Horse Nutrition Tip - Feeding Hard Keepers vs Feeding Easy Keepers
- Dale Rudin
- Mar 31
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 2
Horse owners frequently use the terms "hard keeper" and "easy keeper" to make decisions about feeding their horse. What do they really mean, and are they useful when we're talking about a horse's nutrition?
In the Beginning...
It's likely the idea of a horse that was easy to keep weight on, in comparison to one who took more food to look good, became desirable to owners as well as a way to add value to a horse that's being sold. You can still see it pop up in equine sale ads.
It Makes Sense to Want an Easy Keeper
Would you rather buy a horse that's more expensive to keep, or less? The math is pretty straightforward. If you have a horse that costs less money and effort to feed and care for, it's natural for that to have intrinsic appeal.
Feeding Horses 101
All horses have the same basic nutritional requirements for vitamins, minerals, fats, protein, carbohydrates, fiber, and proteins.
Forage, hay and/or pasture, covers the majority of dietary needs. However forage alone doesn't provide a complete and balanced nutrition profile.
That means EVERY horse needs to be given some nutrients supplemently to cover what's missing and overcome those imbalances.
More or Less
Do some horses actually require less food than others? Possibly, yes. Factors that will influence caloric needs include genetics, age, energy output, weather, stress, lifestyle, and workload.
However... that doesn't mean you can skimp on essential nutrition or forage availability - universal needs of all equines.
Is There Any Benefit to Defining a Horse as an Easy or Hard Keeper When We're Feeding?
From my point of view as an equine nutritionist, I think not. I don't want to categorize a horse in any way that may negatively affect any horse's wellness or welfare. There's too great a risk of a horse being perceived as needing less than is adequate for their optimal health.
It's too easy to misinterpret a horse's condition based on the biases or lack of knowledge of the observer. The best approach is to be informed about nutrition, body condition, etc. or seek help from a qualified professional.
Dale Rudin