I just recently purchased my first horse and bought some mature equine feed at walmart along with some hay. The horse started out very mellow and gentle and now is not listening, bucking, and very energetic, wanting to run around. The feed has molasses in it and I was told I should just put him (He is about 20) on hay for now and that should calm him down. Is it possible the feed could change the demeanor that much and what would you suggest feeding him?

Where are you from? California

How did you locate this forum? internet

I probably should add that he also eats 3 way hay with oats, barley and alfalfa.

How much exercise or turnout does your horse get? That can make a huge difference.

Where are you from? Ohio

How did you locate this forum? internet

I would find out how he was fed before you got him. Any sudden change in a horse's diet can cause problems. Changes should be made slowly, over a few days to weeks depending.

Yes, the wrong feed can change a horse's attitude that much! I have seen it firsthand. I used to feed sweetfeed all the time, but now I know better. Horses do NOT need sugar in their diets in any form. They are basically diabetic to a certain degree, and sugar can alter their metabolic makeup. I have seen some act as yours, others get extremely legarthic and slow.

Also alfalfa is not necessary unless you are feeding to put weight on, and should not be fed as a sole diet, but mixed with some good grass hay.

A senior feed is a good idea only if he's hard to keep, but stay away from the sugary/starchy based feeds. Have his teeth checked. Have them floated if necessary, then I would feed grass hay with a vitamin/mineral supplement and a salt block, with plenty of fresh water at all times, if he is generally healthy without weight issues, even at 20. That is all he should need. Good luck...

Where are you from? Ontario

How did you locate this forum? Surfing

I agree with Annie: Look at how much exercise your horse is getting. If he has been confined to a small area, he could get fractious very quickly, even at age 20. If he's stalled, maybe you could change him to pasture board, or at least get the barn help to turn him out several days a week. (You'll have to pay extra for this, probably)

Where are you from? Poolville TX

How did you locate this forum? Equine DDS

Thank you guys. The diet change did help and then I have just been lunging him and he seems to have calmed down quite a bit. You are all so wonderful. Thank you.

Aw shucks, ma'am, it's nuthin'. We're all just happy to help a fellow horse lover.

Where are you from? Poolville TX

How did you locate this forum? Equine DDS

Hello Tamary,

Seems like you got a lot of help while I was away and that it was instrumental in helping your horse calm down. Good!

Many horses are "sensitive" to highs and lows in blood sugar levels that arise from diets that contain sugar (molasses) and starch (from cereal grains such as oats, corn, barley, wheat, etc.). So, limiting these is very helpful. Also, for an older horse such as yours, he is more prone toward developing Cushings syndrome, and a low sugar/low starch diet is recommended.

Exercise and freedom to be a horse is also critical, as was mentioned. Horses are grazers and need to roam 24 hours a day to graze on grass and/or hay to keep not only their minds happy, but to protect their digestive systems. I realize that this is not always feasible for many horses, but do what you can to increase his outdoor, grazing time as much as possible.

Choose a low starch feed for him, such as Triple Crown Low Starch. If you don't feed it according to directions, add a good multiple vitamin/mineral supplement to fill in the gaps. If you choose to feed a commercial ration according to directions, be sure to limit each meal size to no more than 4 lbs because of a horse's small stomach size.

About alfalfa....this legume is an excellent way to boost the protein quality of a horses diet. It isn't necessarily higher in calories than grass hay -- many batches of Timothy grass, for example, have more calories and more sugar than alfalfa. I like to add this legume to the diet to help provide the necessary building blocks (amino acids) to the diet to boost the immune function and allow for the production of many body tissues (including hoof tissue, hair, and healthy skin).

I hope this is helpful. Congratulations on your new horse and if you would like to go over his situation in more detail, please consider setting up a phone consultation.

All the best,

Dr. Getty

Where are you from? Bayfield, CO