Feeding the Dentally Challenged Horse with the X5-CD Automatic Feeder
If you own a senior horse, then you know the difficulties of poor dentition in regards to feeding time. Horses that have lost teeth or have worn down tooth surfaces, lose the ability to grind their hay or forage, forcing the change to forage alternatives. This creates a problem for the owner that wants to avoid potential medical issues that can come from a horse going long periods of time between meals.
Here is a short excerpt from an article from “the Horse” Minding the Gap: Feeding the Toothless Horse:
“If you pulverize or soften feed for a toothless horse, the reduced amount of chewing may result in very short meal times,” Lawrence adds. Without adequate chew time, horses might be at risk of developing digestive disturbances, such as ulcers, or behavioral vices. One vice that researchers have tied to lack of quality foraging time is cribbing. Although it might be a challenge scheduling-wise, most nutritionists recommend feeding at least three or four meals (spaced) evenly throughout the day.
Owners can easily add a few steps to their daily feeding practices that will positively affect the dentally challenged horse’s digestion and overall health. Dividing feed, especially complete rations, into smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day, for instance, offers several health advantages. This also applies to both concentrates and hay or forage alternatives.
If you have a senior with dental issues and don’t have the ability to feed multiple small meals throughout the day, than the X5-CD Automatic Feeder can help. With the ability to feed up to 8 times in a 24 hour period, your horse wouldn’t have to go longer than 3 hours without a meal. The X5-CD is able to feed out grain, hay pellets, hay cubes, chopped forage and even soaked feed, all on a schedule designed by you. Check out our product pages for more details and enjoy the full article on feeding the toothless horse at:
https://thehorse.com/112446/mind-the-gap-feeding-the-toothless-horse/
