Tuesday, November 1, 2011

The Importance Of Water In Feed Management

By Ilechukwu Magnus


Many horse owners think that they can be fed just like any other livestock. It is not so, due to differences in their digestive anatomy and physiology. Unlike other animals, horses come with mongastric stomach with extensive post-gastric fermentation of undigested feed residue. This is why horses can use both forages and concentrates. This presents extra difficulty in managing their feeding.

Generally, an average horse is expected to consume about 10 to 12 gallons of water every day, 1.0 percent of body weight in forage and less than 1.0 percent of body weight in concentrate coupled with the free choice of salt.

Horse Joint Supplements- Water Consumption
Just like human beings, water is also a necessity in the diet of horses. An average horse is supposed to take about 12 gallons of water every day. It helps in increasing the feed intake of horses. Horses that does not take enough water on daily basis can develop impaction colic. If you have a steady supply of water and your horse is not taking enough, it could be as a result of unpalatable or low quality of the water. Also, stale or dirty water is not among their favorites. Also, if the water is high salt or sodium concentrate, it can also lead to reduced water consumption.

Quality Horse Joint Supplements- How To Supply Water
If you supply water manually, it must be changed twice a day to avoid it being contaminated or stale. If the water is automatically supplied, ensure that the source is well cleaned. Do not supply sick and infected horses water in the same place to avoid contaminating the free ones.

Horses that are immediately out of strenuous exercises should not be allowed free access to water; you can give it a few sip periodically until it cools off. Once the horse is calm and cooled off, get it as much water as it can take to replenish the excess loose of water due to the exercise.

As important as it is, water alone cannot keep your horses healthy enough. You must supplement the water and other feeds with the right supply of horse supplements; especially horse joint supplements that will not only supplement the diet but will also ensure adequate joint health. Buy Horse Joint Supplements




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