different breed nutritional needs

Question
Should a 900 lb pure Arabian require more food daily than a 1,200 lb pure Quarter Horse?

Answer
Hi Andy,

Great question :)  Technically there are no breed specific nutritional requirements for horses, but rather how much and what nutrients are required and in what quantities are determined by combining body weight and workloads (exercise, growth, gestation, lactation, breeding).  So technically a 900lb adult horse doing no work should eat less than a 1200lb adult horse doing do work (approximately 15.3kg DM vs. 20.4kg DM).  Having said that, there are always exceptions to that rule.  Some horses are labeled 'hard keepers' compared to others when they need to consume more feed to maintain the same body condition.  Some suggest that 'hard keepers' have a faster metabolism that requires that they eat more...more feed, more energy, more protein.  I'm not convinced that is the case and have seen some human research that suggests very little difference in metabolism between individuals within the same age/sex/workload group (not more that 5-6%).  There may be a lot of contributing factors that we can not see that cause some horses to need to eat more to maintain the same condition as others...mainly digestive inefficiencies and metabolic disorders.  Those with perfect digestive systems seem to be able to stay in great body condition, even fat, on a minimum of feed.

And then there are just those horses who can eat endless amounts of food, the true hay burners.  I own one :)

Hope that answers the riddle.

Thanks, Corlena