5 nights out and dropping weight!

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michelleice

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Ben been out 5 nights now in his MW or fleece and LW (so MW can dry! and hes dropped a bit of weight i feed him twice a day bring him in in the morning for feed and hay then again in afternoon i was feeding him 1 big scoop of chaff, 1 scoop of mix, 1 scoop of pony nuts and carrots/apples and suppliment and cider vinegar and veg oil.

I'm now going to up this to 2 large scoops of chaff and scoop and half of mix and nuts. Don't want to feed sugar beet as i know it will send him loopy. does anyone else know of anything i can put in his feed??

for those who don't know his stable mate on box rest after a serious infection in another block so his stable block is empty and he wont stable for long on his own
 
You need to measure your feed out by weight not by scoop and check how much you are feeding against rthe recommendations on the packet.. The number of scoops you are suggesting at one time would be too much for his stomach to process efficiently, you would be better splitting it into three feeds rather than two.

Personally I find barley rings very good for weight gain.
 
Does Speedibeet send him loopy ??? There is no sugar in it - its the old fashioned stuff that hots them up that you soak over night. Otherwise you could try Alfabeet or calm and condition rather than pony nuts - you are right to feed more chaff tho the more fiber the better.

Could you bring him in for an hour or so int he evening for a haynet ? (or someone help you by bringing him in early before you get there ? )

My mare is out atm and shes hungry - if you feed SB he might use the energy to keep warm rather than in the school ?
 
Is there much grass left in his field? If not can you put hay out? What type of chaff are you using and is there a specific reason for using nuts AND mix? What type of mix are you using.

If he is a poor doer then he needs plenty of forage - either good grazing or ad lib hay/haylage. If you can't provide this in the field, then he really needs to come in at nights so he can fill himself up on hay/haylage.

For his bucket feed you need to give high calorie food. Horsey calories are measured in MJDE/kg and most conditioning feeds are about 12 MJDE/kg upwards whereas standard horse & pony nuts are usually about 8/9 MJDE/kg. You want a high calorie chaff such as Alfa A Oil (12.5 MJDE/kg) and beet is a good source of calories too, use an unmollassed one such as Speedibeet (12.4 MJDE/kg) if he gets fizzy on molassed sugar beet. High oil feeds such as linseed, Outshine, Equijewel etc are very dense in calories and don't usually fizz horses up.
 
I feed my boy during the winter Baileys Ceral mix. I really ehlps maintian his weight and never sends him loppy like Sugarbeat.

Hope this helps
 
he cant get hay out in feild there is 4 others and noone feeds hay so i cannot guarentee he would get it, hes in for hour in morning and at night to eat his hay.

previous owner said sugar beet sent him loopy might try speedy beet.
 
If he gets in the routine of coming in for feed/fuss only (i.e. 'good' things only not work etc as well) might it be possible to get him used to being kept in for a bit longer every day so he can have more hay? Not suggesting he stands around in box, but so that he is continuously 'grazing' and then turned out. Or would it be possible to ad some hayledge? It is still good forage but a bit more concentrated in terms of nutrients?
 
PS do the others he is out with get fed at all? If they are fine on just the grazing perhaps consider if he is stressed and not eating enough when out due to change in social group (with his usual mate being on box rest)?
 
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he cant get hay out in feild there is 4 others and noone feeds hay so i cannot guarentee he would get it, hes in for hour in morning and at night to eat his hay.

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Anything wintering out is going to need additional support in the form of hay. If he's loosing weight, I'd be inclined to have him back in overnight.
 
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he cant get hay out in feild there is 4 others and noone feeds hay so i cannot guarentee he would get it, hes in for hour in morning and at night to eat his hay.

previous owner said sugar beet sent him loopy might try speedy beet.

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A horse needs more than 2 hours eating hay a day, and if you fill him with concentrates with so little fibre then you are asking for colic or ulcers.
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You really need to find a way to feed him hay or haylage if you want him to put on condition.
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Can you section off an area of the field with electric tape just for him, so you can feed him hay/haylage in there, but he will still have the company of the others over the fence?
 
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