The Horse Nutrition Handbook

by Melyni Worth

Overview

Good nutrition is essential for a strong and healthy horse. Here are in-depth explorations on the benefits of additives and herbal supplements inform Worth's dietary approach toward treating common health problems that include colic, cribbing, Cushing disease, ulcers, tying-up syndrome, and more. Providing your horse with a healthy, well-balanced diet will keep him looking and feeling his best for years to come.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781603422093
Publisher:	Storey Publishing, LLC
Publication date:	04/08/2025
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	257
File size:	6 MB

About the Author

Based in Roanoke, Virginia, Melyni Worth, Ph.D., is a consultant and writer in equine nutrition and exercise physiology. She has trained horses and riders for 28 years. Her company, Foxden Equine, specializes in products that assist horses and riders to attain and maintain athletic performance.

Table of Contents

Preface vii

1 Basics of Equine Digestion 1

Nature's Plan for Feeding Horses

Carbohydrate ABCs

Domestication Brought Drastic Changes

How the Horse Digests His Food

The Gastrointestinal (GI) Tract

2 All about Nutrients 15

Water

Energy

Carbohydrates

Fats

Producing Energy for Muscles

Protein Basics

Minerals

Electrolytes 101

Microminerals: Less Is Best

Vitamins

3 What to Feed and Why 60

Forage Feeds

Hay is for Horses

Silage and Haylage

Chopped-Hay Options

All about Concentrates

Other Sources of Fiber

Commercial Blends

Protein: What and Why

Sources of Fat

Supplementation for Specialized Diets

4 Designing a Balanced Feeding Program 95

Feed Analysis

Calculating Rations: The Basics

Practical Applications: Dobbin and Smokey Joe

General Feeding Advice

Basic Feeding and Management Guidelines

5 Feeding for a Lifetime 124

Equine Body Condition Scoring System

Life-Stage Requirements

6 Feed Storage and Feeding Tips 142

Storing Grain

Storing Hay

Feeding Grain and Hay

Feeding Tips

Feeding Checklist

7 Pasture Management 153

Identifying Good Pasture

Turnout for Exercise and Grazing

Hay Pasture

Pasture Plants

8 Diets for Common Equine Disorders 164

Anhydrosis

Choke

Colic

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Cribbing

Cushing's Disease/PPID

Equine Metabolic Syndrome/Insulin Resistance

Hyperkalemic Periodic Paralysis (HYPP)

Hypokalemic Diaphragmatic Shudder (Thumps)

Joint Disease

Laminitis and Founder

Metabolic Bone Disease

Misbehavior

Excess Weight

Pigment Loss

Toxins in Feed

Tying-up Syndrome

Ulcers

Thinness

Appendixes

Appendix 1 Weight/Unit Volume 212

Appendix 2 Conversions 213

Appendix 3 Nutrition Contained in Feed 214

Appendix 4 Feed Requirements for Horses 216

Appendix 5 Seasonal Management Calendar 218

Appendix 6 Horse Anatomy 219

Glossary 220

Resources

Recommended Reading 234

Periodicals 234

Commercial Laboratories 234

Products & Services 235

Web Sites & Other Sources 236

Index 237