Feeding Advice

M

Mancha

Well-Known Member
Joined
9 October 2011
Messages
185
Visit site
My pony is currently fed on 3/4 scoop hifi and 3/4 scoop speedi beet with a handful of pony nuts (not even a generous handful!) along with a bit of oil, he has this once a day. Along with haylage in the field twice a day, as he lives out. This seemed to be working well but i have noticed he has dropped a bit of weight, he's by no means a poor doer but with him living out i don't really want him dropping much more. He's a LW cob x trotter and has been fat up until the last couple of months hence the basic diet but it's slowly dropped off, and now i don't want him to lose anymore i'm wondering what to feed him? I can't give adlib haylage as he's out with other peoples horses, but they get plenty morning and evening. I'm wondering whether to up what he's getting at the moment or whether to introduce something else? I can't really change the hifi or speedi beet at the moment as i'm only feeding one horse and i have lots of it still. Any suggestions welcome :)
 
I would put more oil in. I use plain old vegetable oil and it gives my horse a lovely shine as well. They can tolerate quite a lot of oil in their feed as long as they get the right vitamins to digest it properly.

As long as you are feeding a good quality chaff (is it actually Dengie Hi-Fi?) then you should be fine. And you're feeding haylage which is great.

Once you've finished your Hi-Fi, maybe you could try Alfalfa if he's still losing weight? Is he warm enough under his rug? It's sometimes difficult to tell if they've got a decent coat as all the warmth is trapped in the layers...
 
Calm & Condition by Allan and Page is good for putting om weight without getting fizzy. It needs to be soaked like speedibeet so shouldn't be a problem and you can just add it to his feed every day.
 
Yeah it's dengi hifi, will definately switch him over to some alfa a when i'm a bit further through it. He's plenty warm enough and has got shelter etc.

Hadnt though of calm & condition might be worth a shot thanks :)
 
I wouldnt over egg the pudding by swapping to Alfa a or Calm & Cond, up the oil and haylage, make sure he's well rugged and see how you go :)

ETA - Sorry, just read you cant give more haylage. Hows the grazing in your field? Personally i like to use Graze On, its the same as readigrass just cheaper. I find it fab for condition and doesnt send my boys bonkers like alfa a does. Worth a try!
 
Last edited:
Oh no not looking to go in all guns blazing, only really looking to make a few small changes as he's by no means skinny just about right really. He's also a bit cheeky (putting it politely!) to ride so don't really need any added fizz/energy. Will have a think as i'd like to stay clear of conditionining feeds because of what they're likely to do for his brain, but feeding something like a pasture mix isn't likely to do anything really is it?!
 
I have swapped my 2 good doers onto alfa a now - they are on hifi for most of the year, but I do always swap them to Alfa a during the worst of the winter.

I feed a very similar diet - my guys have half scoop of Alfa a, handful of nuts and then a half scoop of speedibeet. But with my speedibeet I also soak up copra meal, and they have about a quarter scoop of that. Copra is good for maintaining condition, and has lots of via and mins, and gets a good shine on their coats
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top