Forage first: building a balanced diet

Feeding a horse well isn't complicated, but it starts in a different place from feeding most other animals. Horses are grazers, and the most important part of their diet isn't what goes in the bucket: it's forage.

Why forage comes first

World Horse Welfare says horses have evolved to eat forage-based diets for about 16–18 hours a day, eating small amounts often. The BHS describes forage as high-fibre, low-starch feed, such as grass, hay, haylage and chaff, and says it should form the basis of any horse's diet. Forage does several jobs at once:

• It keeps the gut working. The hindgut's microbes need fibre from plant cell walls to stay healthy, and World Horse Welfare says suitable access to forage can help prevent colic and gastric ulcers.
• It protects the stomach. Horses produce stomach acid all the time. Chewing forage makes saliva, which the BHS says helps buffer that acid and makes ulcers less likely.
• It keeps horses warm. Fibre is broken down in the hindgut by fermentation, which produces heat.
• It meets the need to chew. The BHS says enough forage helps satisfy a horse's need to chew and helps prevent stereotypic behaviours. World Horse Welfare adds that horses on high-fibre diets show fewer unwanted behaviours, both in the stable and under saddle.

The government's code of practice for horse welfare says horses should have a mainly fibre-based diet, and almost constant access to forage when they aren't working. It warns that horses fed too little fibre may suffer physical or psychological health problems. If constant access isn't possible, World Horse Welfare says a horse shouldn't be left without forage for longer than 4–6 hours.

For how the gut handles food, see the digestive system.

What a horse needs

The BHS lists five major nutrients that every horse needs:

Horses also need vitamins and minerals. World Horse Welfare says horses fed only forage can be short of protein, vitamins and minerals, even when they're overweight. See does my horse need more than forage? below.

Choosing a forage

Hay or haylage?

Haylage gets a lot of bad press online, but World Horse Welfare's guidance, written by a registered nutritionist, says well-made haylage is not very acidic and won't harm your horse's gut. Because haylage is usually cleaner than UK hay, with less dust and fewer mould spores, it's useful for horses with equine asthma. It is often higher in calories than hay, though.

The BHS says haylage is generally lower in sugar than hay, but more digestible, with more energy and protein. That's why it suggests soaked hay rather than haylage for an overweight horse.

Straw

The BHS says straw can help a horse that's prone to weight gain, because it's low in calories, high in fibre and takes longer to eat. Horses often prefer barley or oat straw, which is softer than wheat straw. Introduce it slowly, and only feed it to horses with good teeth.

In its 2026 advice on the hay shortage, the BHS says good quality oat and barley straw can replace up to 50% of the hay ration. Because straw is low in nutrients, it suggests feeding a balancer alongside.

Quality

The code of practice says hay, haylage and other conserved forage should be clean, free from soil, debris and poisonous plants, smell fresh, and be free from visible mould and dust. Feeding forage at floor level is good for a horse's breathing, as long as the ground underneath is kept reasonably clean.

The nutrients in forage, including sugar, vary from batch to batch. The BHS suggests sending a sample to a feed company for analysis. For a horse that's overweight, has equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) or is prone to laminitis, it says forage with less than 10–12% sugar and starch is usually safer.

Soaking hay

If you don't know how much sugar is in your hay, soaking removes a considerable amount. The BHS's guidance is to soak hay:

• in clean, cold water for 6–12 hours, or
• in warm water for one hour.

Soak for less time in warm weather, to stop mould and bacteria growing, and use fresh water for each net, as the University of Liverpool's weight management guide suggests. Soaking also washes out other nutrients, so the BHS suggests feeding a vitamin and mineral supplement or a balancer alongside soaked hay. It also adds water to the diet, which helps in hot weather. Steaming hay adds water too, and the BHS says it keeps the hay's nutrients.

How much to feed

The BHS says a horse should eat about 2–2.5% of its bodyweight every 24 hours, and no less than 1.5%. That total includes everything: grazing, hay or haylage, and any bucket feed. World Horse Welfare gives the same range.

The BHS's calculation for a 500kg horse fed 2% of its bodyweight:

2 ÷ 100 × 500kg = 10kg a day

The feeding hub has a calculator that does the sums.

To use the figures, you need your horse's weight. The BHS says a weighbridge gives the most accurate figure, and a weigh tape is a useful guide. See weight, fat scoring and weight loss.

Weigh the forage too. Guessing how much hay is in a net is hard. The BHS suggests buying hay scales, and the University of Liverpool suggests luggage scales. Liverpool adds that haylage weighs more than hay because of the water in it, so you need to feed more of it by weight to give the same amount of food.

It's very hard to know how much grass a horse eats. The BHS says ponies have been found to eat up to 1% of their bodyweight in just three hours of grazing.

The rules of feeding

The BHS and World Horse Welfare both publish rules of feeding, and they say much the same thing:

1. Water: provide a constant supply of fresh, clean water.
2. Forage: feed plenty of good-quality forage.
3. Little and often: a horse's stomach is small, about the size of a rugby ball. If your horse needs bucket feeds, split them into as many small meals as you can.
4. Feed the individual: feed according to bodyweight and workload. Be honest about how much work your horse really does.
5. Quality: use good-quality feed, and store it somewhere clean and dry.
6. Change slowly: make any change gradually, ideally over 10–14 days, says the BHS. The gut's microbes need time to adapt, and sudden changes can cause colic and diarrhoea.
7. Exercise and meals: the BHS says to avoid exercising your horse for an hour after a cereal-based meal. A little fibre in the stomach before exercise is a good idea, though: it stops stomach acid splashing onto the stomach lining.
8. Routine: feed at the same times each day.
9. Hygiene: keep buckets and stirrers clean.

The code of practice adds that feed should be stored in vermin-proof containers, freshly mixed for each feed, and that mouldy or stale leftovers should be removed every day. World Horse Welfare suggests each horse has its own feed bowl, with separate mixing utensils for any feed that contains medicine.

Feeding a group. Where loose horses are fed together, the code of practice suggests one feeding place per horse, plus one extra, set two horses' lengths apart. The BHS suggests putting out more piles of hay than there are horses, so everyone gets a fair share.

Water

The BHS calls water the main nutrient in a horse's body. A horse that doesn't drink enough is at greater risk of impaction colic, where a firm ball of food blocks the intestine.

Bransby Horses says a horse can drink around 25 litres of water a day. That rises in hot weather: the BHS says a 500kg horse could drink 50–70 litres, which is four to six buckets. Exercise increases it further. Grass is mostly water, so World Horse Welfare suggests watching the water intake of horses on restricted grazing or on hay and haylage more closely.

In freezing weather, check troughs and buckets often. The BHS suggests keeping an emergency supply in case taps freeze, and adding warm water to buckets to stop them freezing overnight.

Does my horse need more than forage?

As far as energy goes, many leisure horses do well on forage alone. The BHS says most leisure and grassroots horses can keep up their energy levels and a healthy weight on a high-forage diet.

Vitamins and minerals are a different matter. The BHS says it's hard to know which vitamins and minerals your horse is getting unless your forage has been tested, and suggests feeding a balancer or a vitamin and mineral supplement every day. World Horse Welfare says many leisure horses may only need a vitamin and mineral supplement or a balancer, rather than a concentrate feed, to balance their forage.

Horses in harder work, or that struggle to hold their weight, may need more. See hard feeds, balancers and supplements and feeding for work, type and age.

Succulents and treats

Apples, carrots, swede, parsnips and turnips add variety and tempt fussy eaters, but the BHS points out that they add calories. Feed them in moderation if your horse is overweight, has EMS or is prone to laminitis.

To reduce the risk of choke, a blocked gullet, the BHS says to always slice them lengthways, never into rounds or cubes. Sugar beet and other feeds that are meant to be soaked must be soaked for the recommended time: unsoaked pellets can swell in the gullet and get stuck.

When forage is short

In 2026 the BHS warned of a UK hay shortage after a poor 2025 growing season and a dry summer. Its advice:

• Plan ahead. Work out how much hay you'll need, where you can store it and what you can afford, and order early.
• Weigh it out. Hay scales help you feed what your horse needs and no more.
• Cut waste. The BHS says around 30% of hay and haylage fed to horses in Europe is wasted. Haynets, hay feeders and netting over round bales help, and slow down eating too.
• Store it well. Keep hay off the ground on pallets, away from water run-off and flooding.
• Use replacements. Chaff, soaked sugar beet, grass nuts and fibre feeds can replace part of the hay ration. If your horse is overweight, check the label for added oil or molasses.
• Ask for help. Feed companies often offer free advice, and independent nutritionists can help too.

Getting expert help

The code of practice says inexperienced owners, or anyone unsure how to feed their horse, should ask a vet or equine nutritionist. World Horse Welfare suggests the helplines run by feed companies, or an independent nutritionist from the Equine Nutritionist and Feed Advisor Register (ENFAR) or the Association for Nutrition's voluntary register.