I take my responsibilities as Chief Equine Officer seriously, and one of them is to educate humans about horse welfare and behaviour.

The whole herd is obsessed with treats at the moment, as we know there’s a stash of them sent by some very lovely people as Christmas presents. Some of the younger members of the herd would love to get their hooves on them and scoff the lot ... so a few words about why this would be a very bad idea, and about horses and food in general, seems timely. 

What can and can’t horses eat?

Items on these lists may surprise you. Carrots and apples you already know we love. They should be cut up to avoid any danger of choking, and apple cores should be removed as too many pips are toxic. Most of us love melon, celery, cucumber and strawberries, all of which are water-based but sweet. Bananas too! Most horses have a sweet tooth.

But broccoli, tomatoes, cabbage and potatoes (to name just a few) could kill us. Grass cuttings too…

We also love mints, but just like you we need to eat sugar in moderation. And we love salt licks, which taste delicious (honest) but are also a good source of healthy minerals.

When is it OK to feed treats to a horse?

The only right answer to this is ‘when the owner says it’s OK’. Horses have small stomachs and are designed by nature to graze little and often. Overeating can kill. And just like humans, horses have allergies and food intolerances, which the owner will know about but you won’t.

Did you know that horses can’t be sick?

If you humans eat something that disagrees with you, you throw up, right? It may be horrible, but you feel better immediately. But horses can’t be sick, which means they can’t get rid of the toxins, or the bloating. Sorry to lower the tone, but for us this is life-threatening, so it needs to be said. Every year horse owners beg walkers not to feed random vegetables to horses they see in fields. Every year horses die.

Feeding etiquette

There’s always a risk if you offer food to a horse in your hand of getting your fingers bitten, which you can minimise by offering it on a flat palm. But as CEO I try to make sure that everyone in the herd is well-mannered around humans, and that includes not nudging a human’s pocket in the hope there’s a treat inside it. The best way to avoid young horses pestering humans for treats, or even biting, is not to feed by hand at all. Treats in feed buckets is best.

We’d all still love a scratch on the neck though! And do keep the treats coming. I’ll make sure they’re distributed fairly. Honest.

Prodney is Chief Equine Officer (CEO) at Park Lane Stables, and achieved celebrity status following the TV coverage in 2021.