Maybe they're reducing the quantity significantly, and feeding him frequently to give him something to do.
(my mare likes to bounce her feed tub off the stall wall so that the feed jumps out on the rubber mat floor, then pick it up grain by grain. I guess it keeps her occupied.)
I hope that *is* what Barbaro is doing! It's not like he follows the soaps on TV or does crossword or jigsaw puzzles. Poor thing when he figures out he won't be running again. I hope they have horsey Prozac or something similar.