Exploration of Available Feed Resources, Feeding Practices, Morphometric and Nutritional Status of Horses in Kashmir Valley of India

Abstract

Nutrition is a critical component of equine health. Horse owners’ knowledge of nutrition is likely to affect their feeding practices. The study was conducted with the aim to survey available feed resources for equines, existing feeding practices and morphometric and nutritional status of horses in four major horse rearing tehsils (Sopore, Pattan, Tangmarg and Gulmarg) of district Baramulla in Kashmir valley. Twelve equine keeping families from each study area were selected at random. The daily dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), digestible energy (DE) and macro minerals (Ca and P) intakes by different classes of horses were calculated from the feed intakes and compared with the nutrient requirement given in the feeding standard. Among body morphometry, body weight (BW) was calculated using body measurements, age was predicted by dentition and body condition scoring (BCS) was done using the Henneke BCS system. Adult horses were being fed rice straw and wheat bran; however, in addition to these, maize grains was fed in Tangmarg and Gulmarg areas, while jaggery was fed as energy supplement in Sopore only. The horses were fed blend of spicy ingredients locally called as “masala”. None of the farmers offered any oil seeds/cakes, compound pelleted feed or mineral supplement to their horses, though, salt licks were allowed to the adult animals on daily basis in all the study areas. The chemical composition of all the feeds and fodders fed to horses in the study areas of district Baramulla were within the ranges as prescribed for Indian feeds and fodders. During the survey, no lactating mare was observed in the entire study areas, while no foal was observed in Sopore and Gulmarg areas. Average age of the adult animal was 7.08±0.29 years, BW was in the range of 224.40 to 271.13 kg, and BCS ranged from 4.28 to 5.21 with an average of 4.93. While adult horses received optimum DM, the daily CP and DE intakes were found to be deficient along with imbalanced Ca and P intake when compared to the standard requirements. Foals were found to get diets deficient in DM, DE, CP and Ca but surplus in P. It was concluded that horse owners of district Baramulla lack basic knowledge on equine nutrition, feeding un-balanced diets to adult horses that were optimum only in terms of quantity; however, foals were fed diets deficient both in quantity as well as quality. The veterinarian-client dialog needs to be enhanced to address the misconceptions of horse owners about nutrition and feeding practices.