually require fewer calories. However, they still need ample vitamins, minerals and protein especially if they're working hard. For these horses, lower energy feeds, paired with a concentrated balancer for the essential nutrients, keep their diet in check without packing on extra kilos.

Balancing your horse’s feed with its activity level isn’t just about avoiding too many or too few calories—it’s about giving them the right fuel for the job, ensuring they’re healthy, happy, and ready to perform at their best.

Special Note: If you are still confused and need extra help in finding the right diet balance for your horse. CEN Nutrition offers a Free Diet Analysis service to help your horse’s diet be more simple and effective.