Equine Body Score
Do you know your horse’s body score?
No, we aren’t talking about how handsome he is!
A huge indicator that you are meeting your horse’s nutritional needs is their body condition score. This is a scale from 1-9, 1 being poor and 9 being extremely fat. Depending on your horse’s breed the ideal score will usually land between 4 and 6. The chart below demonstrates this scale.
If you find that your horse is consistently above or below the average, then it may be time to make some changes to their feeding routine. A thin horse may benefit from a calorically dense diet with higher fat and fiber. On the flip side, a horse who is overweight would likely benefit from a low starch and sugar diet that is low in calories.
Another thing to note is the importance of feeding the right amount. If you give an overweight horse a handful of sweet feed because they do not “need” grain then they are missing out on essential vitamins and minerals. It may be time to look into a ration balancer. These are highly concentrated feeds that are designed to deliver your horse all of the vitamins and minerals needed to build healthy muscle, hair, skin, and hooves with a feeding of only a pound. You may not see a problem now, but over time you will notice the long term effects of not meeting their nutritional requirements.
Remember, a horse can only digest a maximum of 5lbs of feed at a time. If you give your horse more than that they will unfortunately get no value from it. If your horse needs to eat more to maintain its weight, it is recommended that it be split into multiple meals. This allows your horse to optimize their feed.
Want to learn more about optimizing your horse’s diet? Call us at 301-663-3113. We would love to hear from you! Please remember to consult with your vet if you are experiencing difficulties with your animal.
