8/ DECEMBER 2025 THE RIDER Digestible Energy Content of Hay


horse owners receive their hay analysis results, they tend to focus on either the crude protein percentage or the sugar content. Of course, these values are im- portant, but the digestible energy (DE) content (the caloric con- tent) is frequently overlooked. At this time of the year,


An Equine Nutrition Series by Madeline Boast, MSc. Equine Nutrition


If you follow the educa-


tional content that Balanced Bay publishes, you have likely heard


the importance of hay testing stressed many times. Hay is often the majority of what a horse con- sumes, so it only makes sense to know what the nutritional value is!


It is common that when


many new clients inquire about working together as their horse needs to either gain or lose weight before winter. If you have an easy keeper that is over- weight, it can be daunting as winter approaches and you are anticipating their workload de- creasing. On the other hand, if your horse is struggling to main- tain weight, ensuring this is ad-


dressed before the temperatures drop is critical to their well-being. When weight changes need to happen, the digestible energy content of the diet is a primary focus.


For the 2023 hay harvest in


Ontario, Balanced Bay took hun- dreds of samples of locally har- vested hay. When reviewing the energy content of these samples, the lowest value was 1.5 Mcal/kg, average was 2 Mcal/kg and the highest was 2.5 Mcal/kg. It can be challenging to grasp what these numbers mean, so let’s look at a few examples. My mare Piper is a very


easy keeper, so I sympathize with horse owners who are struggling to have their horse achieve an op- timal weight as I truly understand how challenging that can be. For simplicity, let’s say she weighs 500 kg. Currently, she is not in any substantial workload. This puts her daily calorie requirement at 15.2 Mcal/day. Piper is currently at a


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healthy body condition, so she is fed 2% of her body weight in dry matter which equates to about 10 kg of hay daily. If she is fed the average hay that has a DE content of 2 Mcal/kg her caloric intake is going to be 20 Mcal/day which is too high!! This would result in weight gain. Therefore, if this is the hay that I have and I am un- able to change it, I would need to restrict her intake. The actual energy content of


the hay I have fed my mare Piper for the past year was 1.7 Mcal/kg. So, her intake needed to be re- stricted to 1.75% of her body weight for her to maintain an ad- equate body condition. This equates to 8.75 kg of hay per day which provides her with 14.8 Mcal/day. In addition to her hay, she is


provided with a pelleted vita- min/mineral product, loose salt, and some timothy hay cubes to mix it with. That supplemental feed provides the additional 0.4 Mcal that she requires to main- tain her weight. Now, imagine you are the


owner of an overweight horse, and you are trying to elicit weight loss with removing energy dense concentrates, implementing slow


feeding, and reducing forage in- take, but the hay is 2.5 Mcal/kg in energy content. It will be next to impossible to achieve safe weight loss. If we use Piper as an example in this case, even if she is restricted to 1.5% of her body weight in dry matter intake, that hay is still providing 18.8 Mcal/day which is too much and will result in weight gain. Under- standing the energy content of they hay for your easy keeper provides critical information that is required to curate an optimal management plan. Paying close attention to en-


ergy content is also important for horses that need to gain weight. Let’s say that you have a 500 kg broodmare that is in her second month of lactation. Her required daily calorie intake is 31.7 Mcal/day. If she is fed a hay that is only providing her 1.5 Mcal/kg, even consuming 3 % of her BW in hay daily is only 22.5 Mcal. Therefore, she would need substantial supplemental energy from a maternity feed, and likely additional fat too. This can be challenging to manage in small meals, maintain optimal gut health, and it becomes costly too. If we switch the hay for the


highest energy option and the broodmare consumes the same 3% of her BW in hay daily, she will be provided with 37.5 Mcal/day! So, instead of trying to supplement substantial calorie content with a maternity feed, oils etc. you could simply be sup- plementing quality protein, vita- mins and minerals. When you are reviewing


your hay analysis, take an extra few minutes to find the DE con- tent and understand what that means for your horse. Ensuring our horses are maintaining a healthy body condition is impor- tant for their welfare, hence being able to use this information to de- termine whether hay needs to be restricted, or supplemental calo- ries must be provided in the ra- tion is better than not knowing. Often, when hay is not tested you are making feed changes in re- sponse to negative body weight fluctuations as you are not equipped with the information to make educated feeding decisions.


My lovely mare Piper will


be starting to consume her 2025 hay soon, it has already been tested and I know that it is lower in digestible energy than what she is currently eating. This means that I can increase her forage al- lowance daily! On the other hand, I know that the other horses in her herd that have done well on the hay with 1.7 Mcal/kg and may re- quire a small increase in their supplemental calories. Overall, hay is the majority


of what a horse eats, therefore, for optimal nutritional manage- ment, it is critical to know what the nutritional value is. If your horse needs a change in their body weight, take a close look at the caloric content of the hay. One aspect of hay testing that I really enjoy, is after a few years of consistent testing and closely monitoring a horse’s nutrition, you learn what they do best on, and you can keep their overall consumption the same. For ex- ample, if the 2024 hay is lower in energy than what they have had the past few years, you can sim- ply add supplemental calories in their daily ration to achieve the same daily digestible energy in- take. This is a key aspect of re- ducing weight fluctuations that many horse owners struggle with. If you have any questions


about hay testing, or optimizing your horse’s nutrition plan reach out at balancedbaynutrition@ gmail.com


By: Madeline Boast, MSc. Equine Nutrition, PAS About the author: Madeline Boast completed her master’s in Equine Nutrition at the Univer- sity of Guelph and started an in- dependent nutrition company known as Balanced Bay. She has worked with a variety of equids – from miniature ponies to compet- ing thoroughbreds. Through Bal- anced Bay she designs customized balanced nutrition plans that prioritize equine well- being. This includes diets for op- timal performance as well as solving complex nutritional is- sues and everything in between. For additional information see www.balancedbay.ca


In Memory of Doreen Hellyer 1927 - 2025


HELLYER – Doreen (nee. Newham) passed away peace- fully at St. Joseph’s Lifecare Centre, Brantford with family at her side on Wednesday, No- vember 19, 2025 at the age of 98. Loving wife of the late Walter Hellyer (2017). Doreen is survived by children Pamelia Hellyer (late Sidney), Brenda Wivell (late Murray), Warren Hellyer and special daughter Margaret Kotsch; grandchil- dren Dylan, Catherine, Tausha (Ryan), Shane (Lita), Vanessa (Derek), Melissa (Sam), Shauna, Melissa (Nick), Jen- nifer (Mike) and Jonathan; great grandchildren Isaac, Alex, Connor, Cameron and Maycee. Predeceased by children Gra- ham Hellyer, Jeffery Hellyer, and Victoria Hellyer (David); great grandson Mason and by brother Gordon Newham. Doreen arrived in Canada as a


war bride in 1946 through Pier 21, Halifax. Doreen lived as a devoted wife, mother, grand- mother and homemaker. She tirelessly cleaned, cooked, es- pecially large feasts for holi- days; sewed and knitted clothing for her family and tended to all our childhood ill-


nesses without complaint. Doreen was also a community minded citizen, as she involved herself for many years with the Waterford Lioness Club and Norfolk Hospital Women’s Auxiliary. Doreen will be dearly missed by all who knew and loved her. Visitation will be held at the Thompson Mott Funeral Home, 62 Main Street N, Waterford, ON (519-443- 5332) on Wednesday, Novem- ber 26, 2025 from 2:00 – 4:00 & 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. A funeral service will be held in the chapel on Thursday, November 27, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. Inter- ment will be held at Green- wood Cemetery, Waterford. If desired, donations to a charity of one’s choice would be appre- ciated. Personalized condo- lences can be made online at www.thompsonmottfuneral- home.com


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