More and more horse owners are researching what to feed their horse and what that feed consists of with a much greater awareness of the impact of sugar and starch.

 Unfortunately, horse feeds, including course mixes and forages, all contain more sugar than they used to which means horses are eating far more than they need. The sugars are known as water soluble carbohydrate (WSC) and too much can lead to diet-related metabolic disorders. As well as weight gain, too much sugar can lead to more serious health implications for horses such as Laminitis, Metabolic Syndrome and Insulin Resistance.

 Horses that gain weight easily or that may have a pre-disposition to metabolic disorders need to have a sugar-reduced diet. Where possible, finding turnout with low-sugar, high-fibre grasses such as Meadow Grass, Yorkshire Fog and Common Bent will help alongside feeding low-sugar, high-fibre forage and cutting concentrate feeds.

 Reducing turnout time or restricting grazing, so that your horse eats less grass out in the field, and cutting down hard feed can be much easier than finding hygienically clean forage that is low in sugar. Horses and ponies digestive systems are designed to constantly take in food so it is very important not to restrict forage consumption. Preventing this natural feeding behaviour can lead to gastric ulcers and stereotypic behaviours as a stress coping mechanism.

 Hay in the UK typically ranges from 100-310g WSC/kg DM but to find low-sugar forage it needs to contain <100g WSC/kg DM or it must go through a process to reduce the sugar content. A method that has long been used to reduce sugar is to soak hay for long periods. This does reduce the WSC but it is not consistent; losses can range from 9 to 54% after being soaked for 16 hours. Once hay has been soaked, the water that remains is also a strong pollutant so it must be carefully disposed of.

 More recently it has been discovered that soaking hay increases its bacterial content, reducing the hygienic quality of the forage (Moore-Colyer et al 2015, Wyss and Pradervand, 2016). Soaked hay can also be less palatable so horses, particularly fussy eaters, can consume less forage. Bacteria and moulds are killed in hay that has been steamed, creating hygienically clean forage for your horse.

 If you are concerned about how much sugar is in your forage, you can send a sample to a laboratory for testing. You can also send samples that have been steamed, if you’d like to check if it is suitable for your horse.

 

For more information about Haygain and to find out other benefits of steaming hay, visit https://haygain.co.uk/pages/benefits-of-hay-steaming

https://haygain.co.uk/blogs/news-and-events/it-s-official-sugar-is-the-enemy-for-you-and-your-horse