Nutrition of Horses and Mules

THE PRINCIPLES of the nutrition of horses and mules ^ fundamentalh^ are not unlike those of other domestic livestock. Thus^ for body building and maintenance, for growth, and for production, the horse and mule have need for protein, carbohydrates, fats, minerals, and vitamins, much as these essentials are required for similar vital processes by cattle, sheep, swine, and poultry. The relative importance of the various nutrients and the quantities required by horses and mules are, however, not the same as for the other farm animals. Nor do the requirements of horses and mules necessarily remain the same from day to day or from period to period. The stage of life, the kind and degree of activity, climatic conditions, the kind, quality, and amount of feed, the system of management, the health and individuality of the animal, and perhaps other equally important factors are all continually exerting a pow^erful influence in the determination of nutritive needs. How^ well the individual feeder or experimenter understands, anticipates, interprets, and meets these requirements usually determines the success or failure of the ration and of horse or mule keeping. The present discussion of the nutritive requirements of horses and mules considers the subject briefly from the standpoints of adequacy of rations, feed economies, and feeding practices.