Adding water to feeds - when?!

Mr Spook

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We have recently move to a lovely new yard - but it is quite big. Understandably they need to be efficient in all things e.g. distributing feeds at mealtimes!

When they make up feeds all supplements AND water are added at the time they are made up - and so everything in the feed bowl is wet for at least 6 hours, and almost 24 hours for the morning feed.

Does anyone know if being wet for all that time could be damaging to the supplements?

I don't want to be a "difficult livery" by demanding that my precious has water added to his feeds at the last minute - unless I am reasonably sure they should be done this way! The other yards I have been in add the water just before feeding - but they have had smaller numbers of horses.

Thanks
 
I don't know about the breakdown of supplements once wet, but am firmly in the camp of damping feeds just prior to giving, never overnight/or hours ahead.
When I did have liveries, all feeds were damped at the point of feeding, never overnight etc.
In heat feed can ferment, in severe cold it can freeze.

Hopefully an additive guru can advise, but that method would def not be for me!
 
I wet my feeds at the point of making them - it ensures they cannot be accidentally given dry. This does mean that the morning feed is left wet from the night before - so 12 to 14 hours roughly. I've never had any problems. We're in surrey so it doesn't get hot enough overnight to cause a feed to ferment - and I have never had any reason to believe my supplements were somehow less effective from being served wet. (Although I am now minded to quickly call the company and check!) We can freeze solid in winter - but I've never found it a problem as the feeds are kept undercover.

If it was very hot and if the feeds were left outside so flies etc could get at them I wouldn't be massively happy. But even then I suspect that is a human perception rather than anything damaging to the horse. Otherwise - as long as the feeds are kept reasonably it wouldn't personally bother me to have a feed soaked for 12 hours. 24 hours is pushing it a bit in high heat - but wouldn't bother me in the winter. But it would be worth a quick call to whatever firm makes your supplements to check. I would also wonder about the wisdom of leaving feeds potentially with medication in them. If you feed bute or anything like that probably also check with your vet. But also I would worry about cross contamination if medicated feeds are not stored separately?
 
I have to make breakfast the night before too. Toby has readymash so by nature is a soaked feed so I called a couple of my supplement providers to double check whether I should be feeding his supplements in one go in his night feed so they are given straight away or to split and have one half soaked overnight. They couldn't really give me a concrete answer but did agree it was better for it to be soaked rather than fed all in one go (supplements in question are for ulcers/gut health and arthritis) so I bought some little plastic tubs and now i make up my feed and leave the little tubs on top and our livery girl just tips in in the morning - could you leave little tubs and just ask them to do that? Or make up the supplements for the week yourself and leave them out for them?
 
Most supplements are fine except pre and pro biotics. For instance, Pink Mash shouldn't be soaked except directly before feeding during preparation.
 
A lot of chemicals are broken down by water (although the reaction is often slow) so personally i don't want my supplements being damp for hours. At the yard i am at a lot of people fill a small drinks bottle with water and leave it in the feed bowl for the staff to tip in just before feeding. Personally i make up a 500ml jug of speedibeet for each feed and leave it with the feed to be tipped in just before feeding.
 
I put a small bucket with water on top of my boy's breakfast so it can be tipped on just before he has it. he is extremely fussy and would not touch food that had had water on if for an hour let alone overnight. he would stick two hoofs up at it. I can't even give him speedy beat in the morning because he thinks it isn't right if it has been left overnight. imagine leaving food on a plate overnight and then having it for breakfast - yuk
 
You could always mix your supplements up into a little pot to be tipped in immediately prior to feeding?
If you left the pot in or on top of the feed bucket, it would be very hard for staff to miss.

I keep a couple pots mixed up ready in case someone needs to feed them on my behalf if I'm ill or what have you.
 
I put a small bucket with water on top of my boy's breakfast so it can be tipped on just before he has it. he is extremely fussy and would not touch food that had had water on if for an hour let alone overnight. he would stick two hoofs up at it. I can't even give him speedy beat in the morning because he thinks it isn't right if it has been left overnight. imagine leaving food on a plate overnight and then having it for breakfast - yuk

ermm that's very precious or horse and human :D

OP it really does depend on the supplements. I've never worried about any of mine being damp overnight.
 
well i think you are right, it sounds awful!, i would only wet the fast fibre and sugar beet in the morning to use at tea time, but to me after 24 hours wet feed is stale, sour or even fermented.

but what exactly are the feeds they are wetting in advance?
 
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