Alternative to Pro-Hoof

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AshTay

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My mare just doesn't like it and ends up leaving most of her feed and because she's on a diet I'm struggling to disguise the taste enough.
She's unshod and has had laminitis in the recent past. She's stabled from 7pm till 10am and then out during the day and will most likely be muzzled when grass starts to grow so she can stay out with her friends.
She also seems to have widneing of her white line down the outside of each foot which are getting small stones stuck in.
 
She's having it in a handful of hifi lite. I could probably try it in soaked speedibeet instead.
I hadn't thought of dried mint (can't get my head past polos when people mention mint) - is that safe to feed to laminitics? When she first started on it (a while ago) I added a splash of apple juice and then reduced it down quickly (sugary but pre-laminitis bout).

Which forageplus do you use, pines of rome?
 
Have you tried feeding a smaller dose and then increasing it? I think you might have to do that with any of the non sweetened ones by the sound of it. I have one pony who can be fussy, I make hers up half an hour earlier to let the smell dissipate a bit. Sarah from forage plus recommends using a shallow wide bowl for some horses for this reason.
I use s. beet and micronised linseed and they all eat the minerals up but it appears some horses don't like beet. It's a case of trial and error for fussy horses I'm afraid. Mixing it in well is also important.

Pure dried mint is fine for laminitics btw.
 
I use the new hoof health one. I was previously using the performance one which I was very pleased with. I wanted the extras such as lysine and biotin.
I keep thinking about switching to Pro hoof but am scared. lol I suspect my lot do need the higher mineral levels in FP.
 
AshTay said:
She's having it in a handful of hifi lite. I could probably try it in soaked speedibeet instead.
I hadn't thought of dried mint (can't get my head past polos when people mention mint) - is that safe to feed to laminitics? ?
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Yes it is fine. And much safer than apple juice -My boy is increadibly sensitive to dietary sugars and is absolutely fine with mint on the odd occasion that I have to feed it (with meds / wormers etc) I actually have a tub of it growing so I pick it fresh during the summer months :)
 
amandap said:
I keep thinking about switching to Pro hoof but am scared. lol I suspect my lot do need the higher mineral levels in FP.
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Haha! I have recently been thinking the same about swapping from balanced minerals to one of the ready made ones (if my boy moves yards again)... but the levels are about half what my boy is currenly on, apart from the selenium which is double! so it's not like I can just double the dose or whatever... PITA!
 
CBFan said:
Haha! I have recently been thinking the same about swapping from balanced minerals to one of the ready made ones (if my boy moves yards again)... but the levels are about half what my boy is currenly on, apart from the selenium which is double! so it's not like I can just double the dose or whatever... PITA!
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Lol! Glad I'm not alone. Your current forages sound quite wacky! :eek: I must get my grass tested to find out why it is so lethal. I just assume it's sugars and they are off it most of the time anyway.
 
amandap said:
Lol! Glad I'm not alone. Your current forages sound quite wacky! :eek: I must get my grass tested to find out why it is so lethal. I just assume it's sugars and they are off it most of the time anyway.
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Yes, Sarah said mine was definitely worth analysing ;) and it took her a while to get her head around...

It is worthwhile doing. My current grazing isnt too rich (sugar wise) as it hasn't been fertilised for years but I do still need to be careful.
 
In terms of having forage analysed - I guess with hay it's easy enough but when is right time to get grass done? If I went and plucked some (if I can find any) now would it still give useful information about it's quality 2 months from now? If that makes sense....

p.s. never thought to use my own homegrown mint, duh!
 
AshTay said:
In terms of having forage analysed - I guess with hay it's easy enough but when is right time to get grass done? If I went and plucked some (if I can find any) now would it still give useful information about it's quality 2 months from now? If that makes sense....

p.s. never thought to use my own homegrown mint, duh!
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You need a few cm of growth to get a grass sample -I think the details are on forage plus's website and inthe pack you get when you order one. and you need to take a good sample from across your grazing... so may be worth waiting a few weeks. and yes, the mineral profile should be pretty constant in months to come :) ...

Hehe! I must admit, people at my old yard thought I was bonkers for growing my own but my current yard is much more accepting ;)
 
My mare hates it, but now she does eat it split between two meals of Pure feed easy with two scoops (around two heaped tablespoons) of dried spearmint mixed in. You can get it from www.naturalhorsesupplies.co.uk. It smells gorgeous, and is safe to feed to laminitics. Also, I have found that my mare prefers it if her feed has been soaked for a few hours. She always really tucks into her evening meal that has been soaking since mid day. Much more than her breakfast that has only been soaked a few minutes. I think it's because all the flavour of the mint really comes out. Good luck.
 
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