SEPTEMBER 2020 THE RIDER /31 What Do You Feed Your HAY?


Equine Nutrition With A Different Perspective When I look at a


horse’s nutrition plan, I spend a great deal of time looking at the forage, all for good reason. Forage makes up usually 70-100% of the horse’s diet. Horses require it to sustain themselves. Even horses that have lost their teeth and cannot chew properly have a substituted forage product blend to meet their needs, which in- cludes a modified forage source. For the average horse, approximately 1.5- 3.0% of their Body Weight is consumed in forage. So it stands to reason that a horse’s nutrition plan should focus a great deal on the for- age, the kind it is, the qual- ity and what is in it. After looking at hun-


dreds of forage tests, I can honestly say that there is no one “perfect” hay, nutrition- ally complete, to meet the needs of


age nutrition profile and correcting it as much as pos- sible. (So for those that take things literally, I am not say- ing that you actually “feed” your hay, but rather you feed the horse the supple- ment based on what your hay is lacking, not what your horse is lacking.) And yes, I realize that


the different


classes of horses (ie. main- tenance, light to very heavy work, pregnant, lactating, stallions, young growing horses). It would be a rare find if there is one! So it is always best to assume that the hay is “incomplete” to meet the horse’s nutrient re- quirements. But how much is it incomplete? This is where a hay analysis comes in - it tells a lot! Now for those that feed just hay, water and salt for their horses with nothing else, you are missing a very im- portant component in nutri- tion:


supplementation.


Supplementation is always required - you need to “feed” your hay. If you do not boost your hay’s nutrient content, then the hay re- mains deficient and so will your horse be. Your horse will be “surviving” not thriving. You need to first feed


your hay to make it “horse quality hay”, appropriate to your horse’s minimum nu- trient requirements (NRC’s Nutrient Requirements of Horses) or better. Beyond that, you supplement for specific horse needs. This perspective changes the em- phasis off of “feeding your horse” (and all the crazy marketing that goes with it) to “feeding your hay” - tak- ing a closer look at the for-


looking at a bale of hay is not flashy, shiny or beautiful like the horse pictured on the feed bag, or that it does- n’t make your heart race, but let’s put marketing hype aside for a moment. If we focus our attention on fixing our hay’s nutrient profile properly, then chances are really good that our horses will reap the benefits and will shine from the inside out. And as crazy as it seems, you might then end up looking at hay a little dif- ferently! Here is an example of


what I mean, using hay as the forage type: A + B = C


Well, how simple is


that! If A is your hay’s nu- trient profile (which we know is incomplete for horses), and B is what we have to add to the hay’s pro- file to Balance it, then C is the hay that becomes ideal for your horse, and for the most part nutritionally com- plete for major nutrients, with mineral ratios in good standing. It is Corrected, and the horse is healthy and happy. Good quality hay or forage usually meets horses’ requirements for energy and protein, so no worries there. It’s usually the minerals and vitamins that are of concern - we want to avoid excesses and deficiencies as much as possible to keep horses thriving, not just surviving. That is why we need to ana- lyze the hay, especially for the mineral content. Now you may be thinking why not just add any min- eral or commercial feed mix to the diet which will help the hay? Unfortunately, it is not that easy. There is not a one size that fits all when it comes to correcting defi- ciencies and mineral imbal- ances in forages. That is because all forage analysis come in different from one another. In fact, choosing


any commercial feed mix without testing your hay can make matters worse! This is why I do what I do - by looking at what the hay has and doesn’t I develop a nutrition plan


that “fixes” the hay so that it works for your horse. Once we reach the “C” point, the rest is easy. In fact, many healthy horses thrive very well just on Corrected Hay.


Hanover Raceway Steps Up


The Ontario Standardbred Adoption Society is


very grateful to everyone at Hanover Raceway respon- sible for their recent online auction which raised funds for OSAS. A variety of items were available for purchase,


including two OSAS hoodies, autographed hats, photos, horse related merchandise and more. In addition, the track also sold hats during two race cards, the proceeds of which also went to OSAS. In total more than $1,000 was raised and OSAS would like to extend thanks to the team at Hanover for their support. Despite the challenges of 2020, we have been very busy and fundraisers such as these are very much appreciated during these unusual times.


Developing the Diet Further:


Adding “D” into the Diet For Ex- cellence


C + D = E While many horses do very


well on this “C” or Corrected For- age, some horses require more nu- trients or have special needs due to health issues. Some require special health supplements. In other words, we need to “Develop” the diet over and above what the corrected forage provides - a “top-up” if you will. Think of


achieved. Again, relatively simple. Where horse owners/barn


managers run into issues is that they skip right over the “B” (hay booster supplement) and go straight to the “D” (a general commercial feed mix, or a supplement) hoping to have that optimal feeding program. Many still believe that the nutri- tional value of hay is not important, but rather, a “magical” feed or sup- plement exists to fix everything up for their horse. Such a thing does not exist to my knowledge. The magic actually happens when you fully take into consideration the nu- tritional value of your hay and cor- rect it.


So before you go buy that bag


of feed or bucket of supplements, slow down, take a breath, and give your Hay the love it deserves. You will be all the wiser, and your horse healthier and happier. And more


than likely, you will have saved yourself some dollars. To book your hay analysis and


have your horse’s diet evaluated to achieve optimal diet, health and performance, please contact me. I would be happy to help. ** New! Exclusively to


clients: Feed My Horse® Boost! Custom Hay Supplement.


it as “Excellence”


Photo: Graph shows my recent hay analysis indicating in yellow, defi- ciencies in Phosphorous, Copper, Zinc, Selenium, Vitamins A, D, E. The first step in balancing out a hay/forage is to try to get the nutri- ents in the “acceptable range”. I use the Feed My Horse® Equine Nutri- tion Software to develop nutrition programs for horses.


My 2020 Hay Analysis shows


deficiencies in Phosphorous, Cop- per, Zinc, Selenium, Vitamins A.D and E. This hay does not meet all the nutrient requirements for my horses.


Cheers! Jean Klosowicz Equine Nutrition Specialist Superior Equine Health and Nutri- tion Inc. Bruce Mines, Ontario, Canada superiorequine@gmail.com www.SuperiorEquineNutrition.com


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