how much feed to give a 4 year old palamino

Question
Hi There,
New at this when it comes to horses. I purchased a 4 year old palamino from a frind of my daughter. I get so much advise from many other horse people that is conderdicting to the amount of feed that I should be giving him. He is riden 3-4 times a week and is given 2 flakes in the morning, along with 5 cups of oats, 3 more flakes in the afternoon and then 5 cups of oats and 4 flakes in the evening. Is this too much, too little? Can you please help with this.
Thank you,
Reva Bohy

Answer
Hi Reva;

That's probably more oats than he needs for the amount of work you're doing.

In terms of hay, free choice grass or grass/legume mix is best.  Horses on average will eat 3-4% of their body weight in forage per day.  So a 1000lb horse would eat 30-40lbs of hay in a day in the summer, under normal conditions.  As much as twice that in the winter.  And obviously under hard work, more hay.  If the hay is from your regular 40-50lb bale of hay and is good quality, then it sounds like your feeding the right amount.

It's very good that you're giving him 3 meals as horses are designed to have food in their stomach 24/7.  If they don't, then the ph of the stomach rises and they become susceptible to ulcers...and that's why free choice hay/pasture is the best option unless you have a horse with an overweight problem.

You will find contradictory advice in all areas concerning horses, not just nutrition-wise.  You're best to read, research and experiment and find what works best for your horse.

Ultimately, you should do the math and figure out how many calories are in your horse's feed per day and how many he's using per day.  If he eats more than burns, he'll gain weight.  If he eats less than burns, he'll lose weight.

Best wishes!

Sincerely,

Lana Reinhardt