How to Choose Healthy Horse Treats

Just like people, horses like to be treated. To horses and horse owners, treats usually mean some tasty food item that doesn’t necessarily confer significant nutritional benefit. Here, we touch on foods that are safe to give, how to safely give treats, and options for other positive reinforcements if your horse has dietary restrictions.

Why Do We Give Treats?

Treats are a great way to reward behaviors that are desirable, which is called positive reinforcement. People and animals both respond much better and learn faster when rewarded, rather than punished. A horse has a very short-term memory. Giving a treat right after the desirable behavior will provide the strongest association between the two to result in what is called a “learned behavior.” 

Learning, by definition, happens in any creature in increments. Therefore, a treat should be given as encouragement if a horse tries and gets part of the desired task correctly. For example, if the goal is to have a young horse stand at the mounting block quietly while the rider mounts, a treat should be given when the horse first learns to approach the block. Then treat again when it can stand to the side, then again when the rider can place their foot in the stirrup without the horse moving. Repeat this until the complete behavior is learned. Sometimes, lavish praise should be used when training instead of always relying on treats as a reward. This will prevent a horse from expecting a treat after every training session and possible bad behavior when a treat is not forthcoming.

Finally, giving a horse a treat is fun for the caretaker as well. The giving and receiving of treats is a bonding experience that will enhance the emotional connection and feeling of well-being in both parties.

What Treats Are Tasty for Horses?

What is your favorite food? When you brought it to mind, you probably didn’t just think about the taste; you probably also focused on things like smell and texture. Horses are the same as humans, dogs, and cats: The smell of something helps determine if it is worth tasting.1