Holistic Horse Care

When it comes to horses, nothing should be done suddenly.

Feeding

The bacteria and enzymes in a horse's digestive tract are specific to the type of feed the horse is being fed and used to.  Horses' gut is not capable of adjusting to changes in diet quickly (overnight) and it usually takes a period of days and sometimes weeks to adjust to a different feed.  Therefore, when you decide to change feed, introduce the new feed gradually over a period of time (one week to 10 days).

New work

If you decide to change a horse's working routine such as increasing the intensity, take four to five weeks to toughen his legs and increase his fitness before doing medium-intensity work.  When you are reducing the work, let the horse come down gradually over three to four weeks, feeding less grain until maintenance rations are reached.