Feed & supplements on a budget

paddi22

paddi22

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Due to personal circumstances I have very little money to spare at the moment, so have to cut down on horse budget. Would anyone have any advice on how I can make my feed and supplement bill smaller!? Horse are both 16hh and live out at grass fulltime. One is barefoot tb so needs hoof supplement. I'm just hoping people might be able to advise how i can cut down on costs or find cheaper suppliers. Both are very lively so am wary of anything with sugar or oats in it. They will do dressage and winter and then one does low level eventing next year.

At the moment they get:
Baileys endurance mix (they seem to do well on the outshine in it)
Hoof supplement
Cortoflex (they both have arthritis)
Equine america respiratory supplement (one has mild copd and wind issues)

I read the other thread and it suggests using botswelia for the arthritis. I looked it up and it works for copd as well. So that might be cheaper. Any other suggestions for feed or cheaper hoof supp appreciated!
 
Both Cortaflex and anything from Equine America are very expensive. If you can find a generic version that would be a lot cheaper. You don't say which hoof supplement you are on - but there are loads out there. You might also be able to swap to something from the Allen & Paige range - all cereal and sugar free (as far as possible) and usually cheaper than Baileys. Although that will depend on supplier etc. have you tried buying in bulk or on line? if you hunt around someone usually has supplements on special offer - although you may then have to pay for postage as well.
 
I would go back to basics:

Sugar Beet (I buy regular beet and give it a couple of rinses, once soaked, to remove excess molasses. £6-£8 per 25kg bag, lasts ages)

Micronised Linseed (High oil, high protein, low starch, low sugar - £20.99 + £2.99 p&p 20kg bag)
I buy it here: http://www.farmandpetplace.co.uk/pr...eed/conditioning/micronized-linseed-20kg.html

Pro Balance Forage Balancer (Progressive Earth on eBay - http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_f....H0.Xpro+balance&_nkw=pro+balance&_sacat=3153 )

I don't use joint supplements, so can't comment on that.
 
NAF do a glucosamine + MSM which is around £15, probably worth checking for a respiratory supplement from them (or ebay) as well and if you can get it Equibeet (unmollassed beet pulp) as the carrier feed.
Are you anywhere near NE Shropshire? I am getting an account with a wholesaler so can do a good price on most feeds, supplements, bedding etc as well as poultry, dog and cat food. I need the account because that is the only way I can get Equibeet locally but I need a minimum order so I can supply others nearby.
 
cheers for all the advice. definitely going to look into those links and make savings in places. based in ireland so unfortunately can't join up for orders.
 
Hi, do you have a local feed store who sell their own brand feeds? We have Mole Valley Farmers near us and their feeds are manufactured by one of the big feed manufacturers but branded for MVF. their conditioning cubes have a comparable content and feed value as Baileys No. 4 but is only around £7 compared to £13 so a great saving. They have a large range of their own brand so I am sure you would find something suitable for your horses.
 
I'd also second what HBB said plus turmeric is supposed to help both copd type issues and arthritis. If you look on here or google or go on the Turmeric users group on facebook that should bring up a lot of info.
 
I would look again at oats, as long as they don't have an allergy or intolerance to them I've found oats no where near as heating as other cereals and they have a lot more fiber to them. Try rolled oats. Also look at the Dengie range and I have to admit I don't worry too much about molasses as my two are both in decent work and it doesn't seem to affect them. I use GWF equilibra 500 as a balancer and it suits my two barefoot horses brilliantly (I add a little magnesium but only a little).
Hope this helps.
 
so theoretically, could i try a feed of oats, barley, beetpulp (all bought cheap in bulk) plus micronised linseed, cheap hoof supp, and botswelia (instead of cortoflex and resp supps)

what quantity of the straights would you feed per meal for a 16hh horse? Just not sure of quantities
 
It is a long time since I looked at any, but I'm pretty sure that one of the main ingredients of Endurance mix was oats ??

I would go for straights too, I feed oats, beet and cheap fibre cubes and have done for years and added micronized linseed a couple of years ago when I discovered that it was possible to buy it (seems to be the horse feed industry's best kept secret!) Can't really help on quantity as my animals and their work loads differ from yours and I feed mainly by eye.
 
paddi22 said:
Due to personal circumstances I have very little money to spare at the moment, so have to cut down on horse budget. Would anyone have any advice on how I can make my feed and supplement bill smaller!? Horse are both 16hh and live out at grass fulltime. One is barefoot tb so needs hoof supplement. I'm just hoping people might be able to advise how i can cut down on costs or find cheaper suppliers. Both are very lively so am wary of anything with sugar or oats in it. They will do dressage and winter and then one does low level eventing next year.

At the moment they get:
Baileys endurance mix (they seem to do well on the outshine in it)
Hoof supplement
Cortoflex (they both have arthritis)
Equine america respiratory supplement (one has mild copd and wind issues)

I read the other thread and it suggests using botswelia for the arthritis. I looked it up and it works for copd as well. So that might be cheaper. Any other suggestions for feed or cheaper hoof supp appreciated!
Click to expand...


I would get rid of the supplements your using very expensive!!!!! I buy from thunderbrook herbs devils claw is £21 kg which is fab for joints!!!
Has for feed SOAKED ALFA BEET OR SUGAR BEET with good dash corn oil £2 litre from supermarket
good chaff ie happy hoof
If your horses live out in winter suggest a big roller bale haylage they have access to works out cheaper than buying little bales and they can munch has much as they want esecially when there is no goodness in the grass and it will help keep the weight on!! also hay is no good for copd haylage will not make them cough xxxxx
 
paddi22 said:
so theoretically, could i try a feed of oats, barley, beetpulp (all bought cheap in bulk) plus micronised linseed, cheap hoof supp, and botswelia (instead of cortoflex and resp supps)

what quantity of the straights would you feed per meal for a 16hh horse? Just not sure of quantities
Click to expand...

Can't help on quantities but that sounds good. I've found Equimins Hoofmender an excellent hoof supplement and it has a money back guarantee. Or go for an all round supplement like Pro Hoof or Equivita which should sort the feet too.
 
fuzzle said:
I would get rid of the supplements your using very expensive!!!!! I buy from thunderbrook herbs devils claw is £21 kg which is fab for joints!!!
Has for feed SOAKED ALFA BEET OR SUGAR BEET with good dash corn oil £2 litre from supermarket
good chaff ie happy hoof
If your horses live out in winter suggest a big roller bale haylage they have access to works out cheaper than buying little bales and they can munch has much as they want esecially when there is no goodness in the grass and it will help keep the weight on!! also hay is no good for copd haylage will not make them cough xxxxx
Click to expand...

Devil's claw is an anti-inflammatory that works in the same way as bute (and comes with similar risks to the liver) - this is quite different to feeding Cortaflex and is also not competition legal.
 
Northern Hare said:
Hi, do you have a local feed store who sell their own brand feeds? We have Mole Valley Farmers near us and their feeds are manufactured by one of the big feed manufacturers but branded for MVF. their conditioning cubes have a comparable content and feed value as Baileys No. 4 but is only around £7 compared to £13 so a great saving. They have a large range of their own brand so I am sure you would find something suitable for your horses.
Click to expand...

MVF feeds are made by Spillers :)
 
i've just swapped from Progressive Earth to Equivita as they do a bespoke option. Means I can get a decent base then add any extras in I want. Ie brewers yeast, I feed 70gms a day, so I bought 20kgs, woks out about £1.75 a kg delivered instead of £6.99 plus delivery. Same with linseed, £20 ish for 25kgs and lasts forever!
 
Do an as fed analysis and spend your money on the most cost effective products that cover the basics- vit, min, protein, calories. NRC and feed x l both have calc or you can google doing it yourself.

Personally I stay away from processed feeds and feed a powder vit/min that was feed can be increased / decreased as needed and you are still providing the necessary vits and mins.
 
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