Horses and palm trees

[JadeFarms]

My horse always tries to eat the Queen palm fronds whenever she gets the chance. She has the proper amount of grass, hay and grains but really likes the fronds. Are they okay for her to eat?
I did post this on BYH but got no response.

 

[Weeg]

I honestly have no idea, but most of the time, they wont eat it, if they shouldn't. My mare eats maple leaves even though she has enough forage, I would think its probably okay, but may do more research.

 

[Percheron chick]

My horse always tries to eat the Queen palm fronds whenever she gets the chance. She has the proper amount of grass, hay and grains but really likes the fronds. Are they okay for her to eat?
I did post this on BYH but got no response.

Not going to kill her but there is an underlying reason for it and it very well can kill the palm tree
Boredom. Just like a horse chews wood when bored, she might be doing it for entertainment.
Pain. There might be a soothing element. (Ulcers)
Hunger. Provide enough hay to where she still has something to pick at hours later. You can offer her free choice hay but a high fiber hay will make her eat more than her fill looking to satisfy a need.
Nutritional deficiency. You do not mention salt and minerals. I'm not talking "mineral" salt blocks as those are deficient in any value as a mineral source. Something you provide loose on the side (purina 12:12, ADM Grostrong, Progressive Nutrition... A quality product with no more than 25% salt, a high Ca value (12%+) and 100,000 IU vit A as a bonus are the keys I look for. I won't pay for a mineral product that is 75% or more salt because the remaining percentage can't be properly balanced for a horse's needs. It will only satisfy their salt needs.
Grains. That can be a + or a - depending upon what and how much she eats. Circling back to ulcers and pain.

 

[Tabitha1995]

Not going to kill her but there is an underlying reason for it and it very well can kill the palm tree
Boredom. Just like a horse chews wood when bored, she might be doing it for entertainment.
Pain. There might be a soothing element. (Ulcers)
Hunger. Provide enough hay to where she still has something to pick at hours later. You can offer her free choice hay but a high fiber hay will make her eat more than her fill looking to satisfy a need.
Nutritional deficiency. You do not mention salt and minerals. I'm not talking "mineral" salt blocks as those are deficient in any value as a mineral source. Something you provide loose on the side (purina 12:12, ADM Grostrong, Progressive Nutrition... A quality product with no more than 25% salt, a high Ca value (12%+) and 100,000 IU vit A as a bonus are the keys I look for. I won't pay for a mineral product that is 75% or more salt because the remaining percentage can't be properly balanced for a horse's needs. It will only satisfy their salt needs.
Grains. That can be a + or a - depending upon what and how much she eats. Circling back to ulcers and pain.

This reply is a little late by two years. My Arabian horses love when a Queen Palm frond is reachable for them to munch on. I haven’t had any problems. Yet. I do remove them when I see them munching on them. There are pictures of Arabian barns in the Middle East feeding stacks of palm fronds to their Arabian show horses.