Advice on feeding a competing stallion who does not cover

[Worried1]

Just wondered if anyone could offer any suggestions for Blitz - 17hh, 5-year-old Westphalian Stallion.

He is currently being fed Spillers topline cubes and Alfalfa in three feeds a day, plus ad lib hay and is turned out for 4 hours everyday on excellent grazing.

We had a slight hiccup last winter when he got a bit big for his boots and so we had to cut his feed back, but we hit an even keel and he was looking good and feeling great and more importantly was rideable!

However since August he has been dropping off - I think it is linked to the fact that someone has turned two colts out in the field opposite his. They are not our fields and we don't even know who owns them. He doesn't outwardly worry about them and rarely has funny five minutes but he does graze at the end of the field nearest them as a I think he enjoys the company.

He has lost weight and is lacking in energy so we are thinking that we need to change his hard feed. As he doesn't cover do you think we should go for a competition cube or, stud cube or feed balancer?

He does have a tendancy to be a little exuberant especially if he is over-fed so we need to tread quite carefully. I was thinking about introducing the new feed in his lunch and then upping it gradually.

A recent blood test came back normal.

Any suggestions would be gratefully received x

 

[sfward]

Do you feed ordinary Alfalfa at the moment? as there is a high oil version called Alfa-Oil which would help with conditioning without added starch to fizz him up. Also the Dengie Fibremix Extra is meant to be quite good (not that i've tried it!) - have a look on their website?
Or you could add a supplement such as Baileys Outshine to his normal feed. Again this is high oil so you're not adding lots of starchy concentrates.

 

[Moggy]

Add soya oil. If feeding large quantities you'll need to feed Vit E and selinium supplement as well. It'll give condition without the fireworks!

 

[seabiscuit]

Are you sure that he hasnt got a virus? or might be anaemic?

 

[henryhorn]

I understand your problem, Chocx will fence run for hours if upset, and he worries weight off himself in the stable too, he is fussy and won't eat at certain times, and refuses more than two feeds a day. Walk up the horsebox ramp in his view and that's it, he refuses to eat at all thinking he's off to a competition!
I contacted several feed companies about how to up his energy for competition without risking him tying up; all responded speedily and with useful information, we started with the advice from Saracen and it's been a total success.
Your stallion seems to have enough natural oomph, ours is a doddle to feed through the winter but very difficult in summer.. In winter ours gets alf A or alfa Oil , speedi beet and cheapo highlight mix plus a balancer and pink powders.. he stays fat and round and we have to cut down the amount round about Feb!
In summer he gets 8 lbs of saracen prep 14 plus some stuff called equijewel. (2lbs a day)
If he gets silly we are supposed to halve the equij. We also add alfa A and some ordinary cooking oil but no balancer or pink powders as they said it was already in it.
I would try your stallion on some pink powders for a week or two, and add alfa A and oil to his diet. Not sure what actual feed to suggest, if you use a show mix you cut out the oil, and you may just find the fact he is using the feed properly thanks to the powders will make him gain weight on his normal diet.
I can highly recommend Saracen, they took on board the problems I had and advised accordingly, and up to now it's worked a treat.
Ours is without doubt hard to feed in summer but this year we seem to have lept most of his weight on, he's very fit too.
Is yours in at night? We can't leave Choc out as that's when he loses the most weight, he's in all year round.
happy to answer any questions re the feed by pm if you want..

 

[Worried1]

Thanks everyone, especially henryhorn, OH and I had a chat and are going to go down the route of giving Saracen a call as they are literally just up the road so won't have any trouble getting the feed.

The bloods were normal - so I don't think it is viral or the fact he is anaemic, something that our Vets agreed with.

I have previously fed soya oil with great results but for some reason OH has been reluctant to use it. However I will prod him and make him read your posts and it might change his mind