Balancer for barefoot cob...

Lego

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Hi all. I periodically muse over feeds to see if there might be a better combo out there...

Over the winter I fed graze on, speedi beet, linseed and pro balance and he was fine - looked good, rode well and sensible, but perhaps could have done with a little more oomph, and seemed slower to build up any top line than before.

Horses were turned out onto summer fields, living out, in April. Plenty to eat, but just forest grass, not seeded fertilised grazing if that makes sense. Horse now not particularly interested in even a token feed, and since the new bag of pro balance arrived, is refusing to touch anything it is in...

In slight desperation, I've put him back on safe & sound. He likes it but can't get a full ration into him when he's living out...

To top it off, the yard has strangles, so any progress We'd made in terms of building topline and fitness now down the drain and he's now in one of the winter fields and scoffing hay, so not much grass out there.

The tricky bit...he is definitely intolerant to alfalfa, and I've been told before to avoid soy too because of that.

Had been debating something like Bailey's lo cal balancer with graze on etc as needed...

Suggestions on a postcard please! 😃
 

Leo Walker

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Mine gets the platinum plus one and its stinks so it cant taste nice! I feed mine his in some Agrobs. He gets a handful of the cobs soaked, then a tiny handful of muesli. He tells me its delicious :)
 

Lego

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Thanks for the replies 😃

Unfortunately the platinum with agrobs cobs and muesli is what I had him on when I tried the agrobs...loved the idea of agrobs, but he just looked dull and a bit meh, especially given the amount he was getting...

I'll have a read up on the NAF 😃

Anyone tried the Bailey's lo cal?
 

MissTyc

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I give mine the TopSpec AntiLam balancer. They've not ever had lami but it's foot-friendly and mine need nothing else in summer and are on v poor grazing indeed. They're on half rations of AntiLam with the grass they forage making up the rest of their intake. Ridden daily, almost weekly eventing, and they look fab!
 

Casey76

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Mine were on/are on Baileys Lo Cal for about 3 years now. It's fine as balancers go, they have glossy coats and good feet (unshod) - however if I was being really picky, I dislike the fillers (grass and wheat meal, soy meal and molasses).

Due to weight issues, I've changed my mare onto Pro Earth Pro-Laminae+ though it is still early days (my gelding is still on Lo-Cal as he doesn't have any particular issues - that I know of :) )
 

supsup

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I'm guessing it will be difficult to find a palatable balancer that contains neither alfalfa nor soya. Soya is an easy way to add quality protein, so most pelleted (and palatable) balancers probably have it (Baileys does, so does Spillers; Topspec isn't putting a full list of ingredients on the web). Alfalfa and soya are not at all related, so I might not rule out soya unless you have a good reason to, or you will seriously limit your choices.
Mine will also turn up his nose at pretty much anything I offer with a "plain", no-fillers supplement added while the grass is lush in summer. I manage at home by feeding him on the yard after work (no grass in sight) and dissolving polos in his bucket (which sort of defeats the purpose of feeding a no-filler type of supplement!), but I will be taking some Spillers Lite balancer on the week-long ride I'm planning. He finds that really palatable and will still eat it in summer, and I won't be able to faff about with feeds while on the road. It's not quite as high-spec as I'd like on some of the ingredients, but some is better than none, I figure.
 

Follysmum

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I have tried all the mixing of indivudual minerals ( had grass analysed) but they stopped eating this when the grass came through, tried pro balance, same result so now they all have spillers lite balancer which they all love , foal has suregrow mixed in with Agrobs wisencobs. When winter comes I will try again. Mine are a mixture of unshod and shod.
 

Micky

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Def another fan of topspec antilam..I tried spillers but he became a bit dull on it, despite feeding micronised linseed, so tried topspec and not looking to change...it is v warm and that does seem to make some horses a wee bit lacklustre in energy..
 
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