Dodson and horrell sixteen plus

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Elno

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Okay guys, since I'm currently an owner of an older gentleman that needs some fat and muscle on him I have had the opportunity to once again go down the rabbit hole of the mind boggling world of feeding (which, quite honestly feels kind of fun after having owned easy keepers for several years and now being able to go completely coco loco in a feed store ?)

The gentleman in question is a 20 year old swedish warmblood in light work. Since I've had him since mid of October I've managed to get some much needed fat on him so he no longer looks like a near starvation case mostly with the help of ad lib hay, 1.5 kg Alfalfa pellets (he doesn't go nuts on them, at all), some linsseed oil and a vit/min supp. Now, I would have gladly kept him on this forever if needed, but the problem is that Mr. Fusspot has decided that alfalfa is inedible and leaves more than half of it everyday. The problem is also that the hay is analyzed and is lacking in protein so he needs feed with a high protein content.

Now, in one of the feed stores you can buy D&H sixteen plus mix. It is crazy expensive in Sweden (£32 or thereabout) since it's imported and also D&H is concidered here as a very, very good quality feed. Since my old nag is the apple of my frikkin eye obviously I bought a bag to try. To my dismay when I opened the bag I found a müsli completely sticky and coated in molasses! Seriously!? According to the feed spec it's only supposed to contain around 5 % sugar but I'm honestly a bit worried since it feels like I'll be feeding him the equivalent of Kellogs Frosties... ?

So, help me out here guys:

How good is actually D&H 16+, honestly? Will it turn him completely bonkers and in orbit around the moon, or is it actually a good feed for elderly horses in need of some condition?
 
i used it one winter when my 20 year old loan horse lost weight one winter. i found it worked very well.. i have also used equi jewel made by saracen but thats not cheap
 
I gave my old lad 16+ purely because he loved it. He got a nice kick out of it but he wasn’t the type to be silly so the extra energy was welcome. It’s essentially just sugar in a pellet though so eventually his hooves did suffer so I probably should have gone about things better.
 
Merry Equimas said:
I gave my old lad 16+ purely because he loved it. He got a nice kick out of it but he wasn’t the type to be silly so the extra energy was welcome. It’s essentially just sugar in a pellet though so eventually his hooves did suffer so I probably should have gone about things better.
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Mine was not that impressed by it, but ate it.

It bugs me though that it reaks of molasses so it ended up on the muck heap for the mice to feast upon ? I'm a bit wary of mixes since the last one I tried turned him completely crazy, and it was supposed to be a low sugar /low starch one.

Will have to figure out a way how to make his alfalfa tastier.
 
I’ve had the opposite. My old mare had awful feet, but they improved seemingly overnight. When I thought about it the only thing that had changed was the addition of a small handful of 16+ to make her tea more palatable.

I agree with above though, there are much better feeds on the market.
 
Tried a Senior Mix from Aveve and also bought a mash - the horse absolutely adores it! ? It looks a little bit like gerbil feed, but if it makes Mr Fusspot finish his Alfalfa and doesn't remind me of Frosties I'm happy. Time will tell though if it sends him into orbit ?
 
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