Podcast #109 – Fat In Horse Diets
This podcast continues the simplification of one of the 7 “things” placed into our horses. These are air, water, minerals, various plant compounds, sugar, protein, and fat. The last podcast covered sugar, and the next podcast will cover protein. Today, I discuss fat in the diets of horses.
Where do horses naturally get their fat in their diets? Is adding fat to the diet good for horses? What exactly is fat, the Omega fats, and how do fats get from the gut or the fat cells to the muscle cells for use? I answer these questions to clarify the confusing information we all get from the noise of experts and marketing.
In a nutshell, horses get their fat from the cellulose they eat. If allowed to migrate over great distances, I’m sure there are other sources, such as oils from grains eaten in a short growing season. But when fed only pasture and hay, horses do very well in making what they need from the bacterial digestion of cellulose.
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