Feeding a balancer instead of feed

[poiuytrewq]

how long does a bag last an average horse?
I feed my good doer very little hard feed and as a result was concerned he may not be getting the nutrients he needs. I don't give anywhere near the bag recommendations for his size. A bag of high fibre nuts costs me £9.99 and lasts about 3 weeks (along with lite chaff and ad lib hay)
Balances look very expensive and I think I'd actually need to feed a lot of it compared with current rations. Would that be right?

 

[Highlands]

If me put a salt lick in field (rockie) or pink powder. I do use a balancer but to maxmise the good bacteria in my youngsters gut to make her digestion more effective.

 

[twobearsarthur]

Every brand is different and of course depending on the size of the horse. But typically you feed balancer in smaller amounts some a cup a day for example. A bag would last anything from 4-8 weeks. If you look on the various feed websites they will tell you the approx amount to be fed.
I have gone back to feeding a broad spectrum vit and mineral supplement as my girl doesn't need hard feed and find for us that is the most economical. I use Equimins and can rate that. I'm sure everyone has their favourites.

 

[twobearsarthur]

Forgot to add that equimins also has the pre/probiotics etc... Included

 

[lula]

how long does a bag last an average horse?
I feed my good doer very little hard feed and as a result was concerned he may not be getting the nutrients he needs. I don't give anywhere near the bag recommendations for his size. A bag of high fibre nuts costs me £9.99 and lasts about 3 weeks (along with lite chaff and ad lib hay)
Balances look very expensive and I think I'd actually need to feed a lot of it compared with current rations. Would that be right?

No, in a nutshell.
i also have a good doer and feed her Spillers Original Balancer lite which costs £18 a bag. It is a little pricey but according to her size, 16.2hh @ appox 500kls, she gets around 2 coffee mugs split between 2 feeds daily (just over half a scoop) and a handful of chaff.
1 Bag lasts about 6 weeks and im reassured she's getting all the nutrients she needs along with her ad lib hay/grass only diet. Plus she looks fab on it.

 

[Wheels]

I use forage plus balancers plus micronised linseed as they advise. I feed the correct amount of balancer for my horses size which is 100g per day, a 5kg bag is about £50 so costs £1 per day plus the linseed.

I used to feed main stream balancers where they state you should feed between 750g and 1kg per day. In general the vitamins and minerals are provided at a lower rate than the forage plus balancer yet I needed to feed up to 10 x as much and nobody could tell me exactly what the other 900g was made up of.

 

[Tess Love]

I put a cup full in her nut ball and would say it last about 6 to 7 weeks, she's a 14.2hh very good doer.

 

[amandap]

Decent spec balancers aren't cheap but provide base minerals and vitamins needed plus lysine and methionine (proteins) often short in forages. Some also include gut support ie. yea sacc. Tbh, you get what you pay for in most cases.
I'm not up on feeds and mineral etc. content but it seems you have to feed larger quantities to get similar spec, which means increasing calories usually.
It's a case of researching what is actually in each and the levels.

 

[khalswitz]

I use a balancer, two cupfuls a day, at £25 a bag (I use stud balancer as a cheaper alternative to performance balancer) and lasts me six to eight weeks. Much cheaper than the huge amount of hard feed before - now I just feed hard feed for calories as and when needed.

 

[smellsofhorse]

I use equilibra.
two cupfuls a day, which are 250g each.

As its a balancer you need to feed the correct amount for the tpye of horse and work load, but this always is less than if you were trying to feed the correct amount of normal hard feed.

 

[Undecided]

One bag of baileys lo cal lasted me from October to end of feb with one mug per day for my 15.1hh with a handful of happy hoof and ad lib hay, he's the best hes ever looked and will be continuing with this from now on!

 

[sarahg83]

I feed mine balancer, and she loves it. I love the fact its quick and easy and only one bag to pick up from the food store. She has kept her weight on well and has lived out all year. Her coat is lovely too, and her feet are getting better. Mine last me about 2 months, she cas about a coffee mug a day.