[All About Hope]

I never give more than four peppermints but they always beg for more. Horses are pretty big so I guess it'd take a lot of them to make them sick.

I think. Any advice?

EDIT: I forgot to mention that they only get peppermints once every other week, which is when I go for lessons. Sometimes they don't even get any because sometimes I don't have any. I need to know how many they could have in one sitting.

I give the peppermints when grooming usually.

I probably should've mentioned that.

 

[AragoASB]

ONE peppermint. Any more lead to mouthyness/biteyness/tooth decay. I tought my stallion to nod Yes Do you want a peppermint? Yes. Yes.

 

[All About Hope]

That's cute

 

[Avna]

Ditch the peppermints, feed bits of carrot or apple. They will be just as happy with those.

 

[carshon]

We have a mare whose prior owner fed peppermint candies and other hard candies. At her first dental visit at our home she had lots of tooth decay and a cavity. The dentist stated hard candies are a NO NO for horses.

 

[loosie]

No peppermints. No sugar cubes. No lollies. No 'treat bars' or 'cookies'. If you want to 'treat' your horse, use healthy options, not crap. If your horse is IR or such, even tiny amounts can be a problem.

I have to disagree thoroughly with Argos reasons tho - regardless whether you feed only one or 100, it is NOT the treat or amount that can cause a horse to become 'mouthy', biting etc. That happens because you are rewarding the horse for that behaviour - pay attention to what you're rewarding and dont reinforce undesirable behaviours.

 

[PoptartShop]

I feed my horse those little bite-size treats from Buckeye.
They're peppermint flavored. She's not mouthy, but I don't give them to her every day either. I prefer feeding her those over actual peppermints. Some treats are unhealthy & should be fed occasionally only.

 

[lb27312]

I feed peppermints! I didn't know they caused teeth issues! So far I haven't had trouble knock on wood! If I go to a restaurant I always grab 3! They love them. Once I start crinkling the wrapper I have .01 seconds for that candy to be out, heaven forbid if I have an issue opening it.. lol

I honestly can't IMAGINE not treating my horse after a great ride and I know a good pat and scratch is a treat but they get that all the time. But that's just me...

I also have some horse treats that are peppermint flavored but they seem to like the actual candies..

 

[Vaquera]

One lol but I also don’t believe in treats. If you want to feed treats often I suggest alfalfa pellets. They can be fed in higher quantities than, say, fruit or carrots

 

[LilyandPistol]

I would not really recommend anything with a lot of sugar (fruits like apples and pears included, but artificial sugars like sugar cubes and peppermint are worse) if your horse’s weight or hooves are sort of sensitive to sugars. I definitely wouldn’t be giving 4 peppermint a day to one horse, personally. Peppermint are a very occasional treat for mine. More often I will give training treats, which are very small but they enjoy them. Sometimes I use those in moderation for actual training and sometimes it’s just for a snack. I also give carrots sometimes as I don’t think they have as much sugar as fruits and the horses still love them. I like baby carrots because I don’t have to break them up or wait for them to bite off part so they don’t choke.
the mouthiness has nothing to do with how many treats you give and has everything to do with how you give them.

 

[All About Hope]

I would not really recommend anything with a lot of sugar (fruits like apples and pears included, but artificial sugars like sugar cubes and peppermint are worse) if your horse’s weight or hooves are sort of sensitive to sugars. I definitely wouldn’t be giving 4 peppermint a day to one horse, personally. Peppermint are a very occasional treat for mine. More often I will give training treats, which are very small but they enjoy them. Sometimes I use those in moderation for actual training and sometimes it’s just for a snack. I also give carrots sometimes as I don’t think they have as much sugar as fruits and the horses still love them. I like baby carrots because I don’t have to break them up or wait for them to bite off part so they don’t choke.
the mouthiness has nothing to do with how many treats you give and has everything to do with how you give them.

They only get four once every other week because they're lesson horses at a barn I go to.

 

[QtrBel]

Cavities from pieces of the hard candy getting stuck would be more of a worry. I'll give the Bob's soft mints that melt away quickly. At 20 calories each not a problem. Average caloric need for typical horse is 20,000 calories. That is .1 percent of the that 20k. Not enough to cause any kind of spike.

Veg that is high in fiber to go along with the sugar if that worries you but small and we are talking in the overall scheme of things miniscule if the owner is on top of diet are not an issue.

My $ .02

 

[Avna]

If you really enjoy feeding treats, make the horse do something to earn it. Back up a step on command, do a stretch, touch a target, anything. Treats are rewards for responding to cues. Without this, you can easily make a nippy monster out of a horse.

 

[walkinthewalk]

What @Avna said, except no peppermint hard candies. I cut up Manna Pro treats as, even those are too big. I also give them soda crackers.

 

[All About Hope]

If you really enjoy feeding treats, make the horse do something to earn it. Back up a step on command, do a stretch, touch a target, anything. Treats are rewards for responding to cues. Without this, you can easily make a nippy monster out of a horse.

I was struggling with making Samson back up at first and when he did it I gave him a treat. He was much better at it after that.

 

[AragoASB]

No peppermints. No sugar cubes. No lollies. No 'treat bars' or 'cookies'. If you want to 'treat' your horse, use healthy options, not crap. If your horse is IR or such, even tiny amounts can be a problem.

I have to disagree thoroughly with Argos reasons tho - regardless whether you feed only one or 100, it is NOT the treat or amount that can cause a horse to become 'mouthy', biting etc. That happens because you are rewarding the horse for that behaviour - pay attention to what you're rewarding and dont reinforce undesirable behaviours.

Stallion was not mouthy. Do you want a peppermint? Nods yes. One peppermint, thats it. He was rewarded for nodding head yes behavior and then you drop it in his feeder. I SURE did not want the black stallion to take up biting. Lots of Arabian and Saddlebred people teach their horses to look big eyed, up eared and beautiful for the judge by rattling cellephane wrappers in their pocket. I think feeding peppermint after peppermint must surely lead to tooth decay. I feed my gelding I have now on carrot pieces because he has no interest in peppermints. He has to take the carrot piece gently with his lips, not bite with his teeth. Another thing about him, carrots have to be cut up in bitesize pieces or he takes the whole carrot and sticks it out of his mouth like a cigar. Maybe I should train him - Do you want a cigar?

 

[AJ Yammie]

I agree healthy treats are better but every now and then I might give him a tiny bit of liquorice or a piece of a lolly snake. I always have pellets or carrot in my pocket or bum bag.

 

[AbbySmith]

I just feed them dog food! Lol!

 

[AJ Yammie]

My horses love dog food but I’m quite sure it’s not too good for them. The only time that had it was when we left the gate open and the horses got in. I’m quite sure abattoirs won’t accept horses or cows that have eaten dog food

 

[AragoASB]

Why? The animals become dog food. I know they won't accept horses and animals that have been euthanized with drugs.

There is a term that cowboys have traditionally used to describe horses that consume human food- Pie Eater. This refers to a horse that has developed the habit of breaking out of the remuda at night and getting into the chuck wagon. My mare Tamar was a pie eater. At the time she lived loose in the yard. One day I had baked an apple pie and set it on the windowsill to cool. When I came back it was gone. The pan was lying on the ground below. Later, she started raiding the garbage cans at night.