Ex racer lacking condition?! Advice needed!

ImmyS

ImmyS

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So I posted a thread not long ago explaining that I had bought a 16.2 5 year old thoroughbred mare who was a little on the skinny side and you gave me some great advice. So basically I have had a little chop and change. She is now having four small meals a day instead of two big ones and each meal consists of a half scoop of calm and condition, half of conditioning cubes, half of chaff (we only use a small sized scoop) and a soya oil supplement. She also has 24/7 turnout on good grass. We also exercise her a little every day or she has a day off in the week, mostly groundwork though to help muscle development! (:

Is this a better diet for her and will it be more encouraging for weight gain? Ohh and I forgot to mention she is an ex racer and so still has that racey shape with not much bum or neck, so if anyone has experience of turning a racehorse into a riding horse the advice would be welcomed!

Thanks Immy x
 
just takes time. my lad took a few months before he put proper condition on. once i started riding him i just did work that would be up muscle, like suppling and transitions. Also loads of slow hacks and lunging.

Increased turnout did him a load of good physically and mentally as well.
 
When we got my sister's horse as a 4 yo he was a little poor (nothing major but thinner than he should have been) and we fed him Allen and Page Weight Gain with some good results. Not sure whether it's heating or not (he was a pretty laid back soul although now anything with too much sigar/oats can make him a bit giddy!) but it certainly put the weight on and he looked good on it. Now (he's 12) he has no problem with his weight at all - in fact he never has since we got him, we need to watch his weight if anything so god knows what he was (or wasn't fed) when we took him on!
 
This was my ex-racer without condition
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This is her a few months later
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I fed her Readymash Extra by Rowen Barbary feeds. One sack lasts for ages as you have to soak it first. It's also the only food she has ever tucked into properly as she's a really fussy so and so. I no longer feed it to her as she put on weight and hasn't needed it - I kept her on it for about six months and she is now on Fast Fibre and high fibre cubes.
 
I had to order it in at my feedstore as they didn't stock it as regular stock, but they didn't find it hard to get hold of. It is about £14 a bag, but lasts quite a long time. I didn't find it particularly heating, although it does have quite a high level of sugars and starch (one of the reasons I can't feed it now as we're part of the barefoot brigade!LOL!) so theoretically it should have been heating.
But Rowen and Barbary also have a new one out now called Solutions Mash which is extremely low in sugar and starch but promoted for weight gain. Unfortunately she wouldn't eat this one :(
 
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