Happy Horse Nutrition16 Sep 2025

18. How Much Hay Does My Horse Need?

Discover the answer to one of the most common questions asked by horse owners worldwide: how much hay does my horse actually need? PhD equine nutritionist Dr. Nerida reveals why this seemingly simple question has life-or-death consequences for your horse's health and performance.

What You'll Learn:

The deadly consequences of underfeeding hay and how it causes colic, gastric ulcers, and behavioral problems
That horses evolved to eat 18 hours per day and what happens when we disrupt this
Dr. Nerida's recommended hay amounts: 2-3% of body weight daily (that's 10-15kg for a 500kg horse)
The critical 4-hour rule: never let your horse go longer than 4 hours without hay
How insufficient hay causes psychological stress, leaky gut, and performance issues
Why hay is a performance horse's "secret weapon" - not just filler

Key Insights: Learn how proper hay feeding prevents gastric ulcers by maintaining saliva production, supports the vital hindgut microbiome, and provides natural muscle buffering through potassium. Dr. Nerida explains why the volatile fatty acids from hay fermentation act like a "fully charged battery" for performance horses, and how proper forage feeding can extend the time to muscle fatigue.

Special Focus on Easy Keepers: Specific advice for overweight horses - don't reduce hay quantity, reduce hay quality instead. Discover how feeding up to 50% straw can help weight loss while maintaining gut health and preventing the behavioral issues that come with hay deprivation.

Practical Solutions: Get specific guidance on using slow-feeding hay nets, measuring hay with luggage scales, and the importance of spreading hay consumption over 24 hours. Plus, learn how the My Happy Horse virtual nutritionist app takes the guesswork out of forage calculations.

Perfect for horse owners who want to understand the science behind forage feeding and avoid the serious health consequences of getting it wrong.

Discover and download the MyHappy.Horse app: https://www.myhappy.horse

And ask your nutrition questions 24/7 with Dr Nerida AI: https://www.myhappy.horse/nerida-ai

If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a rating and review! It really helps us to get grounded, science-based information to horse owners… and it is their horses who benefit the most! ❤️

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