Feeding confusion

[HelenBack]

Is it just me or is the range of feeds available nowadays completely bewildering? And when you look at the list of ingredients do you wonder what on earth half of them are? My horse tends to keep himself at a reasonably healthy weight. I'm a leisure rider who does a mixture of hacking, schooling and low level competing. Does he really need anymore than some decent hay or haylage, a bit of chaff and a vitamin and mineral supplement? Appreciate it's different for those with poor doers or competing at a high level but surely for most of our nags all these fancy feeds aren't really essential?

And what balancers? I've fed these for years but am beginning to think they're a complete rip off. I know people say they give a source of protein that a supplement doesn't but isn't there protein in hay, haylage, grass and chaff? And given the small amount of balancer given and the levels of protein within a balancer, how much extra protein am I actually giving anyway?

Would love to know what others think.

 

[thatsmygirl]

I'm along the same thinking.

Balancers in my mind are a huge rip off, what are they balancing? Nothing as everybody's grazing and therefore vit/min levels etc are completely different. Take my place for example ( livery yard but been there so long its home) our grazing is stupidly high in iron but very low in copper so most balancers would do my lot no good at all as I won't feed extra iron if I can help it, its the copper I need!!

Feed and supplements are a nightmare ( I work with the industry) and some are such a rip off its criminal but that's business I suppose. Hopefully every horse owner will do what they feel is best but I wouldn't feed 99% of horse feeds but saying that some horses I know are blooming on feeds I wouldn't consider using so what's right and what's wrong??!!

Just gotta do what we feel is right and do our best I suppose.

 

[PorkChop]

For the type and amount of work you describe all I would be feeding is hay/haylage

 

[Nudibranch]

Pro balance has no iron and proper amounts of the other minerals.

Forage has kept all mine in good condition, just varying the amounts if necessary. Most commercial feeds are a waste of time. Placebo for owners!

 

[Goldenstar]

Commercial feeds can make good sense for the one horse owner as it saves on having to have lots of bags of different things .
Horses who are working hard in winter for example hunters will in almost all cases need more than forage .
I don't use commercial mixes I feed only straights .
I do feed a balancer , the Forage plus winter performance one .
Grass/ forage can be lacking in protein so feeding some good quality protein in a balancer makes sense for many horses .

 

[TGM]

I agree the range of feeds on the market is very confusing for many horse-owners, and that is not helped in the way manufacturers describe their products. I also agree that the average leisure horse does not need lots of bucket feed, and ad lib forage plus possibly a source of vit/mins, is usually a good place to start.

However, personally I feel there is a place for the commercial feeds, for the reasons Goldenstar outlines above. Also the modern feeds can help with horses with 'special needs' eg. those that tie up, elderly horses, Cushings sufferers etc.

As for balancers, I think they have their place, but don't think they are essential for all horses & ponies, as some would have you believe! I don't like the term 'balancer' itself, for the reason you describe, in how can it balance a diet if the individual's diet is not known. However, that could also be said of normal vit/min supplements that you recommend. Unless you have a full forage/grazing analysis, supplementation is always going to be a bit hit and miss! Whether the horse's diet is lacking in protein will depend on the rest of the diet - for example a mainly stabled horse on soaked hay could easily be low on protein if not given supplementary feeding, whereas one on good summer grazing is much less likely to be lacking.

Also most balancers contain a probiotic yeast, which can be helpful for some horses as they are said to be able to help restore healthy gut bacteria if they have been disrupted by low fibre/high cereal diets, stress, antibiotics etc. So that would be another reason why an owner might opt for a balancer over a normal vit/min supplement.

 

[millmo]

Feeding over the last few years has become so difficult, almost every time you go to the feed merchants there's a new feed. I only feed hay/haylage and carrots and parsnips, if mine do need feeding its a nightmare as my mare can't have a lot of things commonly found in most feeds. I think people feed there horses because everyone else is, not because they need it.

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

For the type and amount of work you describe all I would be feeding is hay/haylage

Well it depends on the individual, I had a boy who needed a small feed in winter to keep condition on, and when he went barefoot I fed minerals 365 days per annum, it was handy to give him a tiny feed, as it meant he knew there was a reward for coming to see me, otherwise in summer, if in the mood, he would see me and wander off to find a nice patch of grass at the far end of the field. In winter he and his pal would charge past me [one either side], at full tilt to make sure they were first in the queue for a nice warm stable and tasty dinner. I fed a cheap type of hay overnight, ad lb.
I would not expect most horses to compete without a small feed, and to be honest I would probably only feed forage only to a mature horse not in work.
I would not feed bagged feeds [except Mare and Youngstock], as I want to make sure they are getting what I want to feed them, linseed meal, minerals, salt, maybe oats, maybe chaff. No molassess, no wheatfeed.

 

[Leo Walker]

I would not feed bagged feeds [except Mare and Youngstock], as I want to make sure they are getting what I want to feed them, linseed meal, minerals, salt, maybe oats, maybe chaff. No molassess, no wheatfeed.

I do the same, with the addition of copra to mix the balancer in.

I'm another person who wont touch a balancer/supplement with iron in it, and always look for higher levels of copper and zinc. I feed Equivita. I have a custom made one. It works out as £12 a month for a 600kg horse, and I then just add oats if energy/weight is needed. Pretty easy really