The label or feed tag on a commercial feed bag can give you a wealth of information about the feed’s purpose, ingredients, and directions for use. It can also tell you whether the feed you’re buying is the right product for your horse.
Labels on most horse feeds include:
- The product and brand name.
- A purpose statement describing the species and class of horse for which the feed is intended.
- The guaranteed analysis, which is the amount of certain nutrients in the feed.
- The ingredients list, which tells you what the feed contains, generally in order of ingredient inclusion.
- Directions for use, including feeding amounts based on the horse’s weight and activity level, as well as any precautionary statements.
- Net weight, which is useful when calculating your feed cost per day.
- Contact information for the manufacturer.
- The lot number or date code for tracking purposes.
Feed tags can be valuable reference guides for determining if you’re meeting your horse’s nutritional requirements. If you have questions about the information on the label, contact your feed salesperson, equine nutritionist, or feed company’s equine representative.
In the video below, we’ll walk you through how to read a horse feed tag and understand what you’re feeding.
Related Reading:
- Equine Nutrition 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Feeding Your Horse
- How Much Does My Horse Need to Eat?
- Equine Feeding Fundamentals
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