Equine nutrition profoundly affects both physical health and behavioral welfare. Understanding the link between diet, digestive function, and behavior helps horse owners prevent common but serious welfare problems.
Equine nutrition sits at the center of a web of welfare problems that are common, severe, and largely preventable. The gastric ulcer epidemic in horses — with 50-90% of performance horses affected — arises directly from feeding management that prioritizes convenience and performance over equine digestive physiology. The horse stomach evolved to receive a continuous trickle of forage and saliva; when restricted to two large concentrate meals per day, the stomach sits empty and acid-filled for many hours, causing ulceration that causes chronic pain. This pain is expressed behaviorally — reluctance to be girthed, poor performance, behavioral changes — that trainers and owners often attribute to training problems rather than physical discomfort. The hindgut acidosis risk from high-starch diets creates additional welfare problems including discomfort, altered mood, and increased laminitis risk. The welfare-optimal equine diet maximizes forage and minimizes concentrate, providing the digestive continuity the horse evolved for. Managing body condition while maintaining adequate forage access requires understanding of forage type and quality rather than simply restriction.