Many of us have a special someone in our lives who walks on four legs instead of two. In my case, it is a Belgian/Quarter Horse-Cross named Hercules. This time of year, I like to gift him with something yummy for the holiday season. It’s important to me, however, to provide him with low sugar/starch horse treats.
There are many reasons to ensure we select the right diet for our horses, and treats are part of that equation. I have recently researched treats appropriate for horses with Cushings Disease, Insulin Resistance and Metabolic Syndrome. Many store-bought treats don’t make the cut.
Why Make Your Own Low Sugar/Starch Horse Treats?
I found a low sugar/low starch recipe recommended by the Veterinary Medical Center of Easton, Maryland. They suggested it as a great alternative to commercial horse treats. They even had the recipe tested at Equi-Analytical Lab; it tested extremely low in starch and simple sugars. Non-Structural Carbohydrates (NSC) tested at 2.4. The fact that these treats are made with healthy ingredients and are vet recommended are enough for me to get out the mixing bowl and turn on the oven!
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Let’s Get Started – Ingredients
The ingredient list is simple and healthy. You will only need the following to yield approximately 4 dozen treats:
16 oz (1 lb.) bag of Bob’s Red Mill Flaxseed
1/2 cup of Unsweetened Applesauce
2 Tablespoons of Ground Cinnamon
2 Cups of Hot Water
Directions:
- Add 1 lb. of Flax to Bowl
2. Add 2 Tbsp. Cinnamon to Bowl
3. Mix Flax and Cinnamon
4. Add 1/2 Cup Applesauce
5. Add 2 Cups Hot Water
6. Mix all Ingredients
Forming Dough:
When the mixture comes together, form the dough into a ball with your hands. Set the bowl aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Take out a baking sheet or pizza stone and cover with parchment paper. Do not use cooking oil or cooking spray. Just leave the parchment paper dry. Place the ball of dough in the center of the cookie sheet or pizza stone.
With your hands, begin flattening the dough in an even layer to cover the baking surface. The dough will be somewhat wet and sticky. Avoid using a rolling pin. Hands work best. The thinner you spread the dough out, the crispier the finished treats will be. Cut the flattened dough into squares or rectangles prior to putting them in the oven. They will come apart easily if you cut them before baking. They will be difficult to separate once they have hardened.
Baking, Cooling & Storing Low Sugar / Low Starch Horse Treats
Place the cut dough in the 350 degree oven for 60-75 minutes. At 60 minutes, they will be chewy. At approximately 75 minutes, they will be crunchy. After baking, turn off the oven, but let treats stay in for an additional 30 minutes.
Remove treats to a baking rack. Slide the paper and treats off the baking surface and rest them directly on the rack. Once cool enough to handle, discard paper and break treats apart.
After fully cooled, store treats in the refrigerator in the container of your choice. Keeping them refrigerated will prevent mold if you are not feeding them quickly.
Hercules and his barnmates enjoyed these treats. I hope your horse will too!
Related Links:
If you are interested in other healthy home baked treats for pets, you might be interested in:
This is what I’m looking for do you think I could add a hoof grower supplement to this . I’ve been feeding my donkey hoof grower she has white line disease need her hooves to grow out. I’ve been add canola oil to hoof grower otherwise she doesn’t get it all. As it fall through to but of feed . And she doesn’t really need the extra feed .
Hi Christy,
Nice to hear from you! I’m uncertain about adding the hoof supplement to this treat recipe as it is baked in oven temps; I would check with your vet. I’m partnered with a draft horse that needs extra fat for metabolic reasons (EPSM) as well as a low carb/sugar diet. I have worked hard, like you, to get the right supplements into him without tipping the dietary scale with extra carbs and sugars. I’m not an expert on donkeys; but if using oil is safe for her, I’ve had luck drizzling oil on forage rather than on hard feed (not sure what type of forage you feed out – straw? hay?). I know this won’t work if your donkey is sharing forage with others. I also use only low carb/low starch feed. Thanks for checking out my recipe!
Hi! I am glad I came across your recipe! Im just wondering though if you know of any substitution for the applesauce? My mare is allergic to apples so I always have to find treats without that. Thx!
Hi Rachel,
Thank you for the question! I have not substituted out the applesauce in this recipe, but if I had to, I might try pureed carrots. I’d look in the baby food aisle for a healthy, safe option. Again, I haven’t tried it yet, but it might be an option as it would have the same consistency and moisture content.
Best,
Laura
Have you ever tried just pinching off pieces from the dough? Maybe into a round ball? I’m just wondering if that would be easier than trying to flatten it out? I need to be able to hide medicine in the treat…
Hi,
Good question!
In honesty, I have only rolled these out. I imagine you will need a fairly pliable treat to shape around medicine. These may be too brittle for that.