Maintaining a Healthy Digestive System

Helping Horse Owners Support Healthy Digestion

A horse’s digestive system is designed for frequent intake of fibre-rich food and almost continuous movement. Modern management can sometimes be very different, with restricted turnout, meal feeding, concentrates, travel, competition and changes in routine all potentially affecting digestive health.

Good digestive management starts with forage, water, appropriate feeding and consistent management. Nutritional supplements can then provide additional support where appropriate.

⚡ Quick Facts

Horses are designed to eat small amounts of fibrous food throughout much of the day.
The stomach produces acid continuously, whether the horse is eating or not.
Fibre is fermented by microorganisms in the hindgut.
Sudden dietary changes can disturb the hindgut microbial population.
Plenty of forage, fresh water and gradual dietary changes are foundations of good digestive management.
Changes in appetite, droppings, behaviour or signs of abdominal pain should never simply be assumed to be a nutritional problem.

[HERO GRAPHIC 1 — THE HEALTHY EQUINE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM]

Purpose: A highly visual overview of how the horse’s digestive system works and the management principles that support it.

Suggested title on graphic:

The Horse’s Digestive System

How everyday management can help keep it healthy

Use a clear side-profile horse illustration with a simplified digestive tract showing:

Mouth → Oesophagus → Stomach → Small Intestine → Caecum → Large Colon → Small Colon

Alongside the digestive tract, use short owner-friendly callouts:

STOMACH
Small relative to the horse’s size
Acid is produced continuously
Regular access to forage helps support normal gastric function

SMALL INTESTINE
Important for digestion and absorption of many nutrients

HINDGUT
Home to a complex microbial population
Ferments fibre and produces energy for the horse

At the bottom:

Five Foundations of Digestive Health

Forage • Water • Gradual Feed Changes • Movement • Consistent Management

Standalone/print requirements:
JCG Health Hub branding at the top and JCG Supplements | jcgsupplements.com at the bottom.

Footer wording:

Educational information for horse owners. Changes in appetite, droppings or signs of abdominal pain may require veterinary investigation.

This graphic should work particularly well as an A4 printable/downloadable educational sheet.

How Does a Horse’s Digestive System Work?

The horse has evolved as a grazing animal, eating relatively small quantities of fibrous material for many hours each day.

Digestion begins in the mouth, where chewing breaks food into smaller particles and mixes it with saliva.

Food then passes down the oesophagus into the stomach. The horse has a relatively small stomach and produces gastric acid continuously. Long periods without food can therefore be undesirable, particularly in horses already at risk of gastric problems.

Food then enters the small intestine, where many nutrients including proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals are digested and absorbed.

What remains passes into the hindgut, principally the caecum and colon.

The hindgut contains a huge and complex population of bacteria and other microorganisms. These microbes ferment fibre and produce substances that the horse can use as an important source of energy.

This microbial ecosystem works best when the horse receives a consistent supply of suitable fibre.

That is why both the stomach and the hindgut can be affected when feeding and management move too far away from the way the horse's digestive system evolved to function.

The Foundations of Healthy Digestion

🌿 Make Forage the Foundation

For most horses, forage should form the basis of the diet.

Suitable grass, hay or haylage provides the fibre required by the hindgut microbial population and encourages the prolonged chewing that naturally accompanies grazing.

Chewing also produces saliva, which has an important buffering effect within the digestive system.

Where forage needs to be restricted because of obesity, laminitis risk or metabolic disease, the aim should normally be to manage the amount and nutritional content carefully rather than unnecessarily creating prolonged periods without forage.

Individual requirements can vary considerably, particularly in horses with medical or metabolic conditions.

💧 Provide Constant Access to Fresh Water

Water is essential for normal digestive function.

Horses should normally have continuous access to clean, fresh drinking water.

Pay particular attention during:

hot weather;
travelling;
competition;
changes from grass to conserved forage;
winter, when very cold water may reduce intake in some horses;
periods of increased exercise.

Reduced water intake can contribute to digestive problems and should not be ignored.

🔄 Make Dietary Changes Gradually

The microbial population of the hindgut adapts to the horse’s diet.

Suddenly changing forage, concentrates or grazing can disturb this population.

Whenever practical, introduce dietary changes gradually so the digestive system has time to adapt.

This includes changes such as:

Hay → Haylage
Winter forage → Spring grass
One concentrate feed → Another
Stable management → Increased turnout

Spring grass can represent a particularly significant dietary change even though the horse has not been given a new bag of feed.

🥣 Keep Concentrate Meals Appropriate

Some horses require additional energy beyond that provided by forage alone, but large concentrate meals can place additional demands on the digestive system.

Where concentrates are required, feeding smaller meals rather than a large single meal is generally preferable.

The horse's total diet should always be considered rather than looking at an individual feed or supplement in isolation.

🐴 Encourage Movement and Turnout

Regular movement supports normal gastrointestinal motility and is part of the way horses naturally live and feed.

Where appropriate for the individual horse, turnout can provide:

movement;
opportunities to forage;
social interaction;
a more natural feeding pattern.

Horses requiring restricted grazing may need alternative management strategies to balance digestive health with weight or metabolic control.

The Digestive Microbiome

The hindgut contains an enormous community of microorganisms collectively known as the microbiome.

These microorganisms help break down fibre that the horse cannot digest efficiently on its own.

A healthy microbial population is therefore an important part of normal digestive function.

The microbiome is not completely fixed. It can be influenced by factors including:

diet;
forage availability;
sudden feed changes;
starch intake;
transport;
exercise;
management changes;
illness;
some medications.

The aim of good feeding practice is not to try to control individual bacteria but to provide an environment in which a stable and diverse microbial community can function normally.

[GRAPHIC 2 — FEEDING THE HINDGUT]

Suggested title:

Feed the Horse — Feed the Microbiome

Create a simple flow graphic:

FORAGE

⬇

FIBRE REACHES THE HINDGUT

⬇

MICROBES FERMENT FIBRE

⬇

USEFUL FERMENTATION PRODUCTS ARE PRODUCED

⬇

THE HORSE USES THESE AS AN ENERGY SOURCE

Alongside it:

Help Maintain Stability

✓ Plenty of appropriate fibre
✓ Consistent feeding
✓ Gradual dietary changes
✓ Adequate water
✓ Appropriate concentrate feeding

Things That Can Disrupt the Balance

⚠ Sudden dietary change
⚠ Rapid introduction to rich grazing
⚠ Inappropriate high-starch feeding
⚠ Major management changes

Bottom message:

A healthy hindgut depends on what we feed the microorganisms living within it.

Include:

JCG Health Hub | JCG Supplements | jcgsupplements.com

Footer:

General educational information. Horses with persistent digestive problems should be assessed by a veterinary surgeon.

Signs That Digestive Health May Not Be Optimal

Digestive problems do not always produce dramatic symptoms.

Things owners may notice include:

changes in droppings;
loose or inconsistent droppings;
reduced appetite;
difficulty maintaining weight;
recurrent mild abdominal discomfort;
behavioural changes around feeding;
poor condition;
reduced performance;
increased sensitivity around the abdomen;
changes associated with travelling or competition.

However, these signs are not specific to digestive disease and can have many different causes.

Persistent or unexplained changes deserve investigation rather than simply adding a digestive supplement.

🚨 When Should I Call My Vet?

Contact your veterinary surgeon promptly if your horse shows signs of possible colic, including:

repeated rolling;
persistent pawing;
looking at or kicking at the abdomen;
repeated lying down and getting up;
sweating without an obvious reason;
significant abdominal discomfort;
markedly reduced or absent droppings;
refusing food;
significant abdominal distension.

You should also seek veterinary advice for persistent diarrhoea, unexplained weight loss, recurrent digestive problems or a significant ongoing change in appetite or droppings.

Digestive supplements should never delay veterinary investigation where a horse may be unwell.

Supporting Digestive Health Through Nutrition

Good digestive health starts with management.

Before considering supplementation, look at the whole picture:

Is the horse receiving enough appropriate forage?

Are there long periods without forage?

Is clean water always available?

Are concentrate meals larger than necessary?

Have there been recent changes in grazing or feed?

Has turnout, travelling or workload changed?

Once these foundations are addressed, targeted nutritional support may have a useful role.

🌿 FreeStep Nutritional Support for Digestive Health

Good management comes first. Targeted nutritional support can then help support normal digestive function.

FreeStep has products designed specifically for different aspects of equine digestive health.

⭐ GG GastroFree

Targeted nutritional support for gastric health.

GG GastroFree is particularly relevant where owners are looking to provide nutritional support for the stomach and normal gastric environment.

It may be considered alongside appropriate forage and management strategies in horses where gastric health is a particular concern.

Best suited to:
Horses requiring additional nutritional support for gastric health.

→ View GG GastroFree

⭐ GGM GastroFree

Broader nutritional support for gastric and digestive health.

GGM GastroFree can be considered where nutritional support is wanted as part of a wider digestive-management programme.

Best suited to:
Horses where owners want broader digestive support alongside good feeding and management.

→ View GGM GastroFree

Which GastroFree product is right for my horse?

The most appropriate product depends on what aspect of digestive health you are trying to support.

Rather than simply choosing a general digestive supplement, use the FreeStep Product Selection Guide to compare the available nutritional support and identify the product most relevant to your horse.

→ Use the FreeStep Product Selection Guide

Important: Nutritional supplements do not diagnose, prevent or treat gastrointestinal disease. They can provide nutritional support as part of an appropriate feeding and management programme. Seek veterinary advice where disease is suspected.

A Simple Daily Digestive Health Check

Digestive management does not need to be complicated.

Every day, ask yourself:

FORAGE
Has my horse had appropriate access to forage?

WATER
Is fresh drinking water readily available?

APPETITE
Is my horse eating normally?

DROPPINGS
Are the amount and consistency normal for this horse?

BEHAVIOUR
Is my horse comfortable and behaving normally?

CHANGE
Has anything changed recently — feed, grazing, turnout, workload, travel or routine?

Knowing what is normal for your own horse makes changes much easier to recognise.

[GRAPHIC 3 — THE DAILY DIGESTIVE HEALTH CHECK]

This should be designed specifically as a printable stable/tack-room reference sheet.

Title:

The Daily Digestive Health Check

Six things worth checking every day

Use six large illustrated sections:

🌿 FORAGE
Appropriate forage available?

💧 WATER
Fresh water available and being consumed?

🥕 APPETITE
Eating normally?

💩 DROPPINGS
Normal amount and consistency?

🐴 BEHAVIOUR
Comfortable and behaving normally?

🔄 CHANGE
Any recent change in feed, grazing, turnout, travel or workload?

Then a clearly separated warning box:

🚨 KNOW WHAT IS NORMAL FOR YOUR HORSE

Sudden changes in appetite, droppings or behaviour can be important.

Signs of abdominal pain or suspected colic → CONTACT YOUR VET

Footer:

JCG Health Hub
Practical equine health information for horse owners

JCG Supplements | jcgsupplements.com

This guide provides general educational information and is not a substitute for veterinary diagnosis or treatment.

This graphic should deliberately contain enough context to remain useful and identifiable if printed, downloaded, shared on social media or separated from the webpage.

Digestive Health Is About the Whole Horse

There is rarely one single ingredient, feed or management technique responsible for digestive health.

Instead, think about the horse's entire daily routine:

What does the horse eat?

How frequently does it eat?

How much fibre does it receive?

How much time does it spend without forage?

Does it drink adequately?

How much does it move?

Has anything recently changed?

Is there an underlying veterinary problem?

Small improvements across several of these areas can often be more valuable than focusing on one element alone.

Related JCG Health Hub Pages

For more detailed information, see:

Gastric Ulcers / Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome (EGUS)
Hindgut Health
Diarrhoea
Colic
Maintaining a Healthy Weight
EMS
Laminitis

These pages look at individual conditions and management issues in considerably more detail.

Remember

A horse's digestive system evolved around fibre, frequent feeding and movement.

The foundations of digestive health remain remarkably simple:

🌿 Fibre

💧 Water

🔄 Gradual change

🐴 Movement

👀 Know what is normal

And when something does not look right, investigate the cause rather than assuming it is simply a feeding problem.

JCG Health Hub

Helping horse owners make informed decisions about equine health, nutrition and management.

The information on this page is intended for general educational purposes and does not replace advice, diagnosis or treatment from your veterinary surgeon.

Last reviewed: August 2026
Review periodically as veterinary and nutritional evidence develops.