Thinking Like an Equine Nutrition Advisor: A New Module

One of the biggest challenges in learning equine nutrition isn’t memorising nutrient requirements or understanding feed tags. It’s knowing how to bring all of that information together to make confident, practical decisions for an individual horse. That’s exactly why the new module, Thinking Like an Equine Nutrition Advisor, has been added to LCAO’s Equine Nutrition Advisor program.

Throughout the program, students build a strong foundation in the science behind horse nutrition. They learn how to evaluate forage, interpret feed labels, understand nutrient requirements, and balance rations. But understanding each of those concepts individually is only part of becoming a competent nutrition advisor.

Inside the New Module: Shadowing a Real Nutrition Consultation

In real-life consultations, there isn’t a checklist that tells you what to do next. Every horse is different, every owner has different goals, and every management situation presents its own challenges. Success comes from learning how to think critically, prioritise the most important issues, and develop practical recommendations that fit both the horse and the owner.

Bridging the Gap Between Knowledge and Practice

In this new module, students have the opportunity to sit alongside course instructor Kali Larson as she works through a real nutrition case from beginning to end. Rather than simply presenting the answers, Kali explains her thought process: how she gathers information, what catches her attention first, how she interprets the findings, and why she makes her recommendations. The experience is designed to feel as though students are shadowing an actual nutrition consultation.

The goal of this module is to help bridge the gap between learning the material and applying it with confidence. More importantly, it encourages students to develop their own critical thinking skills so they feel prepared to assess horses independently long after completing the course.

A 140-Hour Program Built Around Six Practical Units

Learn at Your Own Pace, Then Put It Into Practice

The program is delivered entirely online through LCAO’s eLearning platform and is self-paced, with no set deadlines and lifetime access to course materials and future updates. Students work through interactive quizzes and exams throughout, with a final case-based assessment to close out the program, and instructor support is available at every stage.

The program is open to horse owners, riders, breeders, trainers, therapists, and veterinary professionals alike, with no prior academic or professional background required. Graduates are qualified as a Certified Equine Nutrition Advisor (Cert. ENA), which supports either independent practice or work alongside veterinarians and veterinary surgeons, offering nutritional guidance as a complementary service to primary veterinary care. For those who want to extend their training further, the program’s hands-on Masterclass clinical training is also available as an elective.

A Final Thought

This is already one of LCAO’s most popular courses, and the addition of Thinking Like an Equine Nutrition Advisor makes it stronger still. It doesn’t change what the program has always set out to do. The Equine Nutrition Advisor program was never just about teaching people what to feed horses. It’s about teaching them how to think through nutritional problems, ask the right questions, and make informed decisions that can genuinely improve equine health and wellbeing. The new module simply gives students a clearer window into what that thinking looks like in practice, before they ever have to do it on their own.

Learn more about our Equine Nutrition Advisor Certificate Program.