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Conference noted::equitation

Title:Equine Notes Conference
Notice:Topics List=4, Horses 4Sale/Wanted=150, Equip 4Sale/Wanted=151
Moderator:MTADMS::COBURNIO
Created:Tue Feb 11 1986
Last Modified:Thu Jun 05 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:2080
Total number of notes:22383

1924.0. "summer feeding" by LEDS::SCULL () Thu Sep 01 1994 17:19

    
    My daughter has been boarding her quarter horse at a barn for the last
    couple years and she just found out that this summer the horses have
    been fed only about a cup of grain a day.They don't get hay every day
    but they are turned out all day. She thinks the grain should be upped
    about two or three times the amount since all they are basically
    getting is grass. During the winter they get about ten to twelve cups a
    day, plus hay. The horses don't look undernourished, but she is
    wondering about the nutritional needs of the horses.
    I like to get an idea of what most people feed during the summer.
    
    							thanks,
    							craig
    
    
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1924.1All these things factor in.\LTSLAB::BIGELOWPAINTS; color your corralThu Sep 01 1994 17:299
    
    
    Where is the place?
    
    How much turnout per horse?
    
    how much use does it get during the week.
    
    
1924.2sounds ok to me...GRANMA::JWOODThu Sep 01 1994 17:452
    I was told by a vet that if a horse had good grass in the summertime,
    it didn't need ANY grain.  I still give 'em a quart a day each.
1924.3sounds ok to me tooDECWET::JDADDAMIOSeattle:Life in the espressolaneThu Sep 01 1994 17:5915
    I wouldn't worry about it too much. The horses may need some
    vitamin/mineral supplements depending on the condition of the soil. For
    example, the Northeast and Northwest are selenium deficient so we have
    to compenstate for it.
    
    Here in WA, many horses are pasture year-round with little or no hay in
    the summer. In winter, the grass slows down so they need some hay.
    
    Think about it though. Horses developed in the wild eating nothing but 
    grass. If the grass got enough growth to develop seed, they'd get a 
    little grain in the fall.
    
    Horses that are ridden 1 hour or less a day probably don't need much
    feed beyond "maintenance rations" so these guys sound like they're
    doing OK
1924.4LEDS::SCULLThu Sep 01 1994 18:5411
    Thanks for the fast response.
    In reply to .1 the horse is here in Westboro Ma. He's turned out from 8
    to about 7 at night, so the gang is munching all day. He gets ridden
    about every other day and the weekends.
    From the answers you gave I'll tell my daughter he's probably fine, but
    if she's still worried we'll get him a suppliment.
    
    						thanks again
    						craig
    
    
1924.5LTSLAB::BIGELOWPAINTS; color your corralThu Sep 01 1994 19:362
    Which place in Westboro, I ride there (and use to live there).
    
1924.6Pasturing HorsesMPGS::SHEPHERDThu Sep 01 1994 19:409
    Craig,
    
    Even in Colorado, we only gave our horses a cup of grain and a cup of
    bran each day during the late spring and early summer.  Our pasture
    supported our two horses just fine.  I would think that the grasses
    here in Massachusetts would be even more nutritional.
    
    Jim