What is the resting metabolic rate for the average horse? How many calories does a horse burn per day?

Question

What is the resting metabolic rate for the average horse? How many calories does a horse need per day? How many calories are contained in a "flake" of alfalfa?

Answer 1

I worked with horses for 8 years and it is not healthy to give them pure alfalfa flakes, they are high in fat and hard on there stomach, you should feed them hay, it ok to give them alfalfa once in a while but as a treat not as a meal, alfalfa is like candy, too much will get them fat and give them stomach problems. Normal pulse is 30 to 40 beats per minute. The resting respiratory rate is 2 to 20 breaths per minute.

Here is a site that has the chart of calories a horse needs per day and also a list of the calories in their food.

http://www.dayvillesupply.com/doc/hay_ca...

I hope that this answered all of your questions.

Answer 2

http://www.dayvillesupply.com/doc/hay_ca...

http://www.dvmservices.com/equine_manage...

http://www.find-health-articles.com/rec_...

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx...

http://www.alfalfa.org/pdf/Alfalfa%20for...

Answer 3

Basal metabolic rate varies with individuals, so it would have to be measured in an individual horse to determine the calories used just to sustain metabolism.  I know of no studies done on horses to measure basal metabolism averages.

A flake of alfalfa would vary in weight and density, so a definitive calorie measurement isn't possible.  You need density considered, and a weight measurement rather than a "flake" to go on.

I think you are trying to figure out the number of calories needed to sustain an inactive horse in a resting state?  

Answer 4

Digestable Energy requirements for maintaining (basal metabolic rate) a horse are approximately found by the calculation 1.4 + 0.03 BW (BW = kg body weight) Mcal daily.  So a 1000 lb horse would need 15.04 Mcal/day.

Midbloom Alfalfa has a Digestable Energy content of 2.07 Mcal/kg.

So if you figure a 1000lb horse requires about 9.09 kg/day of hay (2% of its body weight)  That amount of alfalfa would supply 18.82 Mcal/day.  More than enough for an average horse.