At British Horse Feeds we take horse nutrition very seriously.
Because the horse is a herbivore which has evolved to eat plants
and utilise fibre, we believe feeding should be the natural way,
with as many nutrients as possible being supplied from fibrous
feeds before anything else is added to its diet. We've pulled
together a selection of articles, mostly written by our
nutritionist, Dr Tom Shurlock based around this philosophy, which
we hope you'll find interesting.
There is an old maxim: “You are what you eat!” Basically this is true, except for one small detail – it’s the wrong way round!
What you are, or in the case of the Performance Horse, what you do dictates what you should eat. Traditionally it has been accepted that the more intense the exercise you put your horse through, the more “fast release” energy you should be feeding. But fast release is not necessarily the same as readily accessible and, biochemically, there are storage “areas” for energy irrespective of whether you are feeding fast or slow release energy sources. Slow- and fast- release are not terms that are applicable to a performance horse.
Although it’s not precisely known how many horses have ulcers; reports of 25-50% of foals and 60-90% of performance horses have been quoted.
read articleLaminitis, like many conditions, is a description of the effect rather than its cause. That is the condition is an inflammation of the lamellar and may be caused by a number of factors including physical damage, bacterial toxins (disease) and diet.
read articleDr Tom Shurlock explores why horses become fussy in their feeding habits and what we can do to ensure they get a nutritionally balanced diet.
read articleMore than any other domestic animal the horse has a modern lifestyle furthest away from its wild antecedants. We have curtailed its wide ranging activities to regular periods of activity, the remainder of the time keeping it stabled or in small areas for grazing.
read articleTying Up, Monday Morning Sickness, gait abnormalities, back pains, colic symptoms, stiffness are all familiar terms to the worried horse owner when their horse is in distress either during or after exercise.
read articleSugar Beet can do a whole lot more for your horse than simply dampen down his nuts or coarse mix. Sugar beet pulp is a versatile feed, because it can be fed in small quantities to overweight horses as a mixer for multivitamin and mineral supplement instead of chaff. And it can be given in large quantities to a poor doer for weight gain or a working horse for energy.
read articleBy the time Spring arrives we are all more than ready for it; no more chapped hands and frozen water lines, long days with the promise of better riding, the prospect of greater turnout and…..Spring Grass!
read article