Feeding Barley - How do you cook yours?...

Baydale said:
I was going to quote from the Manual of Horsemanship - "feed according to the work done" - it shouldn't send anything mental if it's getting enough work. I'd rather feed barley than sugar beet as I think it can make them stuffy and thick in their wind if they're doing fast work; don't know why that is, no doubt there are feed experts here that will tell me.

Just off to find more blankets to put under my jute rugs as it's parky out there tonight.;)
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Hmmmm just don't forget to dry off those new zealands while you at it and limber up your muscles ready for the heinous amount of strapping you need to do tomorrow!!:D
 
help1 said:
Hmmmm just don't forget to dry off those new zealands while you at it and limber up your muscles ready for the heinous amount of strapping you need to do tomorrow!!:D
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Good point, who needs gym membership when there's strapping to be done? :p *Baydale sighs wistfully, remembering the old days*:D
 
Chloe_GHE said:
Argh just read that uncooked Linseed it poisonous! I didn't know that, think I may try Barley first because being on a livery yard you never know what might happen if people don't realise what the feed is etc....
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Only poisonous if fed in large quantities. 1 cupful a day freshly ground is fine - you get all the benefits of the Omega oils for joints and a shiny coat as well. I have a small coffee grinder it's brilliant at grinding linseed.
 
Baydale said:
Good point, who needs gym membership when there's strapping to be done? :p *Baydale sighs wistfully, remembering the old days*:D
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Baydale - I remember the good old days when nothing was bathed and we brushed the dirt out with the body brush at least 45mins a day and our horses gleamed then work banging muscles with a damped wisp - that was if your horse hadn't scoffed it! A hose pipe on the yard was non existent. Always felt sorry for the people looking after greys as they would rush around all day clutching their bucket, water brush and stable rubber - we were not allowed stable stains on any horse ever! - then work banging muscles with a damped wisp

Our horses ate crushed grain, maybe whole oats, ate boiled barley and linseed in bran on the night before their day off. Were fed unsoaked hay - in haynets. We used to get the waste stuff from the Horlicks factory - our horses and ponies had this in their feed by the scoop full - mostly sugars and malted grains - no one got laminitis - because they were worked according to their feed and fed according to their work load. Along with sugarbeet, (in answer to your musing - sugarbeet retains a lot of water and is high in fibre so bulks up the intestines so may cause them to be a bit stuffy - great for endurance horses not so good for racehorses)

They had shoes on - all four feet - were trotted daily mostly on the roads for an hour each day - heaven forbid and generally stayed sound and fit. They didn't eat processed feeds so didn't get allergies and head shaking. We hacked to many shows and rarely used the indoor arena - it was boring - far more fun to hack out or school in the field.

My pony a New Forest was never hard fed in all the years I had her. She lived out uncovered 24/7, I'd get her out of her field at 5:30 in the morning, ride 15miles to my friends place. We'd have a break then go for a ride in Black Park for a couple of hours and then I'd ride home again - often get home at 6 or 7 in the evening. One time at a show the vet judging remarked on what a fit pony she was.
 
Firstly thanks TGM for the useful advice :)

Baydale said:
Old Person Alert! :D

Will keep it simple as don't want to get drawn into new-fangled vs old style feeding systems,;) - we feed all ours boiled barley and linseed from Opening Meet to the end of the hunting season. For 12 horses (yep, the Baydale eventers get it too, even though they don't hunt - didn't want to start a riot :rolleyes:) I soak a scoop of whole barley and 1/3 scoop linseed in the morning, put it on to cook at teatime and voila, it's done by morning and ready to be mixed into their evening feeds. It bulks up a lot so I'd say each gets about half a jug (3/4 pint) of the gooey soup-ey stuff.

Here endeth the post of an old-person-with-very-fat-and-shiny-ponies.:D
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Baydale do you know the 1st thought I had when Amanda said 'feed them Barley they will get fat and shiny' was of your boys! ;) I had an inkling you must have some sort of old school secrets to be able to keep tbs in such good condition! I have just (last 2 weeks) swapped from copra meal back to speedi beet, have upped their bailey topline cubes, and moved them onto HiFi lite, and into that mix I'm gonna add a balancer for Soap and Barley for both in their suppers. I am officially on a 'feed offensive' and determined to have the plumpest looking eventer turned show horse at our ROR champs in March! ;)

I'm hoping with all this rocket fuel they won't go loco, they are pretty sensible 90% of the time (I may live to regret this comment!)

We will just have to wait and see, look out for a blog post about it, I'm gonna get geeky and weigh them to do before and afters, the opposite of fat fighters......flab finders! :)
 
Slightly off point but I can recommend the Baileys Performance Balancer, my TB is like Brick **** house after being on that stuff for just over a month, I add a cup to his normal feed and he has grown about a hand in ALL directions :p He was on SB, chop, outshine and Flaked Barley but the barley blew his brains, lots of waving of the front legs ;) so swapped the barley for the balancer :) = FATTY!
 
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emmyc said:
Slightly off point but I can recommend the Baileys Performance Balancer, my TB is like Brick **** house after being on that stuff for just over a month, I add a cup to his normal feed and he has grown about a hand in ALL directions :p He was on SB, chop, outshine and Flaked Barley but the barley blew his brains, lots of waving of the front legs ;) so swapped the barley for the balancer :) = FATTY!
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I'm so glad you said that I bought a bag last night!
 
You can tell me to shut up if you like, but I reckon you can get the same results ie. round and shiny ponies :) on just soaked oats, Alfa Oil and cooked barley or sugar beet. Ok, so your feed merchant may not love you so much but you'll have more money to spend on lessons and entries. ;)
 
Baydale said:
You can tell me to shut up if you like, but I reckon you can get the same results ie. round and shiny ponies :) on just soaked oats, Alfa Oil and cooked barley or sugar beet. Ok, so your feed merchant may not love you so much but you'll have more money to spend on lessons and entries. ;)
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I quite agree! Not a regular so don't know which version of the dreaded cancer you have, but would like to wish you well. You sound like a "half full" rather than a "half empty" sort of person so that is half the battle....had it 10 yrs ago and still here and hopefully there will be a few more years. Good luck:)
 
Agreed on not being the feedman's best friend. Inexperienced, but well meaning and hard working, fellow livery was concerned that her cob was being awfully silly on his chaff and handful of cheap nuts so went to ask advice. She came back with 'cool mix' and 'cool' chaff. . . .
 
Re the comment about any food leading to internal fat. That is true of course, but in the case I was referring to it was feeding too much barley that led to the trouble.

Barley is a fattening feed, it is what is fed to cattle to fatten them up, and why vets recommend feeding oats to sheep rather than barley. That is why feeding horses get oats instead of barley, traditionally. (Other than the once a week treat after hunting - yes I used to do this as well).
 
Baydale said:
You can tell me to shut up if you like, but I reckon you can get the same results ie. round and shiny ponies :) on just soaked oats, Alfa Oil and cooked barley or sugar beet. Ok, so your feed merchant may not love you so much but you'll have more money to spend on lessons and entries. ;)
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Baydale, you are correct and this method has been tried trust me, my option is rather pricey BUT I am alive ;) 6yo retrained racehorse, super fit, super well, SUPER PSYCHO!!! Hence I go for the no concentrate option ;) looks well and is more sensible to ride :)
 
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emmyc said:
Baydale, you are correct and this method has been tried trust me, my option is rather pricey BUT I am alive ;) 6yo retrained racehorse, super fit, super well, SUPER PSYCHO!!! Hence I go for the no concentrate option ;) looks well and is more sensible to ride :)
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I wasn't knocking it, honest,;) more pointing out to Chloe that she could get the same results cheaper. We've got 12 in work so OH is keen to find the most thrifty way of feeding, obviously!
 
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