Soaking your horses hay can also remove other nutrients. | Alexandra BeckstettQ:I soak my horses hay to reduce sugar levels because he has equine metabolic syndrome (EMS). Does soaking also remove important nutrients I need to replace?A:Soaking hay can be a great management tactic for horses with EMS by removing some water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC). However, soaking also leaches other nutrients, making it important to evaluate the overall diet. Soaking EMS Horses HayFor EMS horses, soak hay 30 minutes in warm water or one hour in cold water for best results. Longer soaking increases nutrient loss and, in warm weather, can raise the risk of microbial contamination such as mold.Fully submerge the hay, keep it out of direct sunlight, drain it thoroughly, and feed it to the horse immediately.Filling Nutritional Gaps in Your EMS Horses DietHay alone rarely meets a horses vitamin and mineral requirements, whether its soaked or not. Depending on hay quality, your horse might also need additional protein.A hay analysis can help determine next steps. Most adult horses do well on hay containing 10-12% crude protein (CP). If you have a growing horse, or a horse in heavy work, he will need more CP. If your hay provides adequate protein for your horse, you can rely on a vitamin/mineral supplement to fill the nutritional gaps in the hay for your metabolic horse.Safely Feeding a Ration BalancerIf your EMS horse needs a protein-fortified ration balancer to meet his nutritional requirements in combination with the hay, be sure each meal does not exceed 0.1 g nonstructural carbohydrates (NSC) per kilogram body weight (BW).Here is an example calculation:NSC content of the ration balancer is 13% on a dry matter (DM) basisMultiply the NSC content by the feeding rate:(0.13 NSC) x (454 g) = 59.02 g NSCDivide NSC in grams by the horses body weight:59.02 g NSC/500 kg BW = 0.12 g NSC/kg BWThe amount exceeds 0.1 g NSC/kg BW, which means youd divide the ration balancer amount this EMS horse needs into two meals. The result, a NSC content of 0.06 g NSC/kg BW/meal, is within the recommended safe guidelines.Take-Home MessageHay alone will not meet a horses nutrient requirements, and soaking hay to reduce sugars does leach additional nutrients. To ensure your horse does not develop nutritional deficiencies, test your hay to determine the nutritional content and choose either a vitamin/mineral premix or protein-fortified ration balancer to meet his nutritional needs. Claim your promo code for products in Equithrive's Easy Keeper collection: MetaCare, Metabarol, Vitamin E or Hoof. Name(Required) First Last Email(Required) By clicking submit I consent to Equine NetworksPrivacy Policy and Terms of Serviceand I represent that I am over 16 years old.

Preventing colic comes down to consistent, thoughtful management that supports normal digestive function. Ensuring steady forage intake, clean water access, and avoiding sudden changes in diet or routine, in combination with regular turnout, dental care, and parasite control can help maintain gut health and reduce your horses colic risk. In this Ask TheHorse Live excerpt, Bianca Ruspi, DVM, equine surgery resident at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky, explains the best ways to reduce your horses risk of colic.ThispodcastisanexcerptfromourAskTheHorseLiveQ&A.Listentothefullrecordinghere.About the Expert: Bianca Ruspi, DVMBianca Ruspi, DVM, is a third-year resident in equine surgery at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky. She attended the University of Kentucky (UK), in Lexington, for her undergraduate degree and Cornell University, in Ithaca, New York, for veterinary school. She is interested in orthopedic surgery and joint disease and is pursuing a PhD at UK's Gluck Equine Research Center following her residency.