Anyone feed their horse pumpkin?

[Bank of Dad]

Got these leftover pumpkins from decorations and thinking about feeding to the guys. How much at a time? Seeds too?

[caballus]

My guys get pumpkin in some manner almost daily. If not raw pumpkin seeds then they get a portion of a whole pumpkin - skin, seeds, flesh and all. They love it. !! And its healthy for them, too. All sorts of good nutrients.

[Go Fish]

This is a treat that my neighbor provides my broodies this time of year. She just throws the pumpkins over the fence and the mares go nuts. My poor two year old gelding is new to the herd and he's standing there licking them. What a dummy...

[cloudyandcallie]

Are you going to toast those seeds?

It took me until last summer to feed my horse watermelon and I live in the South.:lol: My mother picked the seeds out for him and cut the watermelon into (human) bite size pieces, and no rind.:lol:

I've given him pumpkin seeds, toasted, but no pumpkin. He gets apples and bananas and oranges and Coke and Becks, so he can wait till I get around to the whole pumpkin pie.

[klmck63]

I'm so glad to hear that it's healthy for them! My mare pulled me (literally) over to the pumpkins we have decorating our farm the other day and took a huge chunk out of one before I could stop her. I didn't let her continue because I wasn't sure if horses could eat pumpkin.

I guess she was just letting me know that she could!

[caballus]

Pretty much most vegetables and fruits are safe for horses to eat. Those from the nightshade family such as potatoes, tomatoes and eggplant are best not fed to them. They can react poorly to them. Also onions are a no-no. But other things - greens, peas, beans, yams, broccoli, kale, melons, squash, bananas, etc. etc. can be fed. No big pits ... but seeds, rinds, flesh and skin OK. Its all good for them - all forages. Nuts and seeds, too - almonds, walnuts (regular; NOT black walnuts!), peanuts, cashews ... all raw and shelled although peanut shells are OK. Sunflower seeds, black oil sunflower seeds, flax seed, split green peas, sprouts, etc. For the most part that's pretty much all my guys eat with forage extender or hay stretcher pellets and hay. My old OTTB does get senior feed but he's the only one that gets 'grain' - he also gets his veggies mixed in. :)

[Paddys Mom]

I chucked a pumpkin over the fence to them so it would split open. They nibbled on it a bit and then left it. I threw that one away and chucked a second one over a few days later and they wouldn't touch it. :confused:

[cloudyandcallie]

Perhaps you are serving it incorrectly? No one wants his food "chucked" over the fence!:lol:

Or maybe you should add some cinnamon and toast the seeds?

[Paddys Mom]

True. I may have spoiled them by serving them a breakfast of hot alfalfa cube mash every morning.

[Bank of Dad]

Yikes, I cut it up and gave it to them cut up. Even piggo wouldn't go near it.