ARGGHHH please help me do a feed analysis for my horse - I'm lost....

[Morgan123]

Hello,

I find feeding such a minefield…. Can anyone help me do a feed analysis for my horse?! I’m stuck. I was thinking I need to give him more salt anyway (see previous discussion on electrolytes) but also he’s a little bit of a headshaker. I’m not entirely convinced he’s not just doing it naughtily – it’s not TOO bad and it’s much worse if he’s not getting his own way about something – but anyway I’d rather make sure of course that everything’s right for him and I’ve just been reading about how lots of headshaking is down to salt imbalances (n.b. all other checks done, vet checked and can’t see anything, etc etc, see post in 'Tack Room' if you're interested).

So he’s a 15hh MW welsh sec d, and he could live on air. We do mainly endurance riding and schooling. Our grass is horribly lush (sheep grass really) so he’s out 1/2 the time, in a starvation paddock ½ the time and sometimes in at night in the summer, and lives out all winter. He has good quality hay when in the stable, just 2/3 slices, which has been part soaked and will be 24-soaked from here on. Other than that, all he has is a handful of happy hoof. He’s looking pretty good weight-wise at the moment, feeling VERY well in himself (read: naughty), and looks healthy – nice and dappley and shiny.

He’s just been doing his summer fitness regime and we’ve done a few 16 mile training rides, and will do 2x 32kms in the next six weeks. He works probably 5 days a week, one of which is a 10 mile hack at least, then the others vary. He is quite a sweaty sort.

So, if I get him a balancer, how do I know which balancer will truly balance him up without overdoing the starch and sugar? A lot of them seem to be very sugary which I don't want at all. And how do I know whether he is getting enough salt or I should add even more salt for the sweating? Is there some really simple explanation somewhere? I know happy hoof is already meant to be balanced but that you have to feed a lot of it to get enough of everything – should I just up the intake of that?! I think I over-read about all of this and ended up confusing myself about everything, sorry!! any help appreciated…..

Oh also he is barefoot.

THANK YOU!

 

[TwoStroke]

I would ditch the happy hoof, it's molassed. Something low calorie like fast fibre would be my choice, and only a small amount as a carrier for a balancer. I'd choose something like pro balance + from progressive earth, for healthy hooves and a balance mineral profile. Then a good table spoon of salt (increase gradually so he becomes accustomed to the taste). And a plain white salt lick for him to help himself. Nice and simple with no extra sugar or starch .

 

[Tnavas]

Most of the balancers will have some carbs in them - generally bran to help hold it all together - have you considered one especially designed for endurance horses?

He'd need a good protein supplement that has Lysine as one of the ingredients - an important amino acid.

Just a not that latest research shows that very little sugar is removed from soaking hay. Best to try and source late cut hay as it contains less sugars and more lignin. Hay is usually cut in June so look for hay cut in mid July when seed heads have fully formed and dried out, also hay that has been used to provide seeds. Contact seed merchants to find out what they do with the hay after the seeds have been collected - they may be able to put you in touch with the farmer that grew the hay for them.

 

[FairyLights]

I would bring him in during the day in summer and out at night. less sugar in the grass at night and less flies. I'd feed him hay in the stable and a very small amount of any low calorie/high fibre chaff or nut as a reward for coming in, in winter I would feed a vit-min supplement or a balancer, make sure a salt lick is available at all times and add a little salt to the feed, if he wont eat it coz its too salty add more chaff to dilute. Idont get bothered about bits if molasses in the chaff either hi fi lite molassed or unmolassed is fine as is happy hoof, they arnt living on it and all contain much less sugar than summer grass anyway.