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Economics of Feeding Horses in Training

By Catherine Dunnett
First Published: 05 February 2010 - Issue Number: 15

While economic efficiency within any business is important to maintain profitability, there has been a particular focus on cost saving recently within the racing industry as a result of the underlying economic climate.

 Feeding is an area where economies can be made, but for best effect any cost savings should not compromise the quality of the ration to the detriment of health or performance. Equally, however, we should not shy away from a critical evaluation of our feeding management on a regular basis, especially if there is an element of sticking to the same way of feeding just because ‘it’s always been done like that.’ In this article, Dr Catherine Dunnett BSc, PhD, R.Nutr. and Dr Steve Jackson focus on areas of potential cost saving within a racing ration, while trying to highlight any possible problems that could arise.

Lower price forage is not worth having if the quality is poor
Forage is probably one of the first elements of the diet that should be examined for potential cost savings, given that it represents a large proportion of the annual feeding bill. Extreme care needs to be taken when re-evaluating the stable’s source of forage as there are many factors apart from simply price that need to be considered including:

• Microbiological cleanliness
• Nutritional content
• Palatability
• Consistency of supply

A lower price is not worth having if, for example, the alternative forage is not consistently clean from a microbiological point of view. Forage that harbors a high mold count or that is contaminated with mycotoxins is known to contribute to respiratory disease. Veterinary management of respiratory conditions can quickly diminish any short-term cost advantage of lower quality forage. American and Canadian hay has a reputation for consistent quality and in general terms can deliver a good balance of nutritional value and microbiological cleanliness. Regular and thorough laboratory analysis is a good investment to establish the continued suitability of forage for a racing yard.  However, laboratory costs are not insignificant and need to be factored in to any price comparisons.
Forage prices will vary not only due to the type of forage but also the quantity purchased in a single lot and also to a certain extent by region primarily due to transport and associated costs. For example, for Timothy hay you may expect to pay near to $300 per tonne in Kentucky, but this may be nearer to $380-390 ...

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