Youmay have wondered if you can take the edge off an anxious horse or add pep to lazy mount by changing his feed.
Can temperament really be affected by specific diets?
“It depends somewhat on the individual horse whether you can influence his temperament with diet, but there is evidence that for many horses, what they are eating can influence whether they are reactive, flighty or calmer,” says Kathleen Crandell, Ph.D., an equine nutritionist who works with Kentucky Equine Research (KER).
She explains that calories are just a measure of the amount of energy in feed. Different feed sources can supply the same number of calories from different sources of energy.
“It all comes down to how the energy source is metabolized within the body as to what kind of energy it will supply,” says Crandell.
For example, fat and fiber are considered “cool” energy sources, while starch and sugar tend to be “hot” energy sources.
For a long time, horse owners only looked at the protein percentage on the bag to determine whether the feed would have enough energy for their horse.
DUSTY PERIN
ANAKONDASP/ADOBE STOCK
Research studies and anecdotal evidence both show that the amount of starch and sugar in the diet influences excitability.
STUDIOSHIELDS/ADOBE STOCK