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Keeping dressage horses focused: nutrition and feeding strategies that work

In this guide, Dr Marga Mas, MRCVS, D&H Head of Veterinary, Equine Health & Performance, shares practical advice on how to balance energy intake to support focus, stamina and condition in dressage horses.

A great part of dressage training involves working towards movements that are measured, collected and intentional. Having a horse that remains focused on the next move, but with enough stamina to sustain muscle contraction for a period of time can be a great asset. This becomes even more relevant when training a young or excitable horse and is particularly compounded when there is a need to supply enough energy for both performance and condition. In this article, we explore how the right balance of energy in your horse’s feed can support your performance and condition goals and help you keep your horse cool and calm.

Balanced energy sources

When it comes to choosing energy sources that will sustain the dressage horse in training without causing them to be sharp or excitable, the key aspects to consider include:

  • Reducing cereal grains as a source of energy
  • Feed timing at home and during competition: optimising energy availability when required
  • Regular conditioning work to support topline and metabolic adaptation to training
  • Maintaining adequate dental health, reviewing bridle, bit and saddle fitting, assessing overall health and comfort

Research suggests that a high-starch diet significantly increases the likelihood of a horse being more reactive and prone to stress, than when fed a high-fibre diet (Bulmer et al. 2015). With forage as the foundation of the diet and supplemented by other fibre sources included in bucket feed, it is possible to both meet the horse’s recommended daily fibre intake (1.5% of their body weight in daily forage dry matter) whilst simultaneously meeting the energy requirements to support work and condition and maintain a calm temperament. For a fibre-rich performance feed, look for ingredients such as super fibres such as alfalfa, sugar beet pulp, oat husks, oat hulls.

These fibres yield energy in the form of volatile fatty acids once they are fermented by the horse’s hindgut microbes. Not only do these fibres cause a minimal spike in blood glucose and insulin levels, but they help create a balanced environment for the gut microbiome and supply a steady source of energy. Offering a variety of fibre sources also helps with providing sufficient foraging opportunities throughout the day, which has proven to be as important as meeting daily forage intake requirements when it comes to supporting digestive health and reducing the risk of gastric ulcers (Lensing and Barton, 2025). This is important to consider especially for horses that might have their pasture turnout restricted for a variety of reasons (weight loss, lack of paddock access, colder months, etc). Providing access to forage or a high-fibre feed at least every 4-6 hours helps keep the horse’s gastrointestinal transit healthy and regular and supports calm, settled behaviour.

Aside from fibre sources, vegetable fats and oils are also included in equine performance feeds as an alternative to sources of non-structural carbohydrates (starch and sugar) such as cereal grains. Fats and oils are digested and absorbed as fatty acids, similar to those produced after fibre digestion, and these fatty acids can be used to fuel muscle contraction during a dressage test. As the horse becomes fitter, the muscle can sustain steady effort for a longer period of time using only fatty acids from slow-release energy sources, sparing the use of energy reserves in the horse’s muscles and liver. These are known as glycogen, a source of fast-release energy which the horse can tap into to fuel quick muscle contraction during fast-paced efforts such as extended trot and canter, pirouettes or tempi changes.

Targeted energy supply

Equine nutritional research published in recent years suggests that combined starch and sugar intake should be limited to 1 gram per kg of body weight per feed, partly due to the horse having a limited digestive capacity for starch in the small intestine. By prioritising fibre and oils in the diet, it is possible to meet the daily energy needs of a dressage horse in training and competition, and still provide enough support condition and topline development, whilst remaining under the threshold for starch and sugar intake.

For horses that are particularly laid back, and those that fatigue a bit more easily or that are on very hard work, a timed and targeted supply of starch sources can certainly help with replenishing glycogen stores ready for effort. The key is to offer a balanced feed such as D&H Elite Sport Muesli which has a controlled starch level and is high in fibre and oils, which will help slow down the release of glucose into the horse’s bloodstream. Offered 2-3 hours prior to exercising, the energy from the feed will be stored in the horse’s muscles and will be ready to be utilised without causing unwanted weight gain or excitability. To support a healthy stomach environment and digestive process, horses should have access to fibre sources especially before exercise, and chaffs containing alfalfa, such as D&H Alfalfa and D&H Fibre Fusion are particularly useful in stimulating the production of saliva and achieving a buffering effect in the stomach.

For fizzy horses as well as those prone to digestive sensitivities, choosing a cereal grain-free formula that is low in starch and sugar but rich in fibre and quality oils offers a solution for performance-level energy and nutrition. A low-starch, fibre-rich feed with a significant contribution of quality oils can also help with improving condition whilst supporting metabolic health, and so it can be a good option for horses requiring a diet low in starch and sugar to promote an adequate insulin response.

Finally, for good-doers that maintain a good body condition on a forage-based diet, a perfect option is to combine a quality chaff or chaff blend such as D&H Alfalfa or D&H Fibergy, for a lower calorie option with a performance balancer such as D&H Ultimate Balancer. Horses in moderate to hard work have superior requirements for key amino acids, vitamins and trace elements which are not supplied abundantly enough in forage, so even for good-doers, a calorie-restricted diet should not mean nutrient restriction.

Performance-level nutrient supply

An appropriate, balanced diet and a training programme that matches the horse’s fitness all contribute to horses enjoying their work. Taking a holistic approach to ensuring the horse’s diet is balanced and sufficient is the first step – even the addition of a calming supplement is unlikely to make any substantial impact if the baseline diet is lacking and/or unbalanced, which may cause the horse to be anxious, on edge, and naturally primed to look for nutrients and be less focused. Meeting daily requirements for macro and micronutrients is also necessary to support the horse’s biology and a consistent behaviour. Some key nutrients to support performance in dressage horses include:

  • Quality protein: horses in moderate to hard work need 10-30% more dietary protein than those at rest or in light work.
  • Key essential amino acids: including lysine (45-52 g per day for a 500-kg horse in moderate to hard work to support adequate muscle mass turnover), methionine and threonine.
  • Vitamin E (2500-3000 mg per day for a 500-kg horse) to support a normal neuromuscular function and as the major antioxidant molecule in the body.
  • Macro minerals (calcium, phosphorus, selenium, magnesium, copper, zinc) and electrolytes (sodium, potassium, chloride) to support immunity, recovery and hydration, as well as many other physiological processes.

Most vitamins and minerals have recommended daily intake levels that the horse should get from their diet, and performance dressage horses often have higher requirements than those at rest or in light work. As such, adequate levels of these vitamins and minerals are going to promote overall health and, by extension, a good attitude towards training unless there is an underlying health or performance issue. Recent research has highlighted the crucial role of the equine gut microbiome in producing substances that support overall health but also specifically substances that modulate the neuroendocrine system, such as serotonin and group-B vitamins. A thriving, diverse community of hindgut microbes which will produce these beneficial compounds and promote a healthy behaviour. This is why most D&H feeds incorporate prebiotics (FOS, MOS and other fibres) and probiotic yeast for their proven benefits in supporting the gut microbial community.

Conclusion

Diet can play a pivotal role in supporting the horse’s energy levels, temperament and focus to reach the results that every rider wants. Balanced, well-formulated performance feeds that blend a variety of energy sources and deliver quality nutrition can make a great difference by helping the horse stay healthy, happy and cool in every situation.

References

Bulmer L. et al. (2015) ‘The effects of a high-starch or high-fibre diet on equine reactivity and handling behaviour’. Applied Animal Behaviour Science No. 165, pp. 95-102.

Lensing R., Barton A.K. (2025) ‘Update on diagnosis, nonpharmacological treatment and prevention of equine gastric ulcer syndrome (EGUS)’. Equine Veterinary Education No. 38, pp. 206-219.