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<p>Many horses will come in from a good summer's grazing with too much body fat. They may now have to be put on a "slimming diet" until Christmas or even later in the winter in order to get back to a "normal" body condition. How should you feed your horse under such circumstances?</p>
<p>The ration we give horses to reduce their fat deposits must contain less energy than the horse would get if it was in average body condition and undergoing the same levels of exercise or activity. At the same time, the body needs normal amounts of all the other necessary nutrients, and must also have enough roughage to maintain a healthy gut activity. We have a function in the PC-Horse program that is designed to help in such situations. If your horse is an adult horse at maintenance (a horse that is not trained), you can reduce its energy requirements from the feed without affecting the daily need for and supply of other nutrients.</p>
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<p>In the PC-Horse program, under the tab "Body weight" you enter the horse's body weight. Remember that you should always enter the horse's "normal" body weight, that is, the body weight it has when in the desired body condition.</p>
<p>At the bottom of the "Body weight" screen, PC-Horse offers a function called "Correction of body weight", which is controlled by a slide bar. By using this feature you can adjust the calculation of the horse's energy requirements up- or downwards. For example, if your horse is too fat, you would reduce energy requirements by 10 to 20 percent. Through this correction the daily intake of energy is reduced, while the requirements for protein, vitamins and minerals remain at their normal level. When formulating your diet this way, you will get a ration that is slimming your horse whilst supplying the right amount of other nutrients. Remember to move the slider back to normal (0) when the horse has reached the desired body condition, otherwise it may lose too much fat and become too thin!</p>
<p>For adult exercised horses, you can use the same function for regulation of energy intake as for horses at maintenance, but you can also alter the amount of exercise you define in PC-Horse. If you enter a lower exercise intensity than the horse actually takes, PC-Horse will prescribe a ration with reduced energy intake. At the same time, however, the calculated requirements for protein and some of the minerals and vitamins will be reduced. If you feel that the training volume is set properly, it will probably be better to control the calculation of energy requirements when slimming your horse on rations formulated using the "Correction of body weight" function.</p>
<p>This function can also be used for pregnant mares, but care must also be taken. You must monitor your mare closely to ensure that the changes in body condition do not become too great. Broodmares will need to have some body fat stores when they are approaching foaling, as this fat is an important part of the foundation for good milk production.</p>