Do you need to give pellets, or are loose herbs sufficient for your horse?

Many people are afraid that their horse will lack something if they don't give pellets. Is that justified? Or can your horse also get by with only roughage and loose herbs? That is quite a difficult question and very much dependent on your horse and the circumstances under which he is kept.

To start with: it depends on what you mean by 'pellets'. Regular pellets or feed, grains or muesli, are usually not necessary. Many types of concentrate feeds contain all sorts of sugars and fillers that your horse does not need and that overload the horse's body. For many horses, these concentrates also contain far too much energy that they do not need.

Start with the basics

To put together a good diet (= nutrition package) for your horse, you need to start with the basics. And for horses, that means: good roughage. For horses that are out in the pasture all day, that would be grass. Preferably with plenty of fibers and not too many sugars. Otherwise, it is unpackaged, dry hay, not dusty and of good quality. In addition, there are a few other types of roughage such as alfalfa or timothy, which you can feed as an extra. For example, alfalfa contains a lot of protein and calcium and can be a good addition if your horse needs to build muscles or is pregnant.

A good pasture?

In good horse grass, there is almost everything a horse needs, so during the summer months, that may be enough, provided your horse is truly out in the pasture 24 hours a day and the pasture contains sufficient minerals. Seaweed minerals from the Bering Sea can help make your pasture rich enough in minerals and trace elements. Your horse can then get almost everything he needs from the grass. A good horse pasture contains various types of stalky grass and also several herbs. A cow pasture full of English ryegrass is NOT the same as a good horse pasture.

Read more here about the optimal maintenance of your horse's pasture

Good hay?

If your horse is not out in the pasture or only limited, good hay is very important. Unfortunately, most Dutch or Belgian hay does not contain all the minerals your horse needs. In addition, hay quickly loses most of its vitamin C and vitamin E shortly after harvesting. The level of vitamin A also decreases. You will therefore have to supplement these during the autumn and winter. This can be done with herbs. In addition, carrots are a good source of vitamin A and C for many horses in winter. Vitamin E is a bit more difficult. The best way to supplement this is with a supplement containing the readily absorbable isomer RRR-α-tocopherol. Many other types of vitamin E are unfortunately poorly absorbable for horses. Give extra vitamin E when your horse:

• Isn't out in the pasture;

• Engages in moderate or heavy work or needs to build muscles;

• Is used for breeding;

• Has a muscle condition such as tying-up or PSSM;

• Shows muscle stiffness, weakness, or tremors.

Balancer pellet?

For example, if you are on a boarding stable and do not exactly know what is in the hay, or if you can only store small batches of hay and cannot do a full analysis each time, it is wise to give your horse a daily dose of vitamins and minerals. There are handy-to-feed balancer pellets or biscuits for this, which contain few fillers or sugars. This is a convenient way to ensure that your horse at least gets the basics. This is often easier than just using loose herbs and also requires less study and calculation work for you as the owner.

Extras?

Even if your horse is out on a good pasture or gets good hay and a balancer, it may be useful to have some extra minerals or herbs. That depends a bit on the situation. For example, in hot weather or during intense training, supplementing with electrolytes can be a good idea. Through sweat, your horse loses a lot of salts. These are important for the functioning of, for example, the nervous system, so you want to supplement them. Horses that experience a lot of stress, for example, due to a move, can often use a little extra magnesium. This also applies to horses that have just started training and still need to build muscles, and for horses that experience regular muscle pain. Horses that have been ill may sometimes need some extras. Consider giving them nettle extract to flush out toxins or rosehip to replenish vitamin C. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that can also support your horse after periods of stress or illness.

Mineral buffet

If you have sorted the basics with good hay and a balancer, but are not sure if your horse may still be lacking something, you can create a mineral buffet using herbal extracts and electrolytes. Your horse can then choose what he needs. This is an excellent way to supplement any deficiencies.

Read more here about creating a mineral buffet with ingredients such as rosehip.