Introduction
Finally found the perfect horse roaming the plains in your Minecraft world? Its majestic coat and potential for speedy adventures have undoubtedly captured your attention. But what now? You can’t just hop on and expect it to be your loyal steed. Like any creature in Minecraft, horses require proper care, and that all starts with understanding their dietary needs. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about Minecraft horse food, from the initial taming process to breeding champion steeds with impressive speed and jumping abilities. Master the art of equine care, and you’ll soon be traversing the Minecraft landscape with unmatched grace and efficiency. Forget struggling with slow walking speeds, because the path to becoming a true Minecraft equestrian begins right here.
What Do Horses Eat in Minecraft?
While crafting tables and complex redstone circuits might be what first come to mind when you think of Minecraft, the simple act of feeding your animals is just as important for a thriving world. Horses, like other domesticated creatures, have specific food preferences that impact their health, growth, and overall usefulness. Understanding these preferences is crucial for unlocking their full potential. Forget about just randomly tossing them anything; let’s break down the essentials of a horse’s diet.
The Primary Food Source: Wheat
Believe it or not, the humble wheat stalk plays a pivotal role in the initial taming process. While it won’t sustain your horse long-term, it’s the key to winning its trust. Wheat is relatively easy to obtain; simply plant wheat seeds on tilled farmland near a water source and wait for them to mature.
The mechanics of taming involve approaching a wild horse with an empty hand and repeatedly attempting to mount it. The horse will likely buck you off several times. Don’t be discouraged! Each attempt increases the chances of success. Feeding the horse wheat before mounting significantly speeds up this process. Offer a few stalks of wheat, and you’ll notice hearts appearing around the horse. This indicates that your bond is growing stronger. Continue mounting until the horse no longer bucks you off and instead displays a shower of hearts. Congratulations! You’ve successfully tamed your horse. It’s important to clarify that wheat is primarily used for *taming* and should be complemented with other foods for healing and sustained growth. It does have a very small affect on healing, but it’s best saved for taming new horses.
Foods for Healing and Growth
Once you’ve tamed your horse, you’ll need to provide it with a balanced diet to keep it healthy and potentially breed it. Several food items can heal your horse and, more importantly, accelerate the growth of foals (baby horses).
Apples
These are a readily available source of sustenance. A simple apple can restore a small amount of your horse’s health and slightly accelerate the growth of foals. Apples can be found by breaking oak and dark oak leaves. They’re a great, accessible food option for everyday horse care.
Sugar
You might be surprised to learn that sugar is beneficial for horses in Minecraft! While it may not seem like the most nutritious option in real life, in the blocky world, sugar provides a small amount of healing and contributes to faster foal growth. Sugar is crafted from sugarcane, which grows near water sources.
Bread
A staple food in Minecraft, bread also serves as a decent healing item for horses and helps speed up the growth of foals. Crafting bread is simple: just combine three wheat stalks in a row on a crafting table. It’s a slightly more effective option than wheat alone.
Golden Carrots
Now we’re talking! Golden carrots are a significant step up in horse nutrition. They provide a substantial amount of healing and greatly accelerate foal growth. More importantly, golden carrots are *essential* for breeding horses. To craft a golden carrot, surround a carrot with eight gold nuggets on a crafting table. While gold nuggets can be more difficult to obtain than wheat, the benefits of golden carrots are well worth the effort.
Golden Apples
The pinnacle of horse nutrition! Golden apples offer the highest healing effect and provide the most significant boost to foal growth. There are two types: regular golden apples and enchanted golden apples. Regular golden apples are crafted by surrounding an apple with eight gold ingots, while enchanted golden apples are significantly rarer and found only in specific loot chests. Enchanted golden apples offer even greater healing benefits and are highly prized by serious Minecraft breeders.
Taming a Horse: A Step-by-Step Guide
Now that you know what horses eat, let’s delve into the process of taming one. It’s a rewarding experience that will grant you a loyal companion for your Minecraft adventures.
Finding a Horse
Horses typically spawn in plains and savanna biomes. These wide-open spaces provide ample grazing land for these majestic creatures. You’ll encounter horses in various colors and patterns, from solid blacks and browns to spotted and dapple-gray variations. Each horse also possesses unique stats, such as speed and jump height, although you won’t be able to determine these precisely until you’ve tamed and ridden it.
The Taming Process
The taming process can be a bit of a waiting game, but with patience and a few stalks of wheat, you’ll soon have a loyal steed. Start by approaching a wild horse with an empty hand selected. Right-click on the horse to attempt to mount it. The horse will likely buck you off, displaying a red “X” symbol. Don’t worry; this is perfectly normal. Repeat the mounting process. Each attempt increases your chances of success. Feeding the horse a few stalks of wheat before mounting significantly improves your odds. Keep mounting until the horse stops bucking you off and instead showers you with hearts. This indicates that you have successfully tamed the horse.
Equipping Your Horse
Once you’ve tamed your horse, you’ll need to equip it with a saddle and, optionally, horse armor. The saddle is essential for riding; without it, you won’t be able to control the horse’s movements. Saddles cannot be crafted; they can only be found in loot chests in dungeons, temples, and villages or obtained through trading with villagers. Horse armor provides your horse with additional protection from damage. It comes in three tiers: iron, gold, and diamond, with diamond offering the greatest protection. Horse armor, like saddles, cannot be crafted and must be found in loot chests.
Breeding Horses: Creating the Perfect Foal
Breeding horses is a fantastic way to acquire steeds with superior stats. By carefully selecting breeding pairs, you can potentially create foals with enhanced speed, jump height, and health.
Preparing for Breeding
Before you can breed horses, you’ll need a few essential items. First and foremost, you’ll need two golden carrots for each horse you intend to breed. Remember, golden carrots are crafted by surrounding a carrot with eight gold nuggets. You’ll also need to find two compatible horses. These should be adult, tamed horses. Finally, create a suitable enclosed area for breeding. This will prevent the horses from wandering off while you’re trying to breed them and will keep the foal safe after it’s born.
The Breeding Process
With your preparations complete, approach the two horses you wish to breed and feed each of them a golden carrot. After feeding them a golden carrot, hearts should appear over their heads, indicating that they are ready to breed. The horses will then approach each other and, after a short delay, a foal will be born. The foal’s stats will be based on the stats of its parents, with a slight element of randomness.
Raising a Foal
Foals are adorable but require some time to grow into fully-fledged adult horses. You can accelerate their growth by feeding them apples, sugar, bread, golden carrots, or golden apples. The more nutritious the food, the faster the foal will grow. Be patient; raising a foal takes time, but the reward is a loyal and powerful companion.
Advanced Horse Care Tips
Beyond the basics of feeding and breeding, there are a few advanced tips that can help you maximize your horse’s potential and keep it safe.
Horse Stats and How Food Affects Them
Horses possess three primary stats: speed, jump height, and health. While you can’t directly influence these stats through feeding alone, proper nutrition, especially during foal growth, ensures that your horse reaches its maximum potential based on its genetic inheritance.
Protecting Your Horses
Horses are vulnerable to various dangers in Minecraft, including hostile mobs, falls, and drowning. Protect them by building sturdy fences around their enclosures and avoiding dangerous terrain. Consider equipping them with horse armor for added protection during combat.
Naming Your Horse
Give your horse a unique identity by using a name tag. Name tags can be found in loot chests or obtained through trading with villagers. To name your horse, combine a name tag with an anvil and enter your desired name. Then, right-click on your horse with the name tag selected to apply the name.
Keeping Your Horse Healed
Horses can get injured during adventures, either from mob attacks, or falling from a height. To heal them up, simply feed them any of the foods previously listed! You can tell how much healing they need by looking at the amount of hearts they have in the inventory screen. Golden apples and golden carrots are the best for healing horses.
Troubleshooting
Even with careful planning, you might encounter some challenges while taming and breeding horses. Here are a few common issues and their solutions.
My Horse Won’t Tame!
There are a couple of reasons why a horse might resist your taming attempts. First, taming is based on a probability, sometimes it can take a while to tame a horse, so keep trying! Second, it’s possible that the horse has already been tamed by another player on a multiplayer server. In this case, you won’t be able to tame it.
My Horses Won’t Breed!
If your horses are refusing to breed, there are several potential causes. Ensure that both horses are tame and are adults. Only tame, grown-up horses can breed. You also need to make sure that the horses are fed a golden carrot, as this triggers breeding. Also make sure there isn’t another horse nearby, as that can also prevent horses from breeding.
Conclusion
Mastering Minecraft horse food and equine care is a rewarding endeavor that will transform your Minecraft experience. By understanding the dietary needs of your horses, you can tame loyal companions, breed steeds with exceptional stats, and traverse the Minecraft landscape with unparalleled speed and efficiency. So, grab your wheat, craft those golden carrots, and embark on your own equestrian adventure. Go forth and build your equestrian empire!
