What’s that in your fridge, Human?

We were excited to read recently about a British rescue horse named Orchid who celebrated her 49th birthday on New Year’s Day. Orchid, who is a Thoroughbred x Arabian, is believed to be the oldest horse in Great Britain. What an accomplishment!

We were also interested to read about how Orchid celebrated–naturally surrounded by admirers at the rescue where she now enjoys a relaxed retirement, but also with her favorite treat: cabbages. In fact, Orchid is said to eat several cabbages a week.

Besides the usual apples and carrots, there might be a few other items in your fridge that could appeal to horses, unexpectedly. 

• Grapes. We’ve only tried the seedless variety, but our horses love the sweetness and we love their small size
• Pumpkin. One excellent way to get rid of a pumpkin after Halloween is to roast it and cut into pieces for your horse (just make sure there’s no mold or soft spots on it first). Not all horses eat it, but those who do even seem to like the seeds.
• Pears. Ripe pears are a popular treat for horses in Japan, and are intriguing for those on this side of the Pacific too. You may need to break the skin to help the horse taste the juice upon first introduction; we found the waxy skin tricked ours out of biting into it without some encouragement.