vegetables for horses

[horsemad]

As I was in the supermarket, getting some 'horse supplies' ie carrots, turnip, apples...........I began to wonder why we feed horses these particular items, and not other vegetables. Who decided that horses should eat carrots, turnips and apples? Is there any nutritional reason for this, or is it just a matter of convention? Are there any other vegetables I can give my horse for a bit of variety?

[Piaffe]

Anything they will actually eat that they enjoy!

Mine likes Brussell sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli - I often save the leaves and stalks for him too.

Some like Cabbage and lettuce, but i've heard somewhere that cabbage isn't too good for horses - don't know why. And don't feed potatoes or peelings (they contain a chemical which is poisonous) - but I have fed my horse roasties!! (and yorkshire puddings, but now we're getting off the subject!)

You can also try swede, parsnips etc. They won't eat onions or raw garlic on its own. Pears are also popular and my horse likes banana skins! (probably not that good for him!)

I think it's just trial and error really!

[floppy]

i have my own vegetable garden here at home just for my horse but at the moment all there is growing is LOTS of carrots :D
I also get free bananas from my local supermarket when they have ones that dont get sold because htey are too brown..my horse loves bananas.
But i am never quite sure on what else i could grow/give to her

[fizz21]

like the vegies you lot meantion.

I only thought horses ate apples,polos and Carrots

[Aly]

Actually, whilst many European horses love Polo's, they are actually not very good treats to give. (Even in Singapore I can immediately tell the European/British horses, just by opening a packet of Polo Mints) .The high sugar content is the reason why, and they should therefore be given in moderation, with a nice hard crunchy carrot afterward. Molasses is also not that great to give regularly for the same reasons, neither are sugar cubes.

It is no different for us humans really, only we get the option of brushing our teeth after eating sugary foods. So I guess the point I am trying to make is that these things are ok in moderation, but healthy vegi alternatives are a much better and healthier treat to give.

I too have never heard of feeding Brocolli, etc. Is there any risks that anyone knows about?? I know that too many apples can cause a nasty case of colic, found out the hard way after my horse let himself into the neighbouring orchard and ate squillons of them.

Cheers! Aly

[Pepsi coke]

My pony LOVES swede! he goes mad for it! last winter when he had to be kept in loads due to the weather i bout him a swede and let him play with it in the barn, he had a fab time chasing it around trying to eat it!
However my share pony hates it! makes funny faces then spits it out! hehe!
He loves all the sweets/polos etc but i only let him have these on special occassions! and he is also rather partial to icecream cones but thats going off the point.
My share pony loves peaches and the more 'exotic' fruits that my pony will turn his nose up at!

I love watching their reactions when you give them something for the first time!

Pepsi

[intouch]

There's a very funny thread on Heather's yahoogroup about swede's hanging about in the stables...............
I believe raw parsnips have some sort of toxins that aren't good for horses, but don't quote me.

[Somethingroyal]

There are some things that I can imagine would not be too healthy, but I give my horses a variety of veggies and fruits daily. Nana particularly like oranges. I try to stay away from the sugar and polos (Komiker LOVES them) as much as possible since they are not great for them, but around worming time and if the horse was really super that day they MAY get one of these "special treats"

My little filly is particularly fond of peppermints and Mrs. Pastures horse cookis, but so far we have not found a veggie that she likes, aside from turnips... but all of my other horses seem to like carrots and apples best (except for Nana, she will always be odd:))

[Lucy J]

my horse loves parsnips, please let me know if raw parsnips are poisonous.

she does not know what a polo mint is, but loves carrots and apples and turnip and garlic!

[virtuallyhorses]

I believe that middle eastern horses often receive dates as a treat and here many of the weight gain feeds are based on coconut.

[Lucy J]

does anyone have a list of poisonous vegetables?

[suze]

Ive been giving my boy the sugarfree polo mints.
They cost 5p more per packet. I only give him a couple as a reward when his been realy good.
His quite partial to cucumber, I was told this by someone else.
I remember hearing that cucumber is not very good as it can be hard to digest?

[happyhorse]

Do not feed: fruits—cherries, peaches, plums—that grow on trees or drop to the ground is also advised as the pits can wreak havoc on your horse's digestive system, often resulting in a severe bout of colic.

You can feed : Root vegetables - such as beetroot, carrots, parsnips, swedes and turnips can be fed but in small quantities. They should be cut into strips, rather than round pieces as they can become lodged in the throat

Eggs - these are a good source of protein and one or two fed daily can be useful to a hard-working horse

i searched the net and found this. hope its of some help

[galadriel]

My greedy mare loves watermelon and will eat it whole if she can (I give her palm-sized pieces)--(do you furners have that?) as do as several other horses in the stable. We got some to try to give to the horse who got sick last week as he was dehydrated and wouldn't drink, hoping the high water content would be helpful.

My picky mare will eat little pieces of watermelon if I chop them up for her. No rind. Silly girl :)

[Mary Ann Bright]

My old mare loved pumpkin, but would give nearly anything a try!

I regularly gave her carrots, and on special occasions she got apples, pumpkin, apricots, etc. We also gave her plums and never had a problem with the stones- she spit them out clean every time! She used to be owned by a vet nurse who said it was ok to give her these things when we bought her.

A horse i know now would do just about anything for molasses- after a fast work one time (he's a racehorse) he drank a 10 litre bucket of molasses water and then happily licked the blob of undissolved molasses out of the bottom! (he doesn't get it all that often though so it wont rot his teeth- only after a trackwork in town where the horses dont like the taste of the 'town water');)

[floppy]

i know a horse that absolutely loooves oranges!

[CrazyfurAnimals]

Dunn's favorite treets are apples. He'll go wild when he sees an apple. He-he. :)

You should have seen Hoosier's face when my instructor decided to try and give him a pringles potato chip. He made the funniest face, but I think he liked them. :D Anyways, he only got one once since they aren't the greatest things for him, healthwise. :)

[lamprellsarah]

my horse is very very fussy!!

course feed and all that stuff is fine.
she could eat carrots all day and apples she things are OK, the special sugar free horse mints, herbal treats are fine, but anything esle she won't touch!!

[helencheshire]

I saw in my shop sugar free polos hey pesto lol

[intouch]

But does your hores like them? Mine don't!!!

[Lucy J]

my old horses favourite foods were Wispa's, mint aeros (chocolate of any kind) and he also loved salt and vinegar chipsticks!! oh and biscuits.

Basically he would eat anything he saw me eating! If it was good enough for me it was good enough for him!

[Pepsi coke]

My pony stole my friends sandwich on friday... she was waiting for her horse to finish his feed and put her sandwich within reach of my pony... it was a cheese and spring onion sandwich... i was terrified that he was gona drop dead on me or something... :eek:

but he seems fine! :D

Pepsi

[Bel]

one of the horses i used to ride when i was younger loved macdonnals we used to get it for lunch on the way to the stable and Wilbur used to come over and steal my fries and if he could reach my McChicken burger too :D he was such a sweetie we never told him off for it ;)

[Sue&Tasha Green]

Just wondering, can horses eat peanut butter?
Tasha

[Rudi]

My horses love corn-on-the-cob.

[TheFuzz]

Can I give my horse celery?

[happy haffys]

Curry sauce & chips!!!! (not my horse, a friend's) Mine likes grapes?

[coss]

we always save the broccoli (sp? :o) for the horses, they love it, another favourite is swedes.

[Bobbi's_mum]

Bobbi goes crazy for oranges and celery, she also gets all my mums veg peelings from dinner:D She now even waits at the gate around half 6 for her left over supply:rolleyes::D

[redcomet]

mine love parsnips, pears and bananas!

[myhorseisginger]

Pink Lady apples always go down well, they are pricey but are fab as a reward!

[Santi]

Grapes, bananas, apples and oranges are his favourites but also eats raisins, dates, figs, the other horse will whinny at me if i give him raisins and almonds - he loves them!
He'll also eat blackberries with me, prefers it if i pick them for him. I take the stones out of plums (we have a tree) and feed them (very sticky though).
I feed parsnips in the winter, about 3-4 in a feed once a day so i'm very relieved to know that they are ok!

I give them bay tree occasionally as a digestive, also fennel tops and parsley out of the garden. They also like willow leaves. I don't mix them with feed just leave them out to nibble.