Do you feed a scoop of chaff before riding ?

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Spangles

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I'm interested in the number riders who feed their horses a scoop of chaff before being ridden, especially jumping .. to neutralise the acid and act as a prevention against ulcers ?
 
Mine have access to hay or grass at all times and show no need to have anything before work although do sometimes get their token feed, nowhere near a scoop full, before work if they are ridden in the morning.
I did have one here that showed signs of ulcers, he scoped clear, I took alfalfa pellets to events so he could have a small amount while being tacked up/ kit changed between phases as although he always had haylage he tended not to eat while he was traveling, he was not keen on chaff so the pellets with a little water to soften them worked well and got a little more fluid into him as well, I could also feed them by hand if he did not want to eat out of a bucket, we never bothered at home because he was more relaxed and would eat while being prepared for exercise.
 
Not unless they've clearly run out of hay before I got there. Mine get ad lib so are usually picking at it most of the time and don't generally have empty tums.
 
I did with Jay Man, as he seemed uncomfortable if I didn't. His was mixed with some ant-acid.

Have not with any other though. I do feed ad lib so they are unlikely to be empty anyway.
 
I give mine ad lib hay in the stable but if they haven't been eating it, I do give a handful of chaff 15 minutes before riding. My mare is quite tense, so anything that stops her getting ulcers I try to do!
 
Yes religiously, started years ago with an ulcery gelding have done it to everything since. Surprising what a difference it makes.
 
Yes, ever since my mare had grade 4 ulcers. Though I try and let my 2 yo stand with some hay for a bit before we go for a walk, mostly because she lives out with some other youngsters and I want her brain to settle down before we go for a wander ?
 
Yes. Mine always have grass or hay but they dont always eat their net when they come in.

It's just a double handful of chaff.
 
I did when I had a horse who had/treated for ulcers as a preventative. I haven’t since but horse I ride has a net, which she still likes to munch whilst I’m tacking up.
 
No, but my horses are out 24/7 on grass. Sometimes I give them a Haynet to pick at when I’m grooming and tacking up though! (Not if I’m doing a quick flick over before I ride, but if I’m doing to do a full groom then I offer a net)
 
Yes, even though R was on 24 hour turnout. But took mum/sister a good 6 months to manage to get his ulcers to clear completely (he did have a couple of other issues as well), so definitely felt going overboard was better than risking them again! Normally only a big handful as that was enough

Never thought about it with previous horses
 
In winter mine has a small snack feed at lunchtime and is then ridden 30 minutes later. If the riding is going to be demanding, we wait longer.
In summer he comes in for breakfast and haynet and stands in for 90 minutes before riding. It's partly to give him to relax before working and to be prepared.
 
Mine mainly is either eating his hay or has just come in off grass (granted he doesn’t get much through his muzzle!) but he almost always has a small net to munch whilst I’m tacking up/grooming etc. He’s never given me reasons to worry about ulcers but always better to prevent him feeling uncomfortable.
 
Hay works just as well :) I only do this when they're on grass - or leave them for an hour if it's possible (not always with work and school restrictions obviously). I suppose if they're doing very strenuous work chaff might be a better idea, but for the daily ride a haynet to munch on while I groom has always worked for me :)
 
Yes - was very stressy/poor looking when moved yard, did it just as a preventative.
Now he’s used to coming into a scoop of chaff as a snack when he comes up whether we ride or not. He’s not happy if he doesn’t get it, likes the routine.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I do feed chaff but it's interesting to hear so many do not. From the advice of vets, chaff creates a better 'matting' than grass or hay ie it has a much better buffering effect against the acid.
 
Spangles said:
Thanks for all the replies. I do feed chaff but it's interesting to hear so many do not. From the advice of vets, chaff creates a better 'matting' than grass or hay ie it has a much better buffering effect against the acid.
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I think it depends a bit on the circumstances and how the horse is kept generally, the only two here that have shown signs of ulcers had other reasons totally unrelated to what was done before work, the first scoped clear but did have a physical problem that required treating, signs of ulcers went once he was comfortable but he did get managed as if he had them.

The other went through a very traumatic time, lots of box rest, drugs, then a stay in hospital where he incurred a serious injury and came home very distressed and started showing signs including crib biting, he was not scoped but did have a course of GG which stopped the cribbing, made some immediate improvement to his demeanor and he gradually returned to his normal self, it did take about 4 months before he relaxed and when he came back to work I did for a while feed before exercise just in case.

I think for the average horse with no underlying issues, living a normal life, in light or med work, out for a good portion of the day, if not 24/7 , with access to forage when they are in it should not be required, mine are at the moment all fatter than ideal so a scoop of chaff would be too much extra in their diet which they just cannot afford to have, to reduce their fields or increase their work would be tricky and may do more harm than any good done by the chaff.

If they were competing at a high level or stressy by nature then I would use my judgement,my understanding is chaff will be a better buffer because it requires more chewing so they create more saliva to neutralise the acid rather than it being a better physical barrier so chewing hay or grass for 23 hours a day is probably creating plenty for the majority.
 
Mine live out but they always have either hay or their chaff-and-balancer breakfast before riding. Lines their stomach.
 
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