Stardew Valley players have discovered yet another hidden feature from Update 1.6, and this time it involves horses. The cozy life and farming sim was released in 2016 and has since become a phenomenon, still beloved by many players and still getting regular free updates from its creator, ConcernedApe. The massive Update 1.6 was released last year for PC and, after months of anticipation, it became available on mobile devices and consoles.

Players are still discovering new things that the update brought to the game, including one fun new interaction with the horse that was spotted by teengirlhelley on Reddit. The Redditor writes, "Did you know you can feed carrots to your horse?" The player says they tried to feed the horse other things, but "it only munches on carrots." It turns out that the discovery is more than just a fun Easter egg, and there's an actual benefit to doing this.

Horses Can Be Fed Carrots In Stardew Valley And Gain A Buff

The Cutest Way To Get A Speed Boost

Carrots are one of the four new crops added in Update 1.6, along with summer squash, broccoli, and powder melon. Feeding the farmer's horse a carrot in Stardew Valley has two great benefits. The first is that feeding the horse a carrot gives it a buff, increasing its speed by 0.4 for the rest of the day. This is a useful boost since the horse helps players get around the world much faster, making it possible to get even more done in one day.

The horse can only eat one carrot per day, so there's no way to stack speed boosts. The hidden buff is still a great discovery, and many fans in the comments are eager to try it themselves. The feature is especially nice since carrots only take three days to fully grow, making it easy to get many of them fairly quickly. And the second benefit of feeding the horse a carrot? As teengirlhelley notes, it "makes a really cute face."

Our Take: So Many New Things Came To Stardew Valley With Update 1.6

ConcernedApe Loves To Add Fun Hidden Details To The Title

Update 1.6 added many d new features, from small quality-of-life updates to large, co-op multiplayer so players can farm together. Besides the many larger updates and all the features listed in the patch notes, Update 1.6 also included many hidden updates and secrets that weren't listed in the update log. The new horse-feeding feature wasn't listed in the official Stardew Valley website's patch notes for the latest update, though it's likely hinted at with this cryptic description: "Added a new interaction with your horse."

The new interaction is a reminder of how much players still have left to discover from the update, despite it being several months post-implementation already. Just when we think we've discovered everything there is to find in the title, the game surprises players with even more secrets and fun hidden goodies. And it's all thanks to ConcernedApe, who's known for adding silly Easter eggs and nods to dedicated fans in Stardew Valley.

Source: teengirlhelley/Reddit, Stardew Valley