The Challenges of Spring Feeding

SPRING IS CERTAINLY ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING TIMES OF THE YEAR FOR HORSE AND PONY OWNERS.

Horses have survived and evolved over millions of years by roaming in herds over vast areas and eating whatever fibre sources were available. Typically, horses eat copious amounts of lower grade fibre, which their amazing digestive systems ferment and not only release essential vitamins and minerals, but also create energy from the production of Volatile Fatty Acids. These natural fats have been, and still are the main energy source for a grazing horse or pony.

Just think how amazing it is that a horse or pony can turn fibre into fat.

Today, horses are usually confined in paddocks or yards and pastures are of much higher quality, containing much higher levels of sugars, particularly in periods of rapid growth such as spring. One group of sugars called fructans, can be problematic for ponies prone to laminitis. Horses don’t have the digestive enzymes required to break down fructans, so they bypass the stomach and small intestine, moving into the hind gut where they are fermented, upsetting the microbial balance that can lead to laminitis.

Here are a few guidelines to help manage your horses and ponies when spring pastures are about.

Select feeds that are high in fibre and low starch and sugar.
Feeds that are lower in price are usually grain based and therefore high in starch. Remember starches are converted to sugars in the digestive process.
Check the back of the bag to see what the starch and sugar levels are. Adding the starch and sugar (WSCs) numbers together will provide total sugars (NSCs). Ideally the total should be less than 10% to be safe.
If the bag of feed doesn’t display the levels of starch and sugar in the feed, don’t take the risk.
When selecting hay total sugars should be less than 12%. Wherever possible purchase hay with a known sugar content. Many feed retailers provide this information.
It is a good idea to soak hay for a period of 1 hour in cold water (or 30 minutes in lukewarm water) immediately prior to feeding to decrease the water soluble carbohydrates (sugars) in the hay. Discard the water after soaking the hay so the horse will not have access to it. If there is any hay left at the next feed, discard the old hay.
Restrict grazing of high risk ponies. Sugar levels in pasture increase during the day as photosynthesis allows grasses to build sugar stores. These sugars are used up overnight so the best time to graze is in the morning.

Benchmark Horse Feeds have created a range of low starch and sugar products that use highly fermentable fibre to provide energy via fermentation. Feeds such as Benchmark Perfect Mash® are an ideal choice for horses and ponies at any time, but particularly in spring when they help to offset the impact of spring pastures.

Discover Benchmark Perfect Mash®