Choosing Fruits and Vegetables
Pick fruits and vegetables that are safe for your horse to eat. Most melons, squashes, and root vegetables are good for your horse, so try fruits and vegetables in those categories. They also enjoy stone fruits without the stones. For fruits, try oranges, plums, grapes, apples, strawberries, raisins, bananas, and pears, just to name a few. For vegetables, aim for things like turnips, parsnips, pumpkin, beets, lettuce, carrots, celery, sprouts, fennel, and peas.
Skip vegetables that might be harmful to your horse. That includes the nightshade family, the onion family, avocados, and cruciferous vegetables. Vegetables in the cruciferous family can cause a lot of gas, which may upset your horse's tummy. This group includes Brussels sprouts, kale, broccoli, and cauliflower, so avoid these options when giving foods to your horse. Similarly, avoid produce in the nightshade family. The nightshade family includes tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and potatoes. Horses do not tolerate these vegetables well, as they can lead to colic or constipation. It's best to avoid them altogether if possible. Also, skip vegetables in the onion family, such as shallots, onions leeks, spring onions, and garlic. This family of vegetables can cause anemia in horses. Don't feed your horse rhubarb, either, which can cause digestive tract or urinary tract damage.
Avoid moldy or rotten fruit. You may want to get rid of old produce by feeding it to your horse, but you really shouldn't give your horse anything you wouldn't eat. Stick to fresh, new produce to keep your horse happy and healthy.
Cleaning and Cutting the Produce
Scrub the outside of the fruit and vegetables thoroughly. Just like you'd do for yourself, scrub down the produce under running water. Use a scrubbing brush for especially dirty produce and wash it for at least 30 seconds. Use small, circular motions. Your goal is to remove pesticides and dirt from the produce.
Cut large produce into smaller pieces. Most horses will chew up their treats, but some like to just swallow them whole. To prevent choking, cut produce into chunks roughly the size of a grape. For instance, you can cut an apple into eighths. For older horses who may have dental issues, you can even use a blender or a food processor to chop the produce into small chunks.
Cut out any pits and cores. Remove the cores from fruits like apples and pears, as they can cause choking. Similarly, pull out pits from other produce, including cherries, plums, and peaches. Your horse could choke on the pits from these fruits.
Leave the skins on. For the most part, you can leave the skins on. For instance, horses can eat bananas with skins on without any problems, as long as they don't have trouble chewing and you cut it into small pieces. Make sure to chop off both ends, though, and toss those out. They also enjoy citrus with the rinds on. Horses also like watermelon rinds and cantaloupe skin, so you can leave those on if you prefer.
Feeding Produce to Your Horse
Limit your horse's intake to 1-2 medium pieces of produce per day. For instance, you can give your horse 1 apple or 2 carrots per day. You could also do 1-2 celery stalks, a single banana, or 2-3 small plums. Too many treats isn't good for your horse, as the sugar can be detrimental to its health.
Lay your hand flat to feed your horse by hand. If you want to give treats to your horse this way, spread out your hand facing upward and place a piece of produce in the middle of it. As the horse moves toward your hand, move your hand a little closer to the horse. Don't pull away. If you pull away, that can encourage the horse to bite down.
Put the treat in a bucket if you're worried your horse will nip you. Cut up a few pieces of produce and set them in the bucket. Place the bucket near your horse where it can reach it easily, and the horse should be quite happy to take the treat. You can also use a feed trough if you prefer.
Comments
0 comment