ZEBRA equine services

27/11/2025

Going

Have you ever thought about setting up a track system for your horse?

In our third Welfare Wednesday Webinar episode, we’ll be discussing what track systems are and how they can be beneficial to horses with livery owner and author, Amy Dell Anthony.

📅 Wednesday 3rd December
🕖 7:00 – 8:15pm
👉 https://bit.ly/4rkVTPO

From weight loss to social living, track systems can be useful for promoting the 3Fs of Friends, Freedom and Forage for all horses – But where can we start? Amy will talk through the key considerations for setting up a track from fencing and surface choices to herd dynamics and how to provide hay. So, if you’ve ever considered a track and had questions, join us to ask Amy for her expert advice!

06/11/2025

A good reminder👍

05/11/2025

03/11/2025

NO NUTRITION IN WINTER GRASS - TRUE OR FALSE?

False!

Winter 'standing' grass can have plenty of nutrition in it for many horses and ponies. Don't underestimate its energy supply. You will still need to balance for mineral shortages, however.

Winter pasture regrowth can also supply more nutrients that many owners realise. If the soil temperature doesn't fall below 5 degrees for any length of time, grass will continue to grow.

Winter grazing can supply all the protein and energy some horses and ponies need, if there is enough of it.

Winter grazing is sometimes thought of as having 'nothing in it' but this is only the case if the grass stops growing and gets completely eaten down.

Feel free to share!
🐴🍏🌱❄

31/10/2025

30/10/2025

OLD HORSES CAN DIE OF STARVATION IF NOT GIVEN FEED THEY CAN CHEW

Many owners see their elderly horses or ponies getting thinner and thinner despite some bucket concentrate feed, and might assume that 'it's just their age'. These owners often have no idea that all the horse needs is feed in a form that the horse can eat.

Most elderly horses lose weight because they cannot chew very well, and this might be despite good, regular dental care. Horses' teeth grow continuously throughout their lives and will eventually loosen and fall out.

They literally 'run out' of teeth. Even those with teeth left can struggle to chew enough conserved forage (hay/haylage) to maintain condition, because the grinding surfaces of the teeth become smoother.

If these horses are fed just concentrates - especially low-fibre conditioning or veteran feeds - they will struggle, because they will be fibre-deficient.

Older horses who gradually get thinner must have their forage (hay, haylage and eventually grass) replaced with ground fibre sources, soaked to a mash, and eventually may need 100% of their feed from a bag.

It is ignorance, rather than cruelty to let a very old - but otherwise healthy - horse get very thin. But it is absolutely 100% avoidable with the knowledge of what to feed!

The grey horse reflects how older horses can end up looking if they don't have their long forage replaced with chewable alternatives. I have hepled a number of owners with old horses this thin.

The dun pony is how an older horse (late 30s) can look despite having lost most of their teeth, when fed 6kg forage-replacement feeds daily.

You can claim a free article on feeding older horses and ponies (see the comments for a link) AND I'm delivering a webinar on this very subject next week - comment webinars and I'll send you the details.

Please feel free to share
🐴🍏

17/10/2025

15/10/2025

I only learnt this nugget of information about 18 months ago & the importance of hanging the breast bars the correct way so that the bar will drop in an emergency🦓