Six Tips for Feeding Horses to Minimize Colic
By Kentucky Equine Research Staff · August 18, 2014
If you’ve been unlucky enough to hold a stall-light vigil
during the wee hours of the morning, then you know how terrifying a bout of
colic can truly be. If you know that your horse is at risk for colic, consider
some of the following strategies to avoid future episodes:
Recognize there are a large number of reasons that horses
can colic, including change in season, activity level, dental status, internal
parasites, and nutrition;
Abrupt changes in diet can change the delicate microorganism
balance in a horse’s intestines;
Avoid feeding large quantities of concentrate or cereal
meals, varying grazing times, and other dietary changes, including supplement
use;
Higher fiber diets are helpful for maintaining a healthy
gastrointestinal tract. Offer horses a minimum of 1-1.5% body weight in forage
daily (2-3% is ideal unless weight gain is an issue);
If forage is restricted for any reason, slowing intake
rather than limiting intake is recommended; and
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, changing batches of
hay can be problematic. In fact, experts* suggest that switching hay can pose a
greater risk of colic than changing concentrates. Hay should be switched over
the course of two to three weeks.
In sum, the equine digestive tract evolved over thousands of
years to process a high-fiber, low-starch diet that was gradually consumed over
approximately 16 hours each day. Such a diet supports a stable and constant
population of microorganisms in the equine digestive tract.
Rapid alterations
in the population of microbes due to changes in diet can trigger colic episodes
in many cases. Thus, manipulating management to best mimic a horse’s “natural”
diet and feeding pattern can help minimize colic, especially in at-risk horses.
*Durham, A. 2013. Feeding the horse with colic. Proceedings
of the British Equine Veterinary Association Congress.
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