Saturday, September 25, 2021

Alternatives To Hay For Veterans

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Throughout a horse’s lifetime, its teeth never stop growing. With this consistent growth, some problems can emerge, especially for older horses. As a horse’s teeth continue to grow, their gums also begin to recede as a result of the consistent chewing of fiber within their horse feed throughout their lifetime. This causes a considerable amount of wear to the teeth, and it is the balance between the continued growth and the erosion from eating that keeps the teeth in check. However, as horses continue to live longer and longer, with advances in veterinarian medicine constantly developing, their teeth begin to let them down over time. This can span from wobbly teeth, all the way to their teeth falling out completely! But what can be done if your horse can no longer feed the way it used to? Thankfully, there are numerous options available, so your horse can continue to eat a healthy diet, even in their golden years.

Horse Dentition

Horses with poor dentition have been recorded as eating two-thirds less hay than horses with normal teeth. This evidently demonstrates that there is a significant correlation between the dental health of horses and their fibre intake, which can result in numerous issues when it comes to your horse consuming its required calorie intake.

Unfortunately, veteran horses are susceptible to considerable weight loss for this reason, especially over the colder, winter months when hay becomes the primary food source. As this is the case, an alternative is needed to keep your veteran horse healthier, all year long, but what is the answer to their dental dilemma?

What Is The Alternative?

Soaked products are much easier for horses to chew, therefore these feeds are an ideal replacement for hay if your horse has poor teeth. Hay replacers such as Hi Fi Lite, Hi Fi Senior and Hi Fi Good Doer can all be used as a full hay replacer. This is a simple process, where you simply need to replace it weight for weight with the hay. 

For a partial replacement option, Hi Fi Molasses Free, Meadow Grass with Herbs, Alfa Beet, Hi Fi Apple, Alfa Pellets and Grass Pellets can be used, so your horse can continue to eat the nutrients and fibre they require, even when their teeth begin to degrade.

All of these hay replacement options can be easily fed either from the floor, or from a large bucket rather than a net. If you do so choose, larger quantities of hay replacers can be left with your horse to graze upon, allowing them to feed at their own leisure, rather than over the timeframe it would take to feed from a bucket.

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Author: verified_user

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