Feeding fruits and vegetables to horses can encourage poor feeders, add some variety to a horse's diet and act as a low fat treat to reward good behaviour. However, not all horses like the same fruits and vegetables so it will require trial and error to find your horse's favourite fruit or vegetable although most horses relish carrots and apples.
Any fruits or vegetables should be washed before being fed to ensure the removal of any pesticides, chemicals, etc and mouldy or rotten fruit or vegetables should be avoided. Any fruit or vegetable should be cut into strips to ensure they do not become stuck in the horse's throat which can lead to choking.
Although there are many vegetables and fruits that are safe for horses to eat, there are a few vegetables and fruits that are not safe to feed to horses so it is important to check before feeding any vegetable or fruit that it will not harm your horse.
Fruits that are safe to feed horses include:
- Apple
- Apricot
- Banana (can be fed with the peel)
- Blackberry
- Coconut
- Grapefruit
- Orange
- Peaches
- Pear
- Pineapple
- Plum
- Strawberry
- Watermelon
Fruits that are NOT safe to feed horses Include:
- Avacado
- Rhubarb
- Tomato
Vegetables that are safe to feed horses include:
- Beetroot
- Carrot
- Celery
- Cucumber
- Parsnip
- Swede
- Turnip
Vegetables that are NOT safe to feed horses include:
- Onion
- Potato
