Does anyone actually feed mixes anymore?

Michen

Michen

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Just curious really. Feels like we are so far ahead now than 10 years ago in terms of how to feed our horses, with plenty of us seeking the molasses free, low sugar and low starch options. High fibre etc.

Does anyone still feed mixes? If so what kind and why?

I’ve come somewhat full circle and am not as fussy over what I’m feeding Boggle, he’s tricky to feed and goes off stuff quickly and runs very lean when hunting in winter. Have just discovered he adores barley rings but they get mixed reviews on how “healthy” they are.

As such I’m not actually ruling out a mix, if he likes it and it works. I’d rather he was eating plenty of something and keeping weight on in winter than chucking stuff out of the bowl that he doesn’t like..

Also brings me back to spillers meadow herb mix which I fed to my pony (Michen!) as a kid... smelt DIVINE!!!
 
Well feed manufacturers produce it in vast quantities so yes they must be selling it!

I have to say most yards I know would opt for cubes over mixes, unless they have a particularly fussy one.

The one mix that seems to work for a lot of horses is Saracen Releve, might be worth a try.
 
ihatework said:
Well feed manufacturers produce it in vast quantities so yes they must be selling it!

I have to say most yards I know would opt for cubes over mixes, unless they have a particularly fussy one.

The one mix that seems to work for a lot of horses is Saracen Releve, might be worth a try.
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I wonder what those quantities look like compared to 10/15 years plus ago though...would be interesting to know the proportion of mix vs cubes then and now.

Saracens releve is just a fun game for boggle to pick out all the peas and chuck lots around in the process
 
I do, I feed Re-Leve. It really, really wouldn't be what I would choose to feed but mine is being exceptionally fussy and this is the only way to get her supplements down her. The big handful that I feed doesn't seem to have made any difference to her feet or temperament so for now I'm ok with feeding it.
 
I last fed a mix about 7 years ago, an event horse arrived mid winter looking a bit poor and refused to eat anything else , he stayed on it for over 12 months until I found something he would eat enough of to keep him in good condition although by then he was proving to be a rather good doer and gradually required less anyway.
The picky old cushings pony was tried on a few to keep weight on and did best on a build up or conditioning mix full of starch and sugar but at his age we let him choose.

I think if they are really picky, I have had a few, I prefer to get the food into them somehow and if possible gradually change it once the weight is on, if they don't remain how I want them then I would continue to feed what they eat and try to forget it is unhealthy.
 
Michen said:
I wonder what those quantities look like compared to 10/15 years plus ago though...would be interesting to know the proportion of mix vs cubes then and now.

Saracens releve is just a fun game for boggle to pick out all the peas and chuck lots around in the process
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I’ll ask someone for you!
 
I must admit we haven't fed mixes for years, but for a particularly fussy horse I'd probably try it.

At the moment all ours are on a combination of grass nuts, grass chaff, fast fibre and calm n condition (the oldie only)

Fiona
 
People do - novice-y (and, indeed experienced but ill-educated) owners I know feed all manner of disturbingly sugary mixes to their light work horses...

I haven't fed a mix in years. I'm not obsessive about feed - I generally give mine one or other of the various easily sourced soaking fibre feeds / chaffs because they get such small volumes I can't bring myself to obsess over their constituents.

With a horse like Boggle, I can understand why you'd want to use a mix!
 
I feed Pure Feeds fibre balance, which is a mixed feed. But it's precisely what you say above - molasses free, low cal, low starch, high fibre etc, and has a balancer included and pre/probiotics too. I wouldn't say I was novicey or ill-educated. In fact, when I was looking at changing feeds when my mare was diagnosed with ulcers, I called about 12 different feed merchants, asked a gazillion questions and set up a handy spreadsheet with all nutritional information listed and quantities for each feed option. A bit more than sticking my finger in the air, you might say...

All of my herd love the feed I use, and are all doing really well on it, so if it ain't broke, I'm not fixing it!
 
HeyMich said:
I feed Pure Feeds fibre balance, which is a mixed feed. But it's precisely what you say above - molasses free, low cal, low starch, high fibre etc, and has a balancer included and pre/probiotics too. I wouldn't say I was novicey or ill-educated.
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Well no - there's a difference between a mixed fibre feed and a traditional "mix" of the mollassed and sugary kind, which is what (I thought) Michen was referring to from the rest of her post. I also feed fibre-based mixed feeds of the type you describe, as I said above, so I think you can be reasonably confident I wasn't applying those adjectives to those!
 
HeyMich said:
I feed Pure Feeds fibre balance, which is a mixed feed. But it's precisely what you say above - molasses free, low cal, low starch, high fibre etc, and has a balancer included and pre/probiotics too. I wouldn't say I was novicey or ill-educated. In fact, when I was looking at changing feeds when my mare was diagnosed with ulcers, I called about 12 different feed merchants, asked a gazillion questions and set up a handy spreadsheet with all nutritional information listed and quantities for each feed option. A bit more than sticking my finger in the air, you might say...

All of my herd love the feed I use, and are all doing really well on it, so if it ain't broke, I'm not fixing it!
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I don't think that Pure Fibre Balance is the type of mix this thread is referring to! Yes it is a mixed feed/compound feed but it is not described as a mix by the manufacturers. It is basically a balancer in a chaff/fibre base. I think most people here ae talking about the traditional mixes that are labelled as such by the manufacturers - eg Pasture Mix, Competition Mix, Veteran Mix etc. Traditional mixes usually have a significant cereal content, plus often a liberal helping of molasses, and have a muesli like appearance that is visually appealing to some horse owners. I know quite a few 'novicy' horse owners who think feeding such a mix is the only way to give their horse 'everything it needs' and that this can be done with just a handful of the stuff!

Personally I haven't fed a traditional mix for years. If I do feed a compound feed then I usually opt for a nut/cube - these are generally higher in fibre and low in starch than the equivalent mix.
 
JFTD-WS said:
Well no - there's a difference between a mixed fibre feed and a traditional "mix" of the mollassed and sugary kind, which is what (I thought) Michen was referring to from the rest of her post. I also feed fibre-based mixed feeds of the type you describe, as I said above, so I think you can be reasonably confident I wasn't applying those adjectives to those!
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Yep I’m referring to a standard competition mix or similar from spillers.

Not a “healthy” one like saracens or pure feed etc
 
What’s everyone’s thoughts on barley rings? Feeding a scoop a day at the moment and seems feasible to double it once winter and hunting sets in.

Am feeding the rings as they have the linseed as well. Starch levels through the roof though.

That said Boggle is Boggle whatever he’s fed, so doesn’t hot up on feed as a general rule.
 
I used to feed barley rings to my old cob. I have no idea what they contain these days, or whether I'd feed them now, but they bring back all sorts of happy memories :D
 
JFTD-WS said:
Well no - there's a difference between a mixed fibre feed and a traditional "mix" of the mollassed and sugary kind, which is what (I thought) Michen was referring to from the rest of her post. I also feed fibre-based mixed feeds of the type you describe, as I said above, so I think you can be reasonably confident I wasn't applying those adjectives to those!
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TGM said:
I don't think that Pure Fibre Balance is the type of mix this thread is referring to! Yes it is a mixed feed/compound feed but it is not described as a mix by the manufacturers. It is basically a balancer in a chaff/fibre base. I think most people here ae talking about the traditional mixes that are labelled as such by the manufacturers - eg Pasture Mix, Competition Mix, Veteran Mix etc. Traditional mixes usually have a significant cereal content, plus often a liberal helping of molasses, and have a muesli like appearance that is visually appealing to some horse owners. I know quite a few 'novicy' horse owners who think feeding such a mix is the only way to give their horse 'everything it needs' and that this can be done with just a handful of the stuff!

Personally I haven't fed a traditional mix for years. If I do feed a compound feed then I usually opt for a nut/cube - these are generally higher in fibre and low in starch than the equivalent mix.
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Michen said:
Yep I’m referring to a standard competition mix or similar from spillers. Not a “healthy” one like saracens or pure feed etc
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Ah, I see. Misunderstood the question!
 
At the risk of being slated, I went down the whole mollasses/alfalfa/etc free component feed route after a particularly bad experience with a lami pony. However, since then I have come full circle and now feed Readimash Extra when weight gain is required. I know it's far from perfect, but I've limited other risk factors as best I can, it's less faff and it works.
 
Michen said:
What’s everyone’s thoughts on barley rings? Feeding a scoop a day at the moment and seems feasible to double it once winter and hunting sets in.

Am feeding the rings as they have the linseed as well. Starch levels through the roof though.

That said Boggle is Boggle whatever he’s fed, so doesn’t hot up on feed as a general rule.
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I have never fed them but see no reason not to if he likes them and they keep the weight on.

Take a look at the link, when the racehorse came back here supposedly fit but looking rubbish I put him onto one of the racing cubes, he had been on Spillers, within a week his coat had improved, he had started to build up muscle and went from looking ropey to winning best turned out, he didn't win the race but he looked the part!
They do include molasses but have a wide range of mixes some that are targeted at poor doers and some are lower in starch more fibre based.

https://redmills.co.uk/Horses/Products
 
Michen said:
What’s everyone’s thoughts on barley rings? Feeding a scoop a day at the moment and seems feasible to double it once winter and hunting sets in.

Am feeding the rings as they have the linseed as well. Starch levels through the roof though.

That said Boggle is Boggle whatever he’s fed, so doesn’t hot up on feed as a general rule.
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I don't have a problem with feeding cereal based/high starch feeds to horses who need it and can tolerate it. We did actually feed barley rings to my husband's hunter for a while as he was quite fussy, was working hard and needed extra calories. Although in the end we found Mole Valley conditioning cubes did the same job more cheaply!
 
I do. I feed a mare and youngstock mix to my in foal & lactating mares, and youngstock.
The good do-ers and those in light work that don’t need feeding but act like they’re starved whenever they see someone with a feed bucket get a handful of just a bog standard mix out of pity really.
My hunters don’t, not because I’m opposed to mix, but because they are on calm and condition which I prefer for those who need something a little extra.
 
There’s certainly not one size fits all when it comes to diets, for horses or humans...or indeed any animal. For horses who need and can tolerate the starch/sugar then by all means feed it! Especially if the horse is prone to weight loss and being a fussy eater.
I think mixes certainly have a place but I’ve never had a horse who needed anything like it.
 
I fed mix last winter 😳 my horse began to drop off quite suddenly and was being particularly picky. I tried linseed and various weight gain type feeds but it was heygates veteran mix that got him going again.
I only used a few bags then spring grazing came through. I’ll probably do it again if I find the same situation this winter.
I didn’t feed it as a sole feed. He had alfalfa and linseed pellets with a bit of mix as a bribe!
I could eat D&H pasture mix myself, smells amazing 🤭
 
JFTD-WS said:
People do - novice-y (and, indeed experienced but ill-educated) owners I know feed all manner of disturbingly sugary mixes to their light work horses...

I haven't fed a mix in years. I'm not obsessive about fee
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Wow - talk about judgemental! I will hold my hand up - I feed a mix. I'm not novicey or in experienced or even ill educated.

I feed a Dodson & Horrell Pasture Mix which is oat free, low protein and has the benefit of having tasty garlic, mint, carrots, basil and oregano in it being one of the very few things that my very fussy horse will consistently eat. When you have to add a probiotic, joint supplement and sachet of bute to a feed you need something palatable and enjoyable that the horse will finish up. when you buy bag upon bag of different feed because your horse is such a fussy eater and eventually stumble across something they will eat, its worth its weight in gold.

If its fed in moderation, i.e. a mugful a feed which I do, then I can't really see a massive problem. If you are feeding with recommended guidelines in place (which lets face it most of us don't or we would end up with severely obese horses) then I can understand your concern.
 
It about 15 years ago now but barley rings were the only feed that a friends fussy TB that always ran light through the winter would eat. They helped her keep condition on and didnt seem to have any adverse effects on either her health or temperament.
 
Once again, it is horse for courses......... or in this case....... coarse mixes! The big old horse I ride is now 26 years old, he still looks a picture and he is fed Pasture mix and a chaff. He has had the same for the last three and a half years that I have been riding him and his owner is far from novicey. (three children , now grown up, one an equine vet married to an equine nutritionist, who all went through Pony Club).
For what ever reason it suits him. This was him with one of the "children" at a meet last New Year.
 

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I think loads of people feed mixes and there are some very good mixes .
I feed straights but mixes would be a good choice for the one horse owner with limited space .
I do sometimes get D and H competition mix for Tatts who is picky sometimes and he always eats that .
 
I fed a mix for a very short amount of time, when I was trying to mask the taste of antibiotics.
It smelt lovely, for sure, but my god was it sticky, sweet and looked like guineapig food! I mean, it being sticky and sweet was the reason I bought it, and I can certainly see how owners less clued up on nutrition could be drawn to feed it to horses that don't need it, as it's much more appealing to the human eye than a bowl of plain chaff and some speedibeet.
Kind of like how in some pet foods, you often get shaped and coloured biscuits (like little fish shapes in cat food, and those green cubes in dog food). Those aren't in there to appeal to the animal, they're there to appeal to the human. I'm not saying the horse mix is trying to appeal to the human eye though, just that it can have that same kind of effect. Like the subconscious thought of 'Well, I know I'd rather eat that tasty looking mix than some plain old straw chaff' influencing buying decisions.

I'm rambling on now sorry :x
 
I think the important thing these days is there's plenty of choice out there and it's relatively easy to get the information owners require to make an edcuated choice. Re-leve works for M and he's fed it with Fast Fibre which I suppose is a mix of sorts - albeit in a mash format. Archie gets the same as it's easier to give them the same thing but he seems equally fine on cheap pony cubes or mix and I wouldn't have any qualms giving him that if it was convenient.
 
barely rings are the dried version of boiled barley and linseed. they have done all the cooking for you etc. so no added extra except vits
"Barley, Full Fat Linseed, Limestone Flour, Salt, Vitamin/Trace Mineral Premix"

as long as he is not barley sensitive and it works then its no problem
 
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