How much sweet feed do you feed a horse?

Asked by: Dennis Ketchup

Usually you will feed your horse a daily ration of sweet feed that’s equal to a percentage of his body weight, typically between 0.5 and 3.0 percent. Weight it carefully so you know how much you’re feeding, since guessing can lead to over- or underfeeding your horse.

Is 12% sweet feed good for horses?

Sweet feed is bad for horses—it’s nothing but sugar.”

Can you feed a horse just sweet feed?

It is something that some horses love, but others will treat it like trash. Remember, some of these nutrients in the sweet feeds are the same as those in other feeds. Take, for example, a sweet meal that has both corn and oat grass. It’s better than giving your horse oat or corn alone.

How much feed should you give a horse?

A horse should eat one to two percent of their body weight in roughage every day. Horses who spend much of their time in stalls aren’t doing much grazing, but their natural feeding patterns can be replicated by keeping hay in front of them for most of the day.

What does sweet feed do for horses?

Sweet feeds are highly palatable to your horse. They allow you to see individual grains to inspect for quality. Pellets and extruded feeds are usually highly digestible because the grains have been processed (ground up) into small pellets. This tends to digest quicker in your horse’s digestive tract.

What happens if a horse eats too much sweet feed?

It very well may be a critical and time sensitive, life-threatening emergency. Possible consequences of this grain overload are diarrhea, colic, colitis, endotoxemia, metabolic acidosis and laminitis (founder).

Does sweet feed put weight on horses?

Grains, sweet feeds and other starch- and sugar-based concentrates had long been the high-calorie foods of choice for thin horses, especially those in hard work.

Does sweet feed make horses hot?

But it’s a myth that only certain feeds, like corn or sweet feed, are responsible for causing those excessive energy spikes (silly, stupid behavior) in horses. While there’s no denying the change in behavior that can happen after a feed dump, the issue isn’t always the type of feed, it’s the amount.

Are oats better for horses than sweet feed?

“First, there’s nothing whatsoever wrong with good-quality plain oats,” Whitehouse said. “Oats and other cereal grains form the basis of many, many textured and pelleted feeds, as they provide significant energy and other nutrients. Oats are a key ingredient in many KER-formulated feeds.”

How much grain does a horse eat per day?

A healthy horse can easily eat 2.5 pounds of air-dry feeds every day for every 100 pounds of body weight. It is important to remember that this includes hay in addition to the grain that you would put into the bin. By calculating out the total weight for each feeding, you can then avoid over- or under-feeding.

How much grain does a 1000 lb horse need?

For example, if you have a 1,000 pound horse who is in light work, a good diet might consist of 17 pounds of hay or hay cubes and 3 pounds of grain per day. The same 1,000 pound horse in a heavy work program may need 10 pounds of hay and 10 pounds of grain, since the grain is higher in energy.

How many pounds is a horse scoop?

Weight vs.



Open scoops, dippers, ice cream containers, tins, jars, and bowls are commonly used to convey feed to the trough, and each may hold a different volume of feed. Equine nutrition consultants often hear from horse owners that they use a 1-kg (2.2-lb) scoop.

Is it OK to feed horses once a day?

Feeding a horse grain once a day is fine, but horses need a steady supply of forage throughout the day to maintain their health. If your horse is kept in a stall, it’s best to feed it hay twice a day in a slow feeder.

Do horses need to be fed at the same time every day?

While it’s true that horses fed at regular times are conditioned to expect meals at certain times, it’s a myth that horses need to eat at the same time every day. Research suggests that there’s no physiological reason to stick to a strict feeding schedule.

How many hours a day should a horse graze?

It is estimated that a horse spends about 10 to 17 hours each day grazing, and this is broken up into about 15 to 20 grazing periods.

How much should I feed my horse calculator?

Horses should consume about 1.5 – 2.5% of their bodyweight per day according to their condition and workload, so to find out how much you need to feed your horse the first step is to calculate your horse’s bodyweight. There are a number of ways in which you can do this including using a weigh tape or a horse weigher.

How long does a 50lb bag of horse feed last?

Feed 3 Scoops/day. For a hard keeper, stressed, colicing or sick horse use 3 scoops per day. A 50 lb bag will last 25 days. Feed 2 Scoops/day.

How much should you feed a horse per day?

Horses need to consume about 2% of their body weight in forage per day, which is about 20 pounds of hay for a 1,000-pound horse.

How do you measure horse feed?

https://youtu.be/w5k3PC2Mb38
An easy way to weigh your feed is to buy a fish or luggage scale. Such as this one and use a tall kitchen handle tie garbage bag. And then you just pour your scoop. Or can of feed into the bag hang.

How is horse feed measured and weighed?

If your horse gets his forage in the form of hay cubes or pellets, you can use the scale to weigh his cubes (unsoaked) in a bucket. Just subtract the weight of the empty bucket to get your measurement.

How do you use a hay scale?

The empty leaf tarp. Up so you get that tear. So you subtract out how much the tarp weighs. And then you're going to take your flake ahead and start with the glass hay.

What hay should I feed my horse?

Timothy hay is one of the most popular hays fed to horses. It can be quite expensive, depending on whether it has to be shipped long distances. Timothy must be harvested in the pre- or early-bloom stage to ensure a high nutrient content.

How long does a bale of hay last for one horse?

In general, a standard 40 lb. square bale of hay lasts one horse for about 3.5 days. But many factors such as age, workload, type of hay, and access to pasture grass affect how much they eat. I find most horses eat between 10-15 pounds of hay each day.

How many flakes of hay does a horse need?

horse five flakes every day. Remember to feed in as many small portions as possible.