Horse Feeding Behaviour: Welfare When Natural Grazing Is Restricted

Horses evolved as continuous grazers spending 16-18 hours per day foraging. Modern management practices that restrict forage access cause significant physiological and psychological welfare problems that are widespread and often unrecognised.

Key Facts

Wild horses graze for 16-18 hours per day, walking several kilometres while doing so to meet their nutritional and behavioural needs
The equine digestive system produces acid continuously and requires constant forage to buffer it — periods without forage lead to gastric ulcers
Gastric ulcers affect an estimated 60-90% of performance horses and 40-60% of leisure horses, largely due to restricted forage access
Stereotypic behaviours including crib-biting, weaving, and box-walking develop primarily in horses with restricted forage and social contact
Box rest — necessary for injury management — represents one of the most significant welfare challenges in horse management, requiring careful enrichment
Slow feeders and hay nets with small holes can extend forage consumption time significantly, mimicking natural grazing duration
Horses are highly motivated to graze to the point of working hard for forage access even when full — indicating a behavioural need beyond simple nutrition

Welfare Considerations

The mismatch between natural equine feeding behaviour and modern management is one of the most pervasive welfare problems in the horse world. Horses kept in stables with limited forage access develop gastric ulcers, stereotypies, and psychological stress that their owners often fail to connect to management rather than individual temperament. The good news is that many interventions — slow feeders, track grazing systems, field shelters with ad libitum hay — can substantially improve welfare without requiring additional land or cost. Treating horses as continuous grazers, not scheduled feeders, is the single most important welfare shift in equine management.

What You Can Do

Provide ad libitum low-calorie forage (hay or haylage) to horses rather than scheduled rations where possible
Use slow feeders or small-holed hay nets to extend eating time and reduce inter-meal gaps
Ensure stabled horses have at least 16 hours of forage access per 24-hour period
If box rest is required, provide enrichment and forage access to minimise psychological suffering
Monitor horses for signs of gastric ulcers including poor coat, girthiness, reduced appetite, and behavioural changes
Discuss management changes with your vet if your horse shows stereotypic behaviours
Learn about track grazing systems that allow horses to move and graze more naturally in restricted areas