# Silly question... do YOU cut apples?



## cebee (Apr 4, 2010)

My friend always told me that you should cut apples in half before you give them to your horse, since if they got a whole, round apple in their mouth they could choke. Ok, made sense to me. So I have always done that. But got to thinking that may be just one of those "old wives tales" and although
I do it, and it kind of lets him enjoy his treat a bit longer... is there any truth to it? Do YOU cut apples in half for your horses?


----------



## EvilHorseOfDoom (Jun 17, 2012)

I cut apples in half. I also break carrots in half. Brock tends to get excited and guzzle too fast so I never feed them unsupervised. I have seen a school horse choke trying to do a whole carrot at once and I had to pull it out, but not sure about apples.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

I chop them up to make them last longer. I've never heard of a horse choking on an apple, but I guess it could happen. Better safe than sorry I guess. Plus, if you cut it up, you can steal a piece for yourself


----------



## Jore (Dec 4, 2010)

I'm strange about my treats (usually apples or carrots, although sometimes I'll put a bit of molasses and sugar on a slice of apple for her). I like to use them as a reward for Indie if she's behaving.. I know people say that treats cause a pushy horse, but in the past few weeks, Indie has become much more respectful of me. Not because of the treats, but because I continue to correct her if she gets pushy. Treats are just there for when she shows improvement and I usually give her a bit of an apple for after I do her feet since I'm still treating them and it's nice that she stands still for me.

As for cutting them up, I usually cut them up into 1/8s so that they last longer. Lately, I've just been leaving 1/4 slice for after a ride and then I save the 1/8s for when she shows improvements in things on the ground. She doesn't seem to mind that it's only a little slice either.


----------



## Cacowgirl (Feb 19, 2011)

I chop up the big carrots, apples whole or half, corn cobs broken to small pieces, melon rind -cut up. I put treats in a feeder-never hand feed.


----------



## MHFoundation Quarters (Feb 23, 2011)

Mine don't get apples but they do get the occasional pear off the trees in my yard. I don't cut them, I toss them in the grass in the pasture and they make giant messes biting into them. I stopped hand feeding them long ago because having pear juice running from wrist to armpit isn't all that enjoyable. I've not had one try to get the whole thing in their mouth (but they are very large bartlett pears and it's likely not possible). I do help out the old man though, he has just a few teeth left and can't chew them anymore - I peel, core and run them through the food processor for him. Yep, he's slightly spoiled - he's put up with me for 30 years, he's earned it :wink:


----------



## WSArabians (Apr 14, 2008)

For the babies I do, or older horses that have never had them, but all my oldies just eat them whole, the piggies. LOL


----------



## Northernstar (Jul 23, 2011)

I _always _do! Better safe than sorry for choking, and I cut mine in fourths - given as an extra special treat, as they get lots of cut up carrots daily!


----------



## Tianimalz (Jan 6, 2009)

Sometimes, if I cut them up though it's usually because I'm going to ask for multiple behaviors (Indie has this current trick where she can "ask" for a treat by touching her chest with her muzzle), or I'm feeling stingy and want to make the apple last longer or split it between two horses. :lol: 

I suppose if the horse in question was likely to gulp their food, I'd be more careful, but neither of my mares have ever had that problem. They were taught from when they were very young to be respectful and slow when taking treats, so I guess it just translated into how they ate it as well.


----------



## kitten_Val (Apr 25, 2007)

I cut, but mostly because I usually give just half to each. With that being said it must be split for my paint (with smaller mouth), who simply can't (and won't) take the whole one (so she'll bite off little pieces :wink: ). My qh doesn't mind to suck in the whole one, then she just smashes it in a mouth, and then chew.


----------



## kitten_Val (Apr 25, 2007)

MHFoundation Quarters said:


> Mine don't get apples but they do get the occasional pear off the trees in my yard.


Both mine LOVE pears. We had a really good crop last year (2 or 3 buckets of asian pears noone in house eats, so they all went to horses), and they got 2-3 every day. This year we have nothing though...


----------



## Haileyyy (Mar 10, 2012)

I normally cut them up because giving one horse the whole apple and leaving everyone else without a treat isn't right haha.

When I was about 7 a woman that boarded with us yelled at me for feeding a whole (small) carrot to a horse. She told me that the horse would choke and proceeded to break it into about 15 pieces lol. I think that was a little excessive, but I can see how a horse could choke, so I do break or cut up treats, just not to that extreme.


----------



## MangoRoX87 (Oct 19, 2009)

I hold the apple and let them bite chunks off it
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

After learning of this I cut the seeds from apples and always cut carrots with a flat side. Apple seeds are mildly poisonous since they contain a cyanogenic compound called amygdalin​


----------



## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

Mine are all pretty polite and will take several bites of the apple from my hand instead of taking it all in one go, so no, I don't cut them up unless I'm splitting it between a few horses.


----------



## Jore (Dec 4, 2010)

Saddlebag said:


> After learning of this I cut the seeds from apples and always cut carrots with a flat side. Apple seeds are mildly poisonous since they contain a cyanogenic compound called amygdalin​


I've never heard of that before, but I always scoop the seeds out anyways when I slice them.


----------



## WSArabians (Apr 14, 2008)

Saddlebag said:


> After learning of this I cut the seeds from apples and always cut carrots with a flat side. Apple seeds are mildly poisonous since they contain a cyanogenic compound called amygdalin​


Huh. In all my years of apple feeding, I've never had one come.down with apple poisioning.


----------



## riccil0ve (Mar 28, 2009)

Apple seeds are poisonous to everything if you eat ten pounds of them. No creature that isn't allergic to apples will die from eating the seeds out of an apple or two. 

Ricci takes small, polite bites out of apples. I usually give her the first bite, and then let Gracie take a bite. My wee Gracie cannot get a purchase on the whole apple with her baby teeth, so hers have to be cut otherwise. I don't feed a lot of apples or carrots though because I seldom buy them, so it's a special treat provided to them, usually by the neighbors, lol.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## OutOfTheLoop (Apr 1, 2012)

I don't cut anything up, I give them apples whole, and hold the end of the carrot so they can bite off of it.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Dead Rabbit (Jul 14, 2012)

1/4 them here too.. not worrying about choking really. just so i give them a bite at a time. never knew apple seeds were poisonous.


----------



## verona1016 (Jul 3, 2011)

MangoRoX87 said:


> I hold the apple and let them bite chunks off it
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


I usually only bring apples to my horse as a special treat at shows, but that's how I feed them when I do!


----------



## ThursdayNext (Oct 18, 2011)

I keep a sack of apples on my tack trunk at this time of the year, and dish them up whenever I feel like it. My boy is missing some front teeth and had a hard time biting the apples up, so they either have to be cut (if I remember to bring a knife) or (more often) I hold onto it so he can gnaw chunks out of it. It's messy, but I just rinse off in his water bucket, and then he gets apple-flavored water too. 

Or, if I feel like watching a show, I toss an apple or two into his watering trough and let him bob for them. I usually take a bite out first myself so that he has an edge to grip.


----------



## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

Hmmmm, mine don't really eat apples or carrots as I always have a big bag of horse cookies in the feed freezer for treats. Tried to give one an apple core once, he turned up his nose at it.


----------



## HarleyWood (Oct 14, 2011)

well for my one horse we give him smaller apples and carrots or cut them he has choked before so we are careful with him but when he gets whole apples he will bite it then move it around and turn it so he can bite again to get it to get it crushed to eat it. but the other two eat whole. my QH can eat huge apples and carrots no problem.


----------



## FlyGap (Sep 25, 2011)

I toss whole old apples, pears, and watermelons over the fence, two eat the apples and watermelon and weird Rick only eats the pears, stupid horse DOESN'T LIKE APPLES or WATERMELON! I never hand feed.
They take bites off them. Personally I feel like a 1/2 apple is more dangerous as they CAN get that stuck in their mouths, MINE can't get a whole apple in there but I guess a larger horse could. 1/4 ones could be best IDK?


----------



## Misty500 (Oct 6, 2012)

My pony had cut up apples and got one stuck, it took about 20 minutes to pass down.


----------



## Miloismyboy (Aug 18, 2009)

apples, carrots, watermelon or pears... the way it works is this... a bite for me, a bite for you (I bite it off and hand it over because I really don't want horse slobber on what ever treat I'm sharing). Another bite for me, another bite for you and so on and so on. It's a great way for me to get a serving or two of fruits and veggies we all could use more of ;P saves me the trouble of cutting it up too..lol.


----------



## poppy1356 (Jan 18, 2012)

Mine won't eat an apple unless it's been cut up for her. Then she inspects for bruises or otherwise anything that would make this apple unappealing, including not being ripe enough, or too ripe. She will only eat the best of the best but then they must be cut up, she won't be bothered to take chunks off her food. 

Oh and she will only eat treats AFTER dinner. Yes she must finish her grain bucket first..... if you throw an apple or carrot in her bucket before it's empty she will spit it out and leave it until her bucked is empty and I mean empty, she has to lick it clean.

So she's spoiled but apparently learned the rule of no desert until after dinner lol.


----------



## EvilHorseOfDoom (Jun 17, 2012)

Oh gosh, Poppy - if she were a person I bet she'd only eat sandwiches that were cut in triangles and had the crusts off! And of course used real butter, not margerine...
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## poppy1356 (Jan 18, 2012)

EvilHorseOfDoom said:


> Oh gosh, Poppy - if she were a person I bet she'd only eat sandwiches that were cut in triangles and had the crusts off! And of course used real butter, not margerine...
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Lol she is insane sometimes. Seriously we had a whole bag of apples that had come off someones tree, so therefore no chemicals used to keep bugs off. She would not touch them, they had tiny little bruises and bug spots :?

Pets are like their owners right? Well I'm the pickiest eater I know, but I still eat cookies before dinner :lol:


----------



## HarleyWood (Oct 14, 2011)

most of the horses i got have never had treats so i had feed them to see if they like it and most willl eat them after a few times of trying and love them!


----------



## loveduffy (Dec 22, 2011)

I cut apples because they could choke on them


----------



## Zeke (Jun 27, 2010)

I've always cut into 1/8s if not smaller so I could spread out treat time or share the wealth with friends horses/more then one school horse. 

I worked with a retired Grand Prix jumper who'd obviously been around the block a few times in the treat department and gave him a whole apple from his owners tack shed once...he tried to take a bite but then sucked it out of my hand and tried to swallow it!! Luckily the BIG boy turned out just fine but it was unnerving watching him struggle at first.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Joidigm (May 8, 2012)

I don't cut my apples. I also don't give a horse a whole apple either. Some apples, like granny smiths, can cause excess gas. So usually, I take one or two apples and walk down the barn isle and allow horses to take a bite out of it. I will hold onto it, watching my fingers of course, and wait patiently for them to work a chunk off. Guarantees they can't bite off more than they can chew.

And for the greedy ones that like to try and take off half the apple? I make them wait till last so they bite off half of a half. :lol:


----------



## LadyDreamer (Jan 25, 2008)

It is the easiest way to share. When we had an ancient mare who had trouble chewing hard carrots, I would VERY finely chop them, almost minced for her.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## attackships (Jan 12, 2012)

i only usually give carrots, and i buy those monstrous cheap carrots in bulk. they are so thick sometimes i can barely snap them in half haha. im trying to be more careful of them because occasionally my horses will suck the whole thing up and have trouble chewing while im staring at them like 'are you OK?!'

i make sure to throw them on the ground and they take chunks out of them at a time rather than trying to chew the whole thing.


----------

