Feeding Advice Please (TB!)

3Beasties

3Beasties

Well-Known Member
Joined
7 September 2008
Messages
15,574
Visit site
Sorry, I know these have been done to death but was wondering if you could cast an eye over what my TB gets fed and advise if you think it sounds about right or not (to much of something/not enough of another?!).

Bit of back ground - 16.2HH, 16 Year old TB. In at night, out during the day. Gets ad-lib hay over night and has plenty of grass in the field. He has always been a poor doer but last year we managed to get through winter without him turning into a hack rack (however have changed his diet this year to try and make it simpler although I'm not sure I've achieved that yet!).

He currently gets fed twice a day (will try and put it up to 3 when the weather really turns!)

Each feed he has -

1 stubbs scoop of Alpha A Oil

1 Stubbs Scoop of Topspec Super Conditioning flakes (New addition this year but he has done really well on them over the summer so wanted to stick with them!)

A small (square type) Scoop of speedi beet (dry amount)

And at the moment he is also having a small cup of oats a day but I will be stopping them very shortly as he really doesn't need the extra energy through Winter :eek: (have just been trying to get rid of them but will give up on that idea and give them to someone who will use them!)

He also gets Pink powder, Vegetable oil (is that too much oil as he has the alpha A oil too? ) and his other supplements.

At the moment he is not looking to bad but obviously it is still very early days with regards to the rest of the Winter.

My only concern is that this year his back fetlocks seem to be filling overnight (one more then the other) and a few people have said this could be due to what he's getting fed, last year there was no filling at all.

Also he seems slightly loose at the moment, he's never had the firmest of poos (Sorry TMI!) but I think last year they were firmer, he was on bran last Winter and all through the summer and it's only since I stopped that it seems to have happened. So shall I stick him back on the bran? I was only giving him about a 1/4 of a scoop per food and TBH I stopped as I wasn't convinced that it was helping but maybe it was! :o

And finally, if I do manage to fit another feed in during the depths of Winter what on earth shall I give him?? Do I just split the two feeds into 3 or would you give him even more food? I'm thinking maybe some chaff just mixed with speedi beet might be OK?

Sorry for the essay!
 
I fed my poor TB (under vets advice) alpha a, pony nuts and oil.... alot of oil. 100ml per 100kg of horse. Horse looks mega on it. So I wouldnt worry about the oil and the alpha a oil. If anything I would up the oil. Or just change to alpha a and add your own oil in, gradually. I would keep the bran in if the poos are a bit sloppy!! Splitting feeds would depend on the weight of the horse, if the horse is ok Id stick to 2 feeds, if on the thin side Id do 3 and add more.
 
is there any way you can put hay/haylage in the field for him so he can pick on it during the day? the grass wont have much goodness now for a tb and the hay would give a load of extra calories. i used to have a big tb (only got a little one now lol) and id feed him a really large stubbs scoop of each of alfa A with oil ,soaked sugarbeet and conditioning flakes . if you feel you need supplements then i would add bluechip original. you dont need to give an extra feed in the day if you can give hay . i wouldnt feed the bran it messes with the calcium/phosphate in the body so not highly thought of these days. and if you use the bluechip you wont need the extra oil. with regard to the filling legs this can be to do with mud fever-check for scabs- or just circulation due to age,could you bandage or boot at night to keep his legs warm? have you wormed recently ?that could loosen droppings also you could up the pink powder to dry him up and have a chat with ur vet if it continues. dont forget that you must keep him extra warm so hes not loosing weight due to being cold. phew!!! sorry for essay- hope some of this helps.xx:D:D:D just to add if you are feeding lots of oil you need a vit E supplement and the oil amount must be increased very slowly
 
Last edited:
I swear by A&P fast fibre, my TB's on it and is looking pretty good atm, but I'm upping it a bit now it's getting colder. I'd stick a scoop of that in his feed, the high fibre content will slow the feed in his gut, so he'll be able to absorb a bit more from his grub, or so I'm told :p :)

J&C
 
Thanks guys.

AP - He won't eat the hay/haylage in the field unless there is no grass so that won't really work at the moment.

No mud fever thankfully but I will try putting stable wraps on and see if that helps.
He gets 4 scoops of pink powder a day, maybe that's to much instead of not enough? :confused: :o

Surprisingly he's been mega warm so far and usually he is a cold horse, not sure if that's a good or bad thing though!!

Would anyone recommend feeding linseed flakes alongside the above?
 
I used to give my lad alpha a oil but this didnt really help him and he seemed quite loose on it, i was recommended Spillers Conditioning Fibre and he has come on leaps and bounds since being on this. He doesnt hold his weight overly well but the difference ive seen since hes been on this is amazing.
 
At the moment it's more about maintaining his weight then putting more on but I will bare that in mind if he drops off.
 
tbh i wouldnt bother with the linseed as its more oil again , hes on quite a good measure of pink powder so maybe a phone call to your vet for advice would be a good idea just to see if hes got any advice regarding the loose poo. with regard to rugging id always go a weight heavier with my tbs as they get colder on standing than natives etc in the stable. :D:D
 
He's being seen regually by a Vet due to other issues :) The looseness has been something he's always had, it's not awful but they're just not as firm as they could be. I think I have just noticed that they have become worse since coming of the bran so I think I'll get him some more and see what happens :)
 
No advice as such, but my TB sounds similar to yours.
She is 6yrs been turned away, lives out 24/7.
Just started feeding hay today, still a bit of grass about. She has 2 x feeds per day - large scoop of chaff, 3 small cups micronized barley, scoop sugar beet and oil. TBH shes looking rather good :) shes in a MW in the day and at night has the same rug but with a full quilted neck. Shes snug warm, happy and (almost) chubby :D lets hope she stays that way!!
 
My skinny mare put on loads of weight with Rowen and Barbary's Readymash Extra. In fact if she was in work, she would still be on it. She's a fussy eater, but she absolutely loved it.

The other feed I like is Allen and Page Fast Fibre. It firmed the poos up tremendously, but unfortunately she's decided she doesn't like it any more and has stopped eating it, so we're onto speedibeet before we have to find something else.

But if your horse is in work, the Readymash Extra is honestly the best feed for a TB I have ever ever found.
 
Humm, maybe I should give this readymash a try? How much do you feed and what would I be replacing from what he already gets?
 
Last edited:
Holly Hocks said:
My skinny mare put on loads of weight with Rowen and Barbary's Readymash Extra. In fact if she was in work, she would still be on it. She's a fussy eater, but she absolutely loved it.

The other feed I like is Allen and Page Fast Fibre. It firmed the poos up tremendously, but unfortunately she's decided she doesn't like it any more and has stopped eating it, so we're onto speedibeet before we have to find something else.

But if your horse is in work, the Readymash Extra is honestly the best feed for a TB I have ever ever found.
Click to expand...
Second that - my TB is their latest advert! Only reason I switched off it was it's a bugger to get hold of round here, although might try again :)

Edit as cross posted: I fed 2 dry scoops a day (1:1 ratio) so she got 2 scoops soaked mash in her feed with some alpha a oil. http://www.rowenbarbary.co.uk/customer-comments.php?offset=4
 
Last edited:
What did you feed him last winter? (To give us a clue as to whether feed is causing the filled fetlocks and loose poos!)

If you go up to three feeds a day, I would suggest feeding the same ingredients as in the other two feeds. Start with a smallish amount and then up to the same as breakfast and dinner if that is what is needed to maintain condition.

You say he gets adlib hay overnight, but does he actually eat much of it? If he is not a big hay eater, then look at adding additional forage sources overnight - haylage, grass chaff, soaked grass nuts etc.
 
Oopps sorry typo up there ^^^ He gets haylage, not hay! I wouldn't say he eats loads, he has a hay bar that I fill (but not crammed full), sometimes he will eat most of it, other times he leaves a fair amount.

Last Winter he was fed twice a day, as far as I can remember her had 1 scoop of Alpha A oil, mixed with a small square scoop of comp mix, a small square scoop of bran, a small square scoop of (dry amount) coolstance and the same of speedi beet. (Can you see why I'm trying to simplify it!!).

Last winter I couldn't fit 3 proper feeds in so he was fed twice and then last thing of night he'd get a bucket full of alpha A oil to munch on.
 
3Beasties said:
Humm, maybe I should give this readymash a try? How much do you feed and what would I be replacing from what he already gets?
Click to expand...

It's definitely the Readymash Extra that you need - the other Ready mashes will do nothing to put weight on.
It's just equal volume of feed to water, soak for 5 minutes and voila! I just fed it as it was, but I know that some people put a bit of chaff in. It's a complete feed, so I don't think you'll need anything else in it.
My mare went from this, when she came out of two months in hospital
blueresize2-1.jpg


To this - in two months
013.jpg
 
http://www.thepurefeedcompany.com/products/pure-condition

Have a look at this. It saves all the hassle of mixing your own conditioning recipe. They also do a racing mix,which I have heard fab things about.
I feed my poor do-er Pure Easy+pure balance...........However,since being on Pure feeds he is no longer a poor do-er,hence the pure easy(lo-cal feed)!:)He used to get calm and condition,alfalfa,speedy beet,oil,muscle up,pink powder,linseed,coolstance.........took ages to soak and mix!
Feeding horses is so much more to do with HOW they digest,rather than WHAT they digest,so finding a feed that utilizes their hind gut and stimulates the natural gut flora, can often be a revelation.

As an added bonus,the company still have 50% off to new customers via facebook.

I do not work for them. I just rate their product.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top