Fall Feeding

Feeding adjustments may be necessary every season. When you need to do so, help your horse get used to the changes.

During spring and fall, grasses contain higher amounts of simple carbohydrates (sugars) compared to summer and winter, and this may result to feeding complications. This can mean that your horse can develop problems especially when giving him grain. You can avoid digestive disorders, including colic in horses, when you know how to feed your horse the right way.

Consider the Bugs Inside Him

The large intestine of a horse is where fermentation takes place. Hind-gut bacteria and other protozoa located in the large intestine are there to break down the nutrients. The result of the nutrient breakdown will be utilized by your horse as source of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. When the bugs inside your horse receive a constant flow of feed for them to do their fermenting job, they can adapt to the change. But when you give your horse huge amounts of bulk feed that’s different from your normal feeding, it could reach the hindgut all at once. There will be an increase of different bugs (those that ferment that certain type of feed), and as a result, the intestinal chemistry changes and other beneficial organisms die off. The end result can be distention, gas, diarrhea, and even colic. You can help by slowly adjusting the feed but in a constant manner and also incorporate equine probiotics to help promote the growth of hindgut bacteria.

Foraging

You may have known by now that a rapid transition of feeding can result to intestinal upset. But you may not have realized that changes in hay can be risky as well. The large intestine is where food breakdown takes place. Even if you constantly feed the same hay each time, they may not be created equal. Growth conditions, the cuttings, and even the strans may differ for the same type of forage and this can influence the level of fermentable nutrients. The grass in your pasture can also change composition during the season spring and fall as they grow rapidly and may contain high levels of sugars.

Here are tips on how to do feeding adjustments:

• Gradually introduce grain feeding
• Allow three days to pass before giving an increase in the amount of grain so gut microorganisms can adapt easier.
• Do not give your horse grain that is as much as 4 pounds in one go.
• Let your horse feed from lush pastures gradually especially during spring and fall.