I had to talk to my vet today to make an appointment to have some of our colts gelded and your anteater has really been on my mind and in many of my conversations since reading your post. So I ask him if he had ever heard of anything like that.
Oddly enough , he didn't find it unusual at all!
He said ants are quite tasty! Hmmm.
Alot of horses eat dirt for minerals they might be lacking. Alot of horses like clay. The soil around anthills is loose and may attract the horse to soil graze. Ants are full of protein. (and don't forget scrumptious!)
As long as the horse isn't eating fire ants that bite and leave blisters to get infected,or cause an allergic or hypersensitive reaction to their bites, your main concern would be his soil intake possibly causing sand colic. Which is quite serious and can be life threatening!!
He suggested getting a mineral block for horses, not a cattle block, that contains selenium {sp?}. We have the blonde blocks that have minerals and selenium in them out for the horses at all times. Especially good for the Brood mares! And my dirt eaters quit munching mudpies. The horses only eat what they need. The soil in the eastern 1/2 of the U.S. and most parts of Canada is selenium deficient and doesn't pass enough of the mineral to the plants/forage to sustain the amount that a horse needs in its diet. If you are using a selenium mineral saltblock for horses... maybe adding some alfalfa (hay or pellets )small amounts at first!! to the anteater's diet may make a difference for added protein. or just go the next step up on the protein % if you feed grain regularly. It could be the protein that attracts the horse to eat ants. Or a combination of all the above.
The thing with that is that you don't want too much protein in the diet either....How old is the horse and what type of work or activity load does it have ?? That can make a big difference in how much protein should be in their diet.
And keep in mind that it could be that the horse just likes the taste of ants ........ Kinda like kids eating paste in school. Yuk. No real dietary issues, just taste.
Just thought I'd pass his remarks on. Oh! He did say no choclate covered ants tho. Guess chocolate really isn't good for most animals, horses included........
An anteater..... gives me a chuckle every time I think about it !

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