10/11/2023
The only constant is change. Being able to adapt to change smoothly can be directly related to your overall stress level which is closely linked to your long-term and overall health.
The same is true for your horse.....except for..... they don't get total control over their ability to adapt to change. We manage ourselves and therefore we manage our ability to adapt to change. Our horses don't have the luxury of managing themselves, we manage them.
We manage their environment.
We manage their diet content and access.
We manage who their herd companions are.
We manage their exercise regimens.
We manage the things that relate to their ability to handle stress and adapt to change.
It's our responsibility to set them up for success to the best of our knowledge and capabilities. I could elaborate on several diverse and controversial topics from here, but instead I'm going to focus on one.
ACCESS TO FORAGE.
I used to feed 2 flakes per horse, twice a day. Now, I don't feed by the flake. I feed with the intent of supplying a constant, or very near constant supply of forage. Let's be honest, I'm not perfect and sometimes my horses run out of hay. I try very hard to not allow that to become a pattern though.
Having a continuous supply of forage means that the herd is happier. They feel less stress and excitement at feeding time because they are not anxious about their next meal. Sure, sometimes ears still get thrown in the direction of one another, but as a whole, they are much calmer.
They are happier partners for their humans because they have full bellies and a much lower risk of ulcers, which means less pain all around.
They don't have to find as many creative ways to entertain themselves because they are less bored when they have something to munch on all the time.
Providing them with this type of forage access is more work for me, but no one gets into horses because they want to do "less work" 😂. Normally, I provide them with slow feed hay nets to ensure their hay lasts longer. This requires me to have one more feeding station than there are animals, for me that means 10 feed stations need to be kept full each day. Hay nets have worked well for this with a typical once a day feeding routine to swap out the nearly empty nets for full nets.
If you notice the pictures below, they're not eating out of nets. Remember earlier when I talked about how we manage their ability to adapt to stress? Well this is an example of that. I could continue to feed them out of hay nets because that's our normal routine....but it's been pouring rain for the last week!
Feed them inside you say? My horses live with an open shelter concept. Meaning, they don't have individual stalls. They all share a big space. *Yes, I have the ability to isolate a shelter space should anyone need stall rest or separation, but that's not the point of this post.* If I hung their hay nets inside on wet, rainy days I would be opening them up to the opportunity for double resource guarding because now the shelter and the food are a package deal. That would cause more stress and competition to the herd because the food would not be separated very far apart and those herd members who like personal space during meals would feel threatened.
* On very awful, nasty weather days I will put a few food options inside, but I'll still have options outside too. This is a rare occasion maybe once or twice a year when they absolutely do not want to go outside. *
Instead of feeding inside, I feed loose hay + hay nets on lousy weather days. Especially if that rainy, snowy, or windy weather is paired with lower temperatures. Forage is what keeps a horse warm. If they are forced by their environment to only be able to eat very slowly out of nets on these days, then they are more likely to get cold. Supplying loose hay and nets allows them to fill their bellies as much as they need to get the furnace going, then they can graze the nets to maintain heat and keep hunger at bay. On very cold days, my feeding routine turns into feeding an abundance of loose hay twice per day and hay nets once per day.
Don't they get fat?
While at this moment a few of my horses are overweight, it has more to do with their lack of exercise (due to some current life details) than their access to forage. When they have constant forage and adequate exercise, they maintain a healthy weight. If they need to be athlete-level fit, I don't cut back on their forage. Instead I increase their exercise.
Also, when providing constant forage, not all of it needs to be of high nutritional content. Having a mix of hay that's higher in fiber can allow for more consumption without unwanted weight gain.
Lastly, I'd like to add that most horses monitor and maintain their weights very well on a full access diet. Once they adjust to it, they no longer feel the need to quickly devour the forage in front of them. It becomes a more casual dining experience called grazing 🤠.