diet that supports barefoot your examples I'm struggling ??

slinkyunicorn said:
My cob is barefoot - all she gets is unmollassed chaff and hay in the winter and is turned out 24/7 as long as possible - she had laminitis about 6 years ago so is restricted on grazing. The only supplement she has all year round is Lifeforce - live yeasts, organic minerals and mycotoxin binder - she has great hooves that grow all year round - has them trimmed every 6 weeks and has never had another bout of lami since.

Lifeforce is made by Alltech who make YeaSacc - some of you are doubling up on supplements containing YeaSacc but they do not necessarily contain enough to have an optimal effect on the gut - they also add other things which is why I chose Lifeforce - it is approved for use by the FEI for levels of competiton and it works!
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Am I doubling up on anything? Seriously, my brain is pickled getting all of this organised, so please point out any issues you spot! :) Advice always welcome.
 
Arizahn said:
Am I doubling up on anything? Seriously, my brain is pickled getting all of this organised, so please point out any issues you spot! :) Advice always welcome.
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I will have a look tomorrow as I don't use any hard feeds for any of ours - they all just have a fibre diet of unmolassed chaff or alfalfa and hay with Lifeforce - no other supplements for anything as the Lifeforce means they get the maximum nutrients out of their fibre based diet - we have WB's, TB's, cobs and a Section A, Is the cheapest feed bill we have ever had and all their hooves are fabulous with great quality growth. Their diets also mirror what their gut is designed to utilise - which is fibre. No cereals, no molasses nor oils added at all - all have the most amazing gleam to their coat and hold their condition - even through the snow and making up feeds is simple :)
 
Cheers :) So far, I only have the D&H Mare & Youngstock as a hard feed, the others are a non mollassed chaff and a beet, so hopefully not too awful! He has a bad habit of impersonating a hat rack, lol
 
The Lifeforce is great for improving condition as it makes the hind gut function effectively - they put weight on slowly through the effective use of the fibre - no fizziness or anything as there is no calories in the Lifeforce it just makes them use their fibre - whether in hay, grass or chaff - effectively. It also helps them regulate their temperature better as its their hind gut that digesting fibre that helps keeps them warm effectively in the winter.

A friend is also using it with great success in her 3 year old who was impersonating a hat rack - its CrazyFresian on here - had tried shovelling all sorts in with no luck before using the Lifeforce - now has a calm horse in great condtion. PM her as she has photos :)
 
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criso said:
had a quick look and couldn't find the exact levels of minerals, however they contain manganese calcium and iron which are already overloaded in most UK forage and inhibit the uptake of other minerals. The great thing about the forageplus and progressive earth balancers is they don't contain these.

It's not always just about what it contains as what you leave out.
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Scrap what I said above, found the levels (I was on my mobile before) and not bad and the right range of minerals.

However the magnesium levels are quite low and the form of Copper and Zinc used are Copper Sulphate and Zinc Sulphate. These are the cheaper form, the alternative is chelated minerals (bioplex zinc and copper) which are much more expensive.
 
My 4 are all ridden and all barefoot, although the TB wears front hoof boots when he's hacked out on the roads - we have some stoney lanes round us, and he has typically flat TB feet. They all have a horslyx (I know, it contains sugar, but they like them, it keeps them occupied and they salivate when they lick it - so no worries about ulcers, especially with the TB ex-racehorse - they also last each horse between 6 and 8 weeks, so they aren't getting that much sugar a day!) My old boy has a respiratory one, the 2 17 year olds the mobility and the 5 year old the basic one. In addition, I soak a double handful of grass nuts and sugar beet pulp (molassed - wicked me!) each day and this is divided out between them and carries the supplements they get - 17 year olds get agnus castus, 25 year old gets joint supplement and equine science PulmonEZ. They all get spirulina. I doubt that they each get more than 125g of dry matter a day as hard feed. I keep them out as much as possible, 2 are muzzled because they are fat pigs, and when in I weigh their hay (they are all on restricted rations, not one of them could be described as slim...) and feed it in small holed nets to make it last as long as possible. They all 4 abound in energy, compete at dressage, do a mixture of schooling and hacking. They've all been barefoot for at least 10 years (TB), the others all their lives.
 
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