eating tree bark

[cattletom]

i have one horse and 2 donkeys one of which is about to foal... they are(or i believe it is them) eatng the bark of certain trees that are in the woods that is part of there pasture. is this normal or are they hungrier than i think... they get about 2 coffee cans full of 10% horse and cattle grain. they get hay every day and there grass in there pasture is starting to grow. i see them eating the leaves on the trees and i assume they are eating the bark. i mean the bark is totally stripped /clean as a whistle. im not sure what type od tree it is but it is only certain ones. i just want to make sure i am feeding enough. they get 2 coffee cans apiece full. tommy

 

[D.R. Cattle]

Sometimes they just like to pester everything in sight, but it sounds like they are asking you for a salt block. Salt blocks are super cheap. Pick one up and put it out, watch em lick it to death.

 

[Running Arrow Bill]

Sometimes they just like to pester everything in sight, but it sounds like they are asking you for a salt block. Salt blocks are super cheap. Pick one up and put it out, watch em lick it to death.

Good advice from D.R. Also, make sure they have a good Mineral Tub or Block available 24/7.

Bill

 

[Linda]

Sometimes a horse isn't getting enough roughage in their diet and will be more prone to chewing bark/wood. Give them free choice hay, or at least enough hay to keep them eating for a minimum of a couple of hours. Early spring grasses don't have much in the way of roughage.

I would be more inclined to feed increased amounts of hay and cut out the other feed. They probably need to spend more time chewing.

Make sure the trees they're feasting on aren't poisonous. Sometimes livestock can tolerate small amounts of substances that in larger quantities are lethal. And, sometimes very small amounts of certain plants are lethal. Several of the online ag university sites have listings of plants poisonous to livestock.

A bored animal will also be more inclined to chew, and the habit can become a permanent one.

As the other posters recommended, make sure your animals have a good mineral/salt mix available to them.