Feed and Nutrition
H
orses require ample forage, vitamins, and nutri-
ents to remain healthy. The sheer amount of feed
and hay they consume on a daily basis, however,
can put a strain on your finances. This chapter will address
ways to conserve money when it comes to purchasing and
storing hay, grain, and supplements, and how to best uti-
lize pasture.
Purchasing Hay
Forage is the main component of any horse’s diet — at
least 50 percent of its daily feed intake, according to Ju-
lie Wilson, DVM, of the University of Minnesota. When
purchasing hay to meet these requirements, it is far more
economical to buy in bulk. When you find a good deal,
stock up! Doing so may also help persuade the supplier to
bring the hay to you.
Determine the amount of hay you need for the upcom-
ing year (particularly if you’re feeding a large number of
horses) and buy in early spring or when it is first cut and
baled — before you know whether it will be a good or bad
growing season. “If you wait until June or July to buy hay,
and if it’s been a bad growing season, you’d pay a higher
price,” says Paula Hitzler, manager of the Horse Teaching
and Research Center at Michigan State University. “I’ve
never paid one price early that later went down, although
this could occur.”
Anne m. eberhardt
Quality of hay is ultimately more important than price.
1
Watch the classifieds for hay on sale, but only buy it if
the quality is good. Extremely underpriced hay is typi-
cally of poor quality. Hiztler recommends checking aver-
age prices through hay dealers, agriculture reports, feed
stores, county extension agents, or at an agricultural uni-
versity. Online resources such as The Hay Barn (www.
haybarn.com), a classified ad site for hay, equipment, and
services, can also be very useful.
Another affordable way to purchase hay is through a co-
operative with friends, neighbors, or a local organization.
“Your local saddle club might be interested in creating a
buying co-op,” Bob Coleman, PhD, extension specialist
in the Department of Animal Science at the University of
Kentucky told The Horse. “Horse owners could pay their
hay money to the saddle club, and one check from the club
could pay for hay.”
If you want to take a more do-it-yourself route, buy hay
in bulk for multiple horse owners, split delivery or trans-
portation costs, and have everyone contribute labor for
loading or unloading.
If a co-op is not feasible, consider buying from a hay
broker or a local farmer straight from the field. This will
save you considerable money on handling and labor costs.
“If you can go to a farmer and buy the hay directly from
him, you will save big bucks over buying it from a dealer
or your feed store, since they place a markup to make
money from the hay,” advises Loretta Grosset, western
performance horse breeder and owner of LL Appaloosas
in Burns, Wyoming.
Naturally, growing your own hay is by far the best way
to save money feeding your horses. If you have the avail-
able land, consider leasing it out to a nearby farmer and ar-
range to keep a certain percentage of the hay in exchange
for that person working the field and selling the hay.
 FEED AND NUTRITION
Regardless of how you obtain your hay, however, make
sure it’s of good quality — weed, dust, and mold free.
Poor-quality hay may cost less, but it is not economical
in the long run, and not nutritional for your horse. “Low-
quality hay is usually less expensive, but can be more ma-
ture, have fewer nutrients, and be less digestible. Feed-
ing low-quality hay usually requires feeding more hay to
maintain body condition,” said Wilson in the article she
co-authored with Krishona Martinson, PhD, “Equine Eco-
nomics: Optimizing Horse Health and Management on a
Budget,” for the University of Minnesota Equine Exten-
sion program. Wilson and Martinson also recommend
maintaining a consistent hay type (i.e., grass or alfalfa)
to reduce health problems such as colic. High-quality hay
will reduce the costs associated with adding concentrates
and supplements.
Remember that rectangular hay bales can vary widely
in weight — anywhere from 25 to 100 pounds. To en-
sure you’re getting the best-value hay, ask to weigh a few
random bales before buying. “Weighing feed can lead to
significant savings and can bring excessive feeding (or un-
derfeeding) under control,” says Wilson.
Anne m. eberhardt
Providing hay in a feeder prevents wastage.
Smart Storage
Buying in bulk or buying extra hay when it’s cheaper,
rather than during the pricey winter months, will shave
off some of the costs. But you have to be able to properly
store what you stock up on to get your money’s worth.
If you can buy in bulk but don’t have the storage space,
paying a farmer a storage fee is still usually cheaper than
2
buying high-priced hay during winter months.
“Consider building a pole barn to store hay,” says Bob
Mowrey, MS, PhD, an extension specialist at North Car-
olina State University. “If you can buy hay $2 to $2.50
cheaper per bale in summer out of the field — versus pay-
ing more in winter — this savings will build a barn.” Mow-
rey also suggests forming a co-op to contribute to building
a large hay barn for everyone in your neighborhood.
Don’t just protect your hay from the elements, also pro-
tect it from wastage and spoiling from your horse. First
and foremost, feed your horse only what he needs, and
use a hay feeder to ensure that very little is wasted. Wilson
suggests using older hay first, “animal proofing” hay stor-
age areas, and storing hay either inside or under a tarp if
stored outside. “Hay bales stored on wet ground can take
on moisture, leading to early deterioration and as much as
50 percent spoilage,” she says. “If moisture is completely
void from all directions, and the hay was adequately dry
when put into storage, hay can keep indefinitely.”
If you use round bales, which typically save more time
and money than squares, Mowrey suggests switching to
wrapped bales to protect them from moisture and spoil-
age. After unwrapping, feed them in an enclosed structure
such as a run-in shed, or use a hay tunnel (a round bale
feeder) to keep them dry while they’re being eaten.
Also try feeding from a ground-level manger to avoid
losing hay that gets thrown on the ground and trampled.
“Studies at Texas Tech showed horses utilize 35 percent
more from a feeder, versus no feeder, in a protected area
like a shed,” says Coleman.
Another hay-saving and, therefore, cost-saving measure
is to bring horses inside a stall to eat their hay. Accord-
ing to TheHorse.com, nutritionists have estimated that
horses fed outside in a group situtation waste up to 20
percent of their hay by spreading it out, trampling it, or
using it as bedding. Allow your horse to self-regulate its
hay intake by providing free-choice hay, ensuring that you
aren’t wasting hay by feeding more than your horse needs.
“Horses will actually eat more if hay is restricted than if
it is provided free choice,” says Juliet M. Getty, PhD, of
Getty Equine Nutrition. “If given hay free choice, a horse
will overeat at first — for a few days — and then he will
start to eat more slowly, calm down, and only eat what his
body needs.”
 FEED AND NUTRITION
PASTURE
Hay is not the only source of forage for your horse —
pasture also helps fulfill his nutritional and feed require-
ments, but does so with less impact on your wallet. In
fact, the cheapest, least labor-intensive means of provid-
ing the bulk of a horse’s nutrition is through high-quality
pasture — the grass of choice being Kentucky bluegrass,
because it withstands close and continuous grazing better
than most other grasses. Relying on pasture to meet your
horse’s forage requirements is particularly useful in areas
of the country where and hay and freight costs are high.
“Utilize pasture as an affordable way to meet a horse’s
nutritional requirements,” says Wilson. “To maximize
your pasture productivity, consider implementing a rota-
tional grazing system, avoiding overgrazing, testing soil
every three years, fertilizing if needed, resting pastures for
thirty days after grazing, mowing, dragging, and control-
ling weeds.”
Increased pasture forage can help reduce the costs of
both hay and grain, but to achieve this you need to ensure
you are properly cultivating and managing your pasture-
land. If you plan to extend your horse’s grazing you may
need to seed and fertilize the grass, as poorly managed
pastures supply little feed and are often the source of in-
ternal parasites. However, make sure you’re not fertilizing
unnecessarily, as this can get quite expensive. A soil test
(kits and information are available through your county
extension office) will determine acidity, nutrient levels,
and fertilizer requirements.
Anne m. eberhardt
Good pasture meets much of a horse’s nutritional needs
3
Don’t be fooled if your fields appear green and lush —
they may be full of weeds and “roughs,” or areas contain-
ing piles of manure. You still need to mow and weed pas-
tures regularly, which will minimize the lawns and roughs
syndrome. Removing manure piles and spreading them
over the field will encourage horses to use more of the
land for grazing, as they don’t like to graze where they
defecate. Rotational grazing will also cut down on roughs
and provide maximum forage yield. “Subdividing pas-
tures and using rotational or controlled grazing can greatly
extend pasture,” says Mowrey.
Overgrazed pasture is always an issue, but it too can
be avoided by instituting a rotation system, or subdivid-
ing sizable pastures with inexpensive fencing or a portable
roundpen. For larger herds, divide your pasture into sec-
tions big enough so the horses can consume the grass in
approximately two weeks. Then, move them to a new sec-
tion. If through subdividing and rotating you have plenty
of quality forage for your horses and then some, consider
leasing your extra pasture to those in need. Likewise,
Grosset suggests renting pasture from others when needed
to save on hay expenses. “And for those who do have pas-
ture, but it is limited, one way to preserve it is by creat-
ing a dry lot and turning out horses for limited periods of
time,” she says.
GRAIN
Grain purchasing strategies are not too dissimilar from
those recommended for buying hay. However, grain does
not store as well, retaining its nutritional value only for a
couple months. “Any commercial feed that is fortified with
vitamins should be finished within three months,” says Get-
ty. “Otherwise the vitamins will be destroyed and the horse
will not get the nutrients listed on the label.”
Buying grain in bulk, therefore, is only practical for op-
erations of ten or more horses. Do stock up on as much as
you reasonably can store while the market is low, and take
advantage of co-op arrangements.
When purchasing grain, look for smaller or local manu-
facturers that may offer a lower price. Some feed stores will
offer a discount or free delivery for buying large quantities
of grain, but if you can do the hauling yourself, ask if there
are any broken bags you can have thrown in for a fraction
of the price.
Also compare ingredients and quality of lower-priced
generic feeds from a local store to determine whether it
 FEED AND NUTRITION
makes more sense to buy that product rather than a large
name brand. Remember that, like hay, bargain-priced feeds
most likely have lower nutrition values. The money you
would spend to supplement your horse could end up being
more than what you would pay for a quality feed in the first
place.
“Feed premium feed — it really is less expensive,” says
equine clinician and author Lisa Wysocky. “You can feed
fewer pounds per day because the food is better quality,
and you can ensure fewer instances of colic; less muscle,
bone, and ligament breakdown; and a reduced chance of
founder. Every feed company has equine nutritionists who
(sometimes free of charge) can find the best combination
of feed for each of your horses.”
Anne m. eberhardt
Overfeeding is a common and costly mistake.
Also ensure you are providing enough forage for your
horse that he or she does not need an excessive amount
of grain to meet nutritional requirements. “Adult, idle
(non-working and non-reproducing) horses can have their
energy and nutritional requirement met with good qual-
ity hay alone with the addition of a ration balancer; these
horses do not usually require grain,” says Wilson. “To de-
termine whether grain or other supplements are needed,
hay should be analyzed for quality (energy, protein, calci-
um and phosphorus). Having hay analyzed by a laboratory
costs very little compared to purchasing grains that are
not needed. Working, growing, and reproducing horses do
have greater energy requirements and may need grain to
help meet those requirements.”
“Rather than feeding high amounts of grain, horse own-
ers should consider a fat supplement if the horse truly
4
needs more calories, and is already being fed the best hay
the owner can get,” suggests Getty. Horses that may need
extra calories include those that are heavily exercised, lac-
tating, growing, or breeding.
Because grain is only necessary for additional calo-
ries, over-feeding is a common and costly mistake. Ac-
cording to Getty, a horse not being exercised needs only
free-choice forage and a vitamin/mineral supplement to
fill in the gaps. Otherwise, horses should be fed accord-
ing to their weight and body condition, not by the coffee
can. “Overfeeding of grain is a significant problem, based
often more on our cultural expectations than need,” says
Wilson. “The first step [toward preventing over-feeding]
needs to be a realistic assessment of a horse’s body condi-
tion — if the horse is more than a 5 on the Henneke scale,
it does not need grain, just a ration balancer, along with at
least 10 percent of its body weight a day in hay/pasture.”
Become educated about your horses’ feed requirements
by consulting with an equine nutritionist and investing in
a scale to feed more efficiently.
Finally, avoiding feed wastage and spoilage will always
save money. Use a feeder or container that will not tip
over and waste feed when your horse is eating. This can
be accomplished cost-free by placing a few large, smooth
stones in a feed tub. If necessary, throw a dollar store
shower cap on feed buckets so their contents do not be-
come rodent or bird food.
Over-Supplementation
Over the years, supplements have grown in popularity
and occupied a larger and larger portion of horses’ diets.
A point of contention, however, lies in their effectiveness
and whether or not a horse really needs so many expen-
sive additions. Types of horses do require and benefit from
them, but any expert will tell you not to throw away money
over-supplementing your horse. More is not always better,
particularly for you wallet.
“Situations that may warrant supplementation include;
when poor quality forage is fed, growing horses, brood-
mares in late gestation, early lactation, correcting nutri-
tional deficiencies, healing of bone and soft tissue injuries,
treating metabolic disorders and high levels of intense ex-
ercise,” says Amy M. Gill, PhD, equine nutritionist. “Care
must be taken not to duplicate and overfeed vitamins and
minerals when using supplements.”
If you buy supplements for your horse but are not well-
 FEED AND NUTRITION
educated about his nutritional needs, you may be over-
supplementing him. For instance, one commonly over-
used supplement is protein. There’s really no performance
advantage to gain from it, and it’s expensive. If you feel
you need to cut back, this is often the first place to start.
Where over-supplementation frequently falls beneath
the radar is when you are feeding your horse duplicate
amounts of vitamins and minerals. Commercial feeds are
generally fortified with many of the vitamins and minerals
your horse needs, but if overfed or additionally supple-
mented, the horse may become obese and insulin resis-
tant, leading to laminitis. “Only feed commercial feeds
if the horse is exercised and needs additional calories,”
says Getty. “And choose one that is not high in starch and
sugar — too much of these non-structural carbohydrates
can cause hormonal imbalances that can damage the feet
(laminitis) as well as affect behavior.”
Make sure you read the labels on commercial feeds and
additives so you know exactly what and how much your
horse is taking in. Determine his energy requirements
based on the kind of work he is doing and the quality of
forage he receives, and only add onto that what is needed.
If your horse’s basic diet of hay and grain is of good qual-
ity and already provides most of the vitamins and miner-
als he needs, chances are you don’t need to spend more
money by adding to the mix.
“If you’re feeding your horse concentrated feed products
and nutritional supplements, there’s a good chance that at
least some of what you’re buying is not really necessary,”
adds Elizabeth Clarke, Massachusetts equine lawyer and
head of the Equine Business Institute. “Most extension
Anne m. eberhardt
Over-supplementing is an expensive mistake.
5
services and state agricultural laboratories will test your
hay so you know for sure what kind of supplementation is
necessary to adequately nourish your horses. Know what
your horse needs to stay healthy, and then provide it only
in the quantities he needs.”
Some supplements, such as those proclaiming to boost
strength and stamina, are becoming increasingly popular
on the market, but, according to Gill, their effectiveness is
difficult to prove. “Many equine performance-enhancing
supplements are based on results from human studies and
may not be applicable,” she says. It may be more econom-
ical to avoid these kinds of supplements.
When to Supplement
Supplementation ultimately depends on what is being
fed and what kind of work your horse is doing. According
to Getty, hay-only diets have many nutritional gaps since
vitamins are lost from hay the longer it is stored. Lush,
fresh pasture, however, contains most of the vitamins and
minerals a horse requires for maintenance, and would not
warrant extra supplementation. Commercial feeds are
generally supplemented with nutrients, but must be fed
according to the directions for the horse to receive what
he needs. If less is fed, a vitamin/mineral supplement is
then necessary, particularly if the horse is not grazing on
fresh pasture.
Many horses, particularly older ones or those in intense
work, may need hoof or joint supplements. But again, be
careful not to over-supplement. “There is a tendency to
overlap supplements by giving a vitamin/mineral supple-
ment plus joint or hoof supplements,” says Getty. “Often
times an older horse, for example, can do just as well with
additional vitamin C and flaxseed meal to protect his joints
than an expensive joint supplement.”
For horses than require extra calories, Wilson suggests
that rather than feeding high amounts of grain, horse own-
ers should consider a fat supplement alongside high-­quality
hay. However, avoid paying for supplements claiming to
encourage weight gain, as feeding high quality forage and
concentrates with higher fat content is the most effective
way to increase gain.
Also avoid wasting money on supplements aimed to-
ward correcting behavioral problems and excitability.
“Many remedies have been tried as a solution to behavior-
al problems including herbal preparations, pheromones,
vitamins, minerals and magnets,” says Gill, “But in most
 FEED AND NUTRITION

cases, reducing starch and sugar in the ration and increas-

ing exercise helps quiet a fractious horse.”
Hoof and coat supplements are typically quite effective,
but results are not immediate. You may feel like you’re
spending a lot of money for very little immediate improve-
ment. “Hoof and coat supplements generally contain vita-
mins and minerals, amino acids, and essential fatty acids
(EFA’s) to improve the quality of new growth,” says Gill.
“The effectiveness of these products takes some time to
see; coat improvement generally can be noted within 30 to

Anne m. eberhardt
60 days but hoof quality improvement ranges from three to
six months to be observed.” If you don’t see any obvious
changes or improvements in your horse’s condition over
the course of several months after adding a supplement,
you might as well save money by discontinuing it. Not all Do not overfeed your horse beyond his requirements.
horses are going to respond to products the same way. Ul-
timately, if your horse does need a particular supplement dried, and stored as hay, it loses these nutrients. At this
for long period of time, save money by buying in bulk. point it would then be important to supply a comprehen-
sive supplement. And, of course, the cheapest and most
Alternatives important nutrient you can provide for your horse is fresh,
Ensuring your horse meets all his nutritional require- clean water.
ments is important, but there are less-costly alternatives The bottom line when it comes to cost-effectively feed-
to overloading on supplements. Rather than spending a lot ing your horse to maintain good health is this: Horses need
of money on a fat supplement, for example, consider just good forage — hay and/or pasture — at all times. Add
adding oil to your horse’s feed. water, a white salt block, and a vitamin/mineral supple-
When buying salt for your horse, Gill suggests choos- ment to fill in the gaps (particularly in the case of hay-only
ing less-expensive white iodized salt over red mineral salt. diets or poor quality pasture), and the horse will be fine.
“There is very little difference between the two, just a Concentrated meals are only necessary when the horse is
lot of iron oxide in the red salt that gives it the red color. working, in training, or performing. You can adjust how
Horse diets are already loaded with plenty of iron, so it is much you feed or supplement according to your horse’s
a waste of money to buy anymore iron,” she notes in her needs, but never restrict forage.
article, “Myths and Misconceptions: Debunking Feeding
Myths.”
As Getty noted earlier, a less expensive alternative to
a joint supplement is vitamin C and omega 3 fatty acids
such as those from flaxseed meal. As an added bonus,
omega 3 fatty acids also protect immune function, internal
organs, hooves, and coats. After all, supplements such as
those for joints are not intended to prevent problems, but
aimed toward improving them.
Remember that Mother Nature provides your horse with
many of the vitamins and minerals he needs when grazing
on quality grass. “Fresh grass has vitamin E, vitamin C,
beta carotene (precursor to vitamin A production), vitamin
D, and omega 3 fatty acids which are all very important
to a horse’s health,” says Getty. But once the grass is cut,