Very little apples for horses

Too much fruit causes colic in horses

11.10.2012

A good treat for horses is apples. The veterinary faculty of the LMU Munich advises horse owners to give only a limited number of apples. „For what is healthy for a person does not have to be right for the animal.“ If the animals consume too much fruit, intestinal and stomach problems can result. The correct pasture should also be chosen from this point of view.

No orchards as pasture
Horses should not necessarily graze on orchards. If you eat too many apples, pears, cherries or plums, horses may suffer from diarrhea, stomach problems, abdominal pain and colic. The veterinarian Fabian Wendel advises the veterinary faculty „about one apple per 100 kilograms of body weight“ to calculate. The horses suffer from the disease „laminitis“ they should not eat too much fruit either. The fructose contained in the fruit can trigger a further illness boost in the animal.

Therefore, horse owners should only treat apples or plums as delicacies and not as a substitute for food. If there is only the orchard as pasture, this should be freed in advance of the fallen fruit. (Sb)

Image: Waltraud Seitz