Can Horses Eat Fresh Cut Grass?
If you own a horse, you must make sure that you feed them the right foods. Just like a professional athlete, you must be meticulous when it comes to feeding your horse certain foods and abiding by a diet. That said, even small things can cause digestive issues to your horse, something like fresh cut grass. Many people as the question, can horses eat fresh cut grass? Yes, horses can eat grass, but they must consume it in a specific way to avoid any problems. If you are thinking about feeding your horse fresh cut grass, then there are some factors you must consider.
How To Feed Your Horse Grass?
In the wild, horses do eat grass without any problems. Horses don’t have issues eating grass in the wild because they slowly rip the grass and chew meticulously. The process seems to slow down grass consumption, making it easy for horses to digest the food. When you feed your horse fresh cut grass, you give them a lump sum of grass, making it easy for them to over-consume. If the grass is not fresh, it can cause further issues to the digestive system.
To be successful when feeding your horse grass, you must feed them fresh-cut grass in small amounts. You can pick the grass yourself or cut it using a lawnmower. Make sure to break up the grass so that it isn’t in large clumps. The large chunks can cause your horse to choke; you can break them into small pieces by hand. Ensure the grass is fresh and has no molds, and make sure the grass is not in large chunks.
What Type Of Grass Works Best?
Any grass will work; ideally, it should be natural and should contain no pesticides. Make sure the grass is dry, as wet grass can cause digestive issues to some horses. You can find dryer grass in the summer when it’s hot outside, which will evaporate any water present in the grass. If you don’t have the option to find dry grass, then any grass will work; make sure to feed them a small amount at first to assess their reaction. If they have diarrhea, it would be best not to feed them that grass, but please feel free to increase the amount if there is no issue.
Make sure the grass contains no weeds or flowers, as it can cause digestive issues. You can be very easy to get some weed while collecting grass, which is why you must be meticulous when picking grass and avoid machines to chop grass as it can take some weed with it. If you live on a large farm with natural grass, you should have no issue sourcing grass for your horse to feed. Please don’t feed your horse grass you find in the backyard, as it can contain toxins that can be life-threatening to your horse. Always feed your horse fresh cut grass, which is organic and ideally from the wild.
Safe Practices
Always start by feeding your horse a small amount of grass to assess their digestion; some horses can have metabolic disorders which can hinder their digestion. If you think your horse has a metabolic disease, then stay away from feeding your horse grass. Secondly, make sure to feed your horse grass with other food. This can make it easy for your horse to digest the grass, and it will also lower the likelihood of the horse experiencing diarrhea. As mentioned before, the dryer the grass, the easier it will be for the horse to consume. When the grass is wet and compact, the horse can easily over-consume and swallow, increasing the chances of choking. Break up the grass so they are less packed, making it easy for your horse to chew and digest. This is a big thing you need to remember when feeding your horse grass.
Final Verdict
Yes, you can feed your horse fresh cut grass but make sure to follow the steps above. Ensure the grass is organic and contains no pesticides, and always break up the grass into smaller pieces so the horse does not choke. If you can manage to do those two things, your horse should be fine eating fresh cut grass.
