Why is grazing beneficial? Why should I feed my horse on the ground instead of in a feeder or haynet?
If you watch your horse grazing, you will notice that there is a gripping and then a tearing motion. It is this side to side tearing motion that is vital to the health of the upper neck muscles and freedom of the poll. This motion does not occur with eating hay or grain. Without access to pasture, there can be tension and attrophy in the upper neck. In addition, pasture grasses have barbs that wear the teeth down naturally.
When a horse feeds with his head downward, as opposed to utilizing a raised feeder or haynet, there is a natural sliding movement of the lower jaw forward creating a space in the TMJ . When the horse feeds with his head up, there is tension that occurs in the temporal mandibular joint as this movement forward does not occur. In addition, this also affects the growth of the upper incisor teeth as they are not worn down properly and therefore in one way or another, the entire horse is affected.