How do I Add Fat to My Horse's Diet?

Adding fat to a horse's diet can help it perform better.

A high-fat diet can be beneficial to a horse by providing it with the energy it needs to complete tasks more efficiently and without tiring. This is even more important if the horse is extremely active or pregnant. To implement a high-fat diet, you need to substitute normal grain mix forage with a mixture containing added fat in the form of oils.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Hay
• Grain mix
• Vegetable oil

1. Calculate the amount of supplemental fat to give your horse by multiplying the number of pounds of grain you normally give it by 10 percent (.10). This will provide you with the number of pounds of grain mix you should substitute with supplemental fat. For example, if you feed it 10 lbs. of grain mix, you should instead feed it 9 lbs. of grain mix and 1 lb. of supplemental fat.

2. Add supplemental fat to the grain mix in the form of a vegetable oil, such as corn oil or soybean oil. Feed this mix to the horse as you normally would.

3. Feed your horse this diet for a few weeks before making any adjustments. It generally takes 21 days to notice any changes in energy levels or general health.

Tips & Warnings

• It can be more cost-effective to purchase high-fat grain mix that is commercially made instead of adding your own oil.

References

• Horse Feeding Management: High-Fat Diets For Horses