feeding schedule for our horses

Question
hello ma'am, here at our local racetrack, horses are fed twice a day. once around 9am and second time around 6pm. as you told me that horses feel hungry for every 4 hours, now how come these horses stay without feeling hungry? our horses are fed, oats, wheat bran, carrots, lucerne, supplements and hay.

Answer
Hello Rohit,

Thank you for your question.  I suggested that horses should not go any longer than 4 hours without food, but did not suggest that they needed to be fed every 4 hours.  Given what you are feeding, I would imagine that the horses eat the oats, bran, carrots, lucerne and supplements right away but pick at the hay through the day.  If they truly aren't hungry by the next feeding time, they've likely been fed enough hay at the previous feeding to keep them through the day.

Thanks, Corlena