Part of the Schneider Saddlery Equine Network — Shop sstack.com
Free Tool — No Account Required

Build Your Horse's Personalized Feeding Plan

Backed by equine expertise. Tailored to your horse's needs. Build a custom plan in under 2 minutes — from Schneider Saddlery, trusted by horse owners since 1948.

Start My Plan →
NRC 2007
Science-Based
10+
Health Conditions
2 min
To Complete
✓ Based on NRC Equine Nutrition Standards
✓ Trusted by Equestrians Since 1948
✓ Powered by Schneider Saddlery (Est. 1948)

Build Your Horse's Personalized Feeding Plan

Answer a few questions about your horse and we'll build a custom daily nutrition plan, cost estimate, and product recommendations.

1 Horse Info
2 Goal & Activity
3 Health
4 Feed Type

Horse Information

Tell us about the horse. These basics drive the nutrition calculations.

Goal & Activity Level

Tell us what you want the plan to achieve and your horse's current workload. This drives calorie and forage targets.

💡
Pro tip: Be honest about work level. Overestimating leads to weight gain and health issues. A horse worked 3x/week at walk-trot-canter for 30 minutes is "Light Work." Most lesson horses are "Moderate Work."

Health Conditions

Select any that apply. This adjusts the feeding plan and adds supplement recommendations.

⚠️
Important: This calculator provides general nutrition guidance. Always consult your veterinarian for horses with diagnosed medical conditions.

Feed Preferences

Tell us what forage and concentrate you're currently using (or plan to use).

💡
Not sure? "Mixed Hay" and "Commercial Pelleted Feed" are the most common combination and a great default. Browse supplements, hay nets, and feeders at Schneiders →

Your Horse's Daily Feed Plan

Summary details here

Total Daily Feed
0
lbs / day
Total Forage
0
pasture + hay lbs / day
Concentrate
0
lbs / day
Daily Feed Breakdown
Feed Amount % of Diet Feeding Notes
📈 Daily Nutrition Requirements
Protein
10% CP
Calcium
20g
Phosphorus
14g
Vitamin A
15,000 IU
Vitamin E
500 IU
Selenium
1mg
Your Recommended Plan
💊 Supplement Recommendations
Estimated Feed Cost
Daily Cost
$0.00
hay + concentrate (pasture not included)
Monthly Estimate
$0
30-day average

💡
Pasture costs are not included (not purchased feed). Actual prices vary by dealer, quantity, and hay quality. Schneiders does not sell commercial feed or hay — but stocking up on supplements, hay nets, and feeders at Schneiders can keep your total feed spend in check.
📋
Disclaimer: This calculator provides general nutrition guidance based on NRC (2007) equine nutrition standards. Individual horses vary. Always consult with your veterinarian or equine nutritionist for horses with specific health conditions, and have your hay tested for accurate nutritional analysis.

Shop Horse Care at Schneiders

Supplements, hay nets, feeders, grooming, and more. Trusted since 1948.

Shop Horse Care →

How the Calculator Works

Built on the same science veterinary nutritionists use.

⚖️

NRC-Based Energy Math

We start from the National Research Council's Nutrient Requirements of Horses (2007) to calculate daily digestible energy (Mcal/day) based on your horse's weight, age, workload, and health conditions. The same formulas board-certified equine nutritionists use.

🌿

Forage-First by % Body Weight

Hay is sized from body weight (1.5–3.0% BW depending on goal, workload, and conditions) and represents what you feed out, including typical waste. Concentrate only fills a calorie deficit if forage alone doesn't meet your horse's energy need.

💰

State-Level Cost Estimates

Daily and monthly feed cost projections use state-level retail anchors (hay belts, drought regions, import markets) and hay-type multipliers (alfalfa runs ~40% above grass hay). Pasture isn't costed — it's yours.

Learn More

Deep-dive guides from the Schneider Saddlery equine nutrition library.

How much should I feed my horse?

Body-weight percentages, real-world feeding amounts, and how to match forage to workload.

Read the guide →

Feeding easy keepers & metabolic horses

Low-NSC forage, ration balancers, and slow feeders — how to fuel without over-fueling.

Read the guide →

Hay quality & testing 101

Why a hay analysis is worth $25, what the numbers actually mean, and how to act on them.

Read the guide →

Frequently Asked Questions

The calculator uses NRC (2007) equine nutrition standards, which are the same formulas used by board-certified equine nutritionists. It provides a strong starting point, but individual horses can vary by 10-15%. For the most accurate plan, we recommend having your hay tested and working with your veterinarian for horses with health conditions.
Weighing is much more accurate. Hay flakes can vary from 3-8 lbs each depending on how the bale was made. Invest in a hanging scale or fish scale and weigh a few flakes from each bale to calibrate your eye. This one step improves feeding accuracy dramatically.
Never drop forage below 1% of body weight (10 lbs for a 1,000 lb horse). Instead, use low-NSC hay, soak hay to reduce sugars, use a slow feeder to extend eating time, and replace calorie-dense concentrates (grain mixes, sweet feed) with a low-NSC ration balancer. The calculator accounts for this when you select "Easy Keeper."
Recalculate whenever there's a significant change: seasonal shifts (horses need more calories in winter), changes in workload, new hay source, weight gain or loss, pregnancy/lactation stages, or health changes. At minimum, review the plan every 3-4 months.
Select "Pasture (good quality)" as forage type. Keep in mind that pasture quality varies enormously by season, region, and management. Spring grass can have very high sugar content (risky for metabolic horses). Most pastured horses still benefit from a ration balancer to fill nutritional gaps, and may need supplemental hay during winter or drought.
This tool is powered by Schneider Saddlery, a family-owned equine supply company trusted since 1948. We built this calculator as a free resource for equine professionals because we believe that horses define who we are. The formulas are based on the NRC's Nutrient Requirements of Horses (2007 edition).
Yes! Run the calculator for each horse individually, then use the "Email my plan" feature to get each plan sent to you. Many barn managers run this for all horses and keep the plans posted in the feed room. For bulk supplements, hay nets, and feeders, shop Schneiders.