Amount to feed a horse?
I am looking to buy my first horse and need to know how much to feed him. He is a 5 year old Arabian gelding, 15.1 hands. I ride him only 3 times a week, for an hour or an hour and a half each time. He is staying in a single stall. Currently, he is being fed 1 flake of alfalfa hay in the morning and 1 flake at night, with no grain at all. I was wondering if he 1) Needed more flakes of alfalfa hay at morning or night (How much when?) and 2) If he needed any grain (How much when?). Also, will he need more or less hay, or grain when he gets older, or if I start exercising him more? How much? One last question – he doesn’t have any health issues, so he doesn’t need respitory, digestive, etc supplements. However, should I give him vitimin/electrolytes so he gets all his nutrients and minerals? (HOw much when?) Currently, he is the perfect weight, if that helps. Thank you soooo much!
Arabians are KNOWN to generally be easy keeping horses. If he’s maintaining his weight and condition, then there’s really no need to mess with anything. However, if he starts to drop weight, his coat gets a bit dull, you could suppliment him with about a pound of grain. I feed rolled barley corn because you can’t see the grains used in mixes to tell their quality. As he gets older and teeth fail, you can then bump him up feed wise when you notice these things happening. If you want, you can also give him a one pound coffee can of grain AFTER each ride.
BTW Arabians are known for their long lives.
