Lindsay Burer, MS - Equine Nutrition Consultant

03/18/2026

Got to catch up with some (making me feel) old friends today! Holy moly time sure does fly!! 🥰🥰🥰

now >> 2017

03/17/2026

If over 75% of a horse’s diet is comprised of forage, and less than 25% from a concentrate, a change in forage quality can have a substantially larger impact on body condition than feed.

Three things you can look for without having access to a forage analysis:

- free of dust/mold spores
- fresh smell (we all know that rancid hay smell, yuck!)
- soft and pliable. You do not want to be able to bend your hay and have it “crack”.

And though we all love a beautiful green bale of hay, color isn’t always a great indicator of forage quality.

For a detailed analysis of your forage, Equi-Analytical is a great resource 😊

03/17/2026

I’ve gotta figure out how to sneak some green into my blue wardrobe today 😋

Happy St. Patty’s Day!

03/16/2026

Imagine going 8+ hours in a day without food...how would you feel?

A study by the University of Minnesota found horses consume their entire hay meal in less than 3.5 hours. Say you feed at 6:00AM and 6:00PM, the horse will spend 3.5 hours eating, which leaves 8.5 hours of time on an empty stomach.

This situation creates a highly acidic environment in the stomach for extended periods of time which can predispose the horse to ulcers, anxiety, and behavioral issues.

So what can you do instead?

If you can only feed a certain amount of hay at each feeding (whether due to a specific condition, weight management, boarding, etc), offer it in a small hole, slow-feed hay net to extend your horse’s eating time and lessen the amount of time spent on an empty stomach.

Feed a gastric buffer supplement (like Bluebonnet Gastro pHix) that is designed to neutralize an overly acidic stomach. This is especially helpful for horses that spend periods of time each day on an empty stomach and therefore have less saliva production acting as a natural buffer.

Share your tips and tricks below!

03/15/2026

If the tables were turned 🤣

03/14/2026

Your horse’s grain has one primary function:
To provide the essential nutrients required to support a healthy life.

But with so many different options...finding the right feed to meet all of our horse’s essential needs, that is also from a manufacturer utilizing quality ingredients, sources, & safety standards, can be tough.

Which is why it’s SO important to look at more than just protein, fat, fiber, starch and sugar levels when making a feed selection!

Here’s some other things we recommend considering:

- Are the products formulated by a qualified nutritionist?
- Is it a least cost or lock formula?
- Is the manufacturing facility horse safe, ionophore free?

While some feeds may have similar protein, fat, fiber, and sugar levels - it’s safe to say not all feeds are created equal.

Not sure what feed is best for your horse? Schedule a no-cost nutrition consult at https://bluebonnetfeeds.com/pages/consults

03/13/2026

I couldn’t decide between or so I’m choosing both 😜

This gorgeous guy has been a Bluebonnet boy since day 1!

Corrival Ranch LLC

03/13/2026

Texas horse trainers! Amateur and professional! 👇🏼👇🏼

Attention professional trainers:

We're taking applications for the 2026 Bluebonnet Rescue Horse Training Challenge, and we've started working on hrose assignments. So if you have thought about participating, get those applications in!

For those not familiar with the Training Challenge, it is an event where professional trainers and amateur horse lovers work with a Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society horse for 5 months and then come together to show off what the horse knows and help them find an adopter.

We offer $12,000 in cash and prizes (split between four divisions) plus another $12,000 in cash and prizes for our Elite Professionals (those who have served as clinicians in previous Bluebonnet Horse Expos or have placed in the top 3 in the pro division in previous Challenges).

This year the competition is October 3 during the Bluebonnet Horse Expo in Taylor, Texas.

Rules and application available at http://www.bluebonnethorseexpo.com/blog/challenge

Why should professionals participate? Professional trainers who compete get promoted on our website, social media accounts, and at the event. When we need to send a horse to a professional trainer outside the Challenge where we pay the trainer, we give preference to previous Challenge competitors. We also recommend professional trainers when an adopter needs a trainer. Many Challenge trainers have seen a boost in their business, have formed new business relationships, and have made friends by being part of the Challenge.

This is your year - come be part of the Challenge. Change a horse's life, change an adopter's life, and change your own life - all for the better.

03/13/2026

“Correlation does not equal causation.”

If you’ve ever been through grad school, you’ve probably heard that phrase so many times you could say it in your sleep. It simply means that just because two things happen at the same time doesn’t mean one caused the other.

A classic example is ice cream sales and sunburns. Both go up in the summer, but ice cream obviously doesn’t cause sunburn. The real reason is a third factor- people spending more time in the sun.

We see the same thing in horse nutrition all the time. For example, someone might say, “My horse developed ulcers after I started feeding X feed, so X must cause ulcers.” But ulcers can be influenced by many things, like stress, travel, workload, meal timing, time without forage, and more. The timing might line up, but that doesn’t mean the feed caused the ulcers.

I share this as a reminder not to jump to conclusions when claims or accusations are made without solid evidence (and unfortunately, not all published research is great research either 😬). When something matters to you, it’s always worth asking questions and looking a little deeper before assuming cause and effect.

03/12/2026

Is your horse’s diet truly balanced? 🐴

Body weight is only one indicator.
A horse can maintain condition and still fall short in key nutrients.

Balanced nutrition includes:

• Calories appropriate for age and workload
• Steady, appropriate body condition
• Complete vitamin and trace mineral support
• Consistent intake of the intended ration

Hay often does not supply everything a horse requires daily.
And fortified feeds only deliver full nutrient levels when fed at the recommended rate.

If you’re unsure whether your program is meeting requirements, we’re here to help.

Our nutrition team offers complimentary consultations to review forage, intake, workload, and body condition to help identify potential gaps.

Start here:
https://bit.ly/bluebonnet-consult

Feeding isn’t only about how much goes in the bucket.
It’s about whether the diet is complete. 💙

03/12/2026

Here’s your reminder! 4pm CST

Ever wondered what “low starch” really means?

Join Dr. Jyme - Feed Room Chemist, at EquiSUMMIT 's virtual education event for FREE on March 11–12 for “The Low Down on Low Starch”.

She’ll break down what low-starch feeding means for horse health, performance, and smarter nutrition decisions - for owners, retailers, and professionals alike.

Be sure to stop by the Bluebonnet virtual booth to explore more tools and resources.

🎟 Register now 👉 https://bit.ly/DrJyme-EquiSUMMIT

03/12/2026

Did you know?

In a natural environment, horses will typically eat about 18 hours per day. (Give +/- depending on which article you’re reading 😉)

While “meal feeding” is the common practice among horse owners, it’s important to take into consideration the amount of time between meals when there is no access to long stem forage.

At 6 hours, reddening of the stomach lining can occur, and at 18 hours, bleeding lesions (aka ulcers).

It’s recommended that horses never go more than 4 hours without long stem forage passing through the gut. In the situation where free choice access isn’t a viable option, try utilizing slow feed hay nets to help slow down consumption and drag out the time between feedings.