What is safe to feed a horse?

Question

What 'natural' items that grow in my yard (grass, weeds, tree-parts (limbs) are SAFE to allow my neighbor's horse to feed upon while in my yard?

They do feed alfalfa hay and grains to this horse. - I am offering my open acreage to this horse to help keep my yard clean.

Answer 1

for the most part horses will avoid anything that's posinous to them...

BUT... make sure to clean up acorns.. if they eat a few it's OK but a lot is really bad for them.  also i believe that cherry trees, the leaves are very poisonous.

here's a list of "top 10 posionous plants to horses"

http://www.equisearch.com/horses_care/fe...

you can also get horse books which often list toxic plants, search online and you can contact people in your town oftentimes to check your field.  good luck!

edit: just found this -- great resource!

http://www.library.uiuc.edu/vex/toxiccom...

Answer 2

grass and weeds and wild flowers and also you can buy oats and sugar cubes and if you have an apple tree they might eat your apples!!!!!

Answer 3

I would suggest you do a google search for plants poisonous to horses to check the list out.  Off the top of my head, here are a few:

Oak Trees

Black Walnut

Black Locust

These trees' leaves can kill a horse if eaten when they are wilted:

Cherry Trees

Peach trees

Plum trees

Red maple

Also make sure if you have fruit trees the horse doesn't have free access to it...too much fruit can easily cause founder in the horse.  If you let it eat grass, that's fine, as long as the horse is used to having grass every day.  However, be aware that you shouldn't feed the horse grass clippings -- its too easy for the horse to choke on them.