On The Menu
All of the horses on our place have strange tastes when it comes to snacks. Not a one of them will touch a carrot or an apple, the generally accepted treats that horses are supposed to appreciate. I don't dispair however, because I have found, after much experimenting, several alternatives.
Tuff's very favorite treat is apricots. We have two apricot trees in our orchard and he can always be counted upon to eat those that have fallen on the ground or had the birds get at them (I have to pit them for him first, ofcourse).
The two yearlings my in-laws have now just live for grapes (no pitting required ). They also had a gelding that liked Pepsi and of all things, brandy. My mother in-law liked to have a couple drinks in the evening, then go out and ride on her apparently tipsy horse. I always wondered how they both survived those night rides.
My chubby Tickles doesn't mess around with anything that might have any nutritional value, she only accepts straight sugar cubes or peppermint striped candies.(pretty much only on Christmas or her birthday).
Some of the other horses like things like bread, strawberries, watermelon (rind and all), bananas, peanut butter, and lettuce. I had been giving potato peels to a couple that liked them until I read somewhere that potatoes can be toxic to horses, so I stopped, but became interested to learn what other harm I might be doing. So I started researching the other foods I was using and learned that with a very few exceptions, fruits and vegetables can be very nutritious treats if you can get a horse to eat them. Far better than sugar or molasses coated 'horse treats' that are sold in stores.
It just takes some trial and error to see what each horse likes. It seems funny to me. Horses eat hay and grass, I would think anything would be a welcome change, but they have very highly developed palettes, it seems, and distinct tastes. Finding just the right flavor for them is our problem. Nonetheless, I enjoy trying out new foods on them, even if just to see the faces they make when it isn't right. And yes, horses most certainly can make faces. Lemon juice produces some good ones.
Tuff's very favorite treat is apricots. We have two apricot trees in our orchard and he can always be counted upon to eat those that have fallen on the ground or had the birds get at them (I have to pit them for him first, ofcourse).
The two yearlings my in-laws have now just live for grapes (no pitting required ). They also had a gelding that liked Pepsi and of all things, brandy. My mother in-law liked to have a couple drinks in the evening, then go out and ride on her apparently tipsy horse. I always wondered how they both survived those night rides.
My chubby Tickles doesn't mess around with anything that might have any nutritional value, she only accepts straight sugar cubes or peppermint striped candies.(pretty much only on Christmas or her birthday).
Some of the other horses like things like bread, strawberries, watermelon (rind and all), bananas, peanut butter, and lettuce. I had been giving potato peels to a couple that liked them until I read somewhere that potatoes can be toxic to horses, so I stopped, but became interested to learn what other harm I might be doing. So I started researching the other foods I was using and learned that with a very few exceptions, fruits and vegetables can be very nutritious treats if you can get a horse to eat them. Far better than sugar or molasses coated 'horse treats' that are sold in stores.
It just takes some trial and error to see what each horse likes. It seems funny to me. Horses eat hay and grass, I would think anything would be a welcome change, but they have very highly developed palettes, it seems, and distinct tastes. Finding just the right flavor for them is our problem. Nonetheless, I enjoy trying out new foods on them, even if just to see the faces they make when it isn't right. And yes, horses most certainly can make faces. Lemon juice produces some good ones.
posted by Alicia T @ 2:29 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home