If you own a horse, you’ve probably noticed how most commercial treats contain too much sugar, preservatives, and other harmful ingredients that may not be well-suited for your horse. If you are worried about your horses’ health with the treats that they eat, we’re here to help you. You can find lots of recipes online and elsewhere which can help you make high-quality treats for your horses that will not have negative effects on their health.
Horses are known to bond with their owners through experiences. In addition to riding your horse and going on adventures, another great way to bond is through food. By giving your horse some homemade goodness, you will be able to show them how you appreciate them.
If you are looking for some delicious treats that you can make for your horse, read on as we’re giving you a list of the treats you can make for your horse at home. We sourced these recipes from different blogs and sites online, and they will surely give you some motivation to use your electric stove and oven to make treats for your lovely pet.
The Ultimate Horse Cookie
This recipe is from Tanya Davenport’s blog. If humans love to eat cookies, horses surely love them too. Here are the ingredients you need for this recipe:
- Carrot
- Apple
- ½ cup of honey or molasses
- 2 cups of oats
- ½ – ¾ cup of flour
- 1 tbsp. of vegetable oil or coconut oil
- 1 tbsp. of water
Procedure:
1. Preheat the oven to 300-325 degrees.
2. While waiting for the oven to heat, grate the carrot and chop the apple into fine pieces.
3. Mix all of the ingredients together. It can be up to you to adjust the measurements depending on the ingredients you choose to use. You need to be able to squeeze a ball of dough in your hand without it falling apart.
4. Roll the dough and press it into balls using your hands. Put them on a greased baking sheet. If you find the dough too sticky, you can add more flour and water.
5. Bake the rolled dough pieces for about 28 to 32 minutes on the middle rack of your oven. Check them often and bake until they are golden brown.
6. After baking, store them in a sealed container. Make sure that you use the cookies within a week. They can stay fresh when stored inside the refrigerator.
Oatmeal Horse Treats
We got this tasty recipe from Little House Living. Here are the simple ingredients that you need to make this horse treat:
- Carrot
- Apple
- A cup of molasses
- 2 ½ cups of old-fashioned oats
- 2 tbsp. of oil
Procedure:
1. In a large bowl, shred the carrot and the apple.
2. Add some oil, oats, and molasses into the bowl. Stir well to combine all the ingredients. Make sure that the oats are covered in molasses.
3. Grease a 9×13 baking dish and pour the mixture on it. Pat down the mixture using a spoon or with your fingers to flatten it onto the pan.
4. Bake the mixture for 40 minutes at 400 degrees until they start to get crispy.
5. After baking, remove it from the oven and let it cool for a while. As it cools, the treat will harden a bit.
6. Once it hardens, you can score the treat into pieces and give it to your pet horse.
Earth Muffins
This recipe is shared by Michelle Anderson from Horse Magazine. Here are the ingredients that you need for it:
- ¼ cup of ground flax seed
- ¾ cup of warm water
- ½ cup of organic sugar
- 2 cups of oat flour
- 2 cups of oatmeal
- 1 tsp. of sea salt
- ½ tsp. of ground cinnamon
- 1 cup of frozen blackberries
Procedure:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. While waiting for the oven to heat, soak the ground flaxseeds in warm water for about 10 minutes until it becomes gelatinous.
3. Get a mixing bowl and combine the flax-water mixture with sugar.
4. Add in the oat flour, oatmeal, salt, and cinnamon, and mix it well.
5. Pour the mixture onto a greased mini-muffin pan.
6. Press one blackberry, thick side down, firmly into each muffin.
7. Bake them for 18 to 20 minutes.
8. After baking, let the muffins cool and give them to your horse.
Easy Jet No-Bake Cookies
This is a simple homemade horse treat from American Horse Daily. This recipe is credited to the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame and Museum. Here are the ingredients needed for this delicious treat:
- ½ cup of peanut butter
- ¾ cup of powdered sugar
- ¾ cup of milk
- 1 cup of quick or old-fashioned uncooked oats
- ¾ cup of unsweetened puffed wheat or granola
- ¼ apple chips chomped into small pieces
Procedure:
1. Measure out all the ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Mix the peanut butter, sugar, and milk. Blend them well.
3. Stir in the oats and the other remaining ingredients.
4. In wax paper, drop some rounded teaspoonfuls. Let them stand until firm.
5. Serve them to your pet.
Kit’s “Popgrain” Balls for Horses
This unique horse treat recipe is from Raging Bear Ranch. They made this recipe in response to the expensive grain balls for horses that are available in stores and online. This treat is quite similar to popcorn, balls but it is made of grain instead. Here are the ingredients that you need:
- 1 cup dry molasses
- 1/3 cup of light Karo syrup
- 1 cup of water
- ¼ teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla
- 3 quarts of sweet feed
Procedure:
1. Mix the dry molasses, light Karo syrup, and water. Cook them to the medium-crack stage. This is around 280°F by a thermometer.
2. Add in the salt and vanilla.
3. Pour in the sweet feed into the mixture.
4. After cooking, let the mixture cool a bit. Grease your hands and start shaping the mixture into balls.
5. Place the balls on wax paper and let them set.
6. Once the balls are totally cooled, you can serve them to your pet horse.
These are some of the best treats that you can make at home for your pet horse. All of these treats are very easy to make, and they do not need complicated ingredients. The best thing about these is that they are all healthy for your pet horse. We hope this post helped you learn more about making homemade treats for your horse.