Feeding for condition...with a few problems

madhector

madhector

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www.darlingdressage.co.uk
I am seriously having problems getting some weight on J. At the moment he is having:

Alfa A (full amount allowed a day)
Top-spec feed balancer
Unmolassed sugar beet (scoop morning and night)
Adlib hay at night
Haylege in the field

He has had Gastric ulcers in the past so starch/cereals are out.

I tried him on Topspec cool condition cubes but the high protein levels seem to have brought him out in lumps all over

He is VERY sharp and I am wary of adding nuts/mix to his feed

I am also very wary of things flaring up the ulcers again




Ideas??
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Edited to add- he is being worked 5/6 days a week at the moment and is will be fit and eventing by the end of march (well thats the plan)
 
Have you tried the topspec conditioning flakes? Can he have those? I don't know much about ulcers - sorry! I'd be inclined to ring topspec and see if he can have the flakes as they were the only thing which ever kept weight on my very fussy mare. Very non-heating too!
 
Try swapping the Alfa A for Alfa A Oil, also Baileys Outshine or D&H do a similar product too but cant remember what its called. I have one who has a starch intolerance so we have to be careful. Also Baileys No6 endurance Mix is high in oil and good for conditioning our boy gets this too

I would swap the Top Spec for Suregrow from D&H
 
my old mare went to the vets just before the winter set in, and she lost quite a lot of weight and a friend recomended D and H barley rings and theyre working. shes looking really good at the moment
xx
 
My very sharp mare lost a bit of condition a while ago and she also cannot have any cereals starch or too much protein (she has alos come out in lumps before). I put her on alfa beet and it has put on some weight but she has not hyped up at all!

All she gets now is
Alfa A
Alfa Beet
Carrots
Garlic
Dengie leisure vits and min supplement
Global herbs super calm!
twice a day.

She looks fab on this!! Can highly recommend it!
 
the super conditioning flakes have more protein in than the cool and condition cubes. They are however excellent as they were what I had Pidge on the first year I had him
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If you speak to Nicola at TopSpec she is very good.
I've just put Pidge on the Alfa A Oil instead of the normal Alfa A as well as his TS feed balancer, cool and condition cubes. Am upping the amounts slightly as he has lost a little weight recently. He's keen but not uncontrollable
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You're right, Alfabeet is 50/50 alfalfa and sugar beet, I've found it excellent for keeping condition on without sending them loopy. I know of some people who soak a huge bucket full and leave it with the horse overnight, rather than just adding it to the feed.
 
You are quite possibly right, could be worth a phone call to dengie!!
I don't actually know, didn't think of it that way!!

When i spoke to a dengie rep she also said that you can soak large amounts and leave in stable over night and do the same with the alfa a.
 
Alfa Beet is very conditioning, seems to work better than Alfa A and Beet seperately (?!?) The Baileys Endurance mix is excellent, Goddy horse is on it now, but it is a high energy mix, and also very high in oil. Try Calm and Condition from Allen and Page? Excellent feed for adding condition. However, i would be trying to add alfa A oil into his feed, even if it is only half and half Alfa A. Baileys No.1 is excellent for weight gain too, is low in starch, but seems to bulk them up...worth a try?
 
The vets advised against calm and condition (he was on it before) as although it is free of barley it as lots of oher stuff in it that would aggrevate his ulcers.

I will ring dengie and ask about alfa beet, maybe he could have that and the alfa oil

My trainer mentioned baileys endurance mix too, will give them a ring too

Thanks
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I would pass some of Goddy's "well doing-ness" on if I could...he is having a handful of chaff, half a scoop of endurance mix and topspec a day (one feed!) and still looking incredibly well!!
 
[ QUOTE ]
I would pass some of Goddy's "well doing-ness" on if I could...he is having a handful of chaff, half a scoop of endurance mix and topspec a day (one feed!) and still looking incredibly well!!

[/ QUOTE ]

lol! I think had J not been ill he would be fine, but with being ill for almost 2 months, then having 2 weeks off me having to reay work him to get him to settle he as just got a bit ribby.
 
QR - Alfa is good as is apparently thought to help prevent ulcers (according to a vet at Liphook). Alfa Oil might be preferable to the mollassed one as will help add more condition. My mare does very well on it and she is sugar and cereal intollerant.

Have you tried NAF Pink Powders??? It is a fantastic balancer and conditioning supplement.
 
[ QUOTE ]
If you speak to Nicola at TopSpec she is very good.
I've just put Pidge on the Alfa A Oil instead of the normal Alfa A as well as his TS feed balancer, cool and condition cubes. Am upping the amounts slightly as he has lost a little weight recently.
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[/ QUOTE ]

Ditto, I have Beau on alfa oil, C&C cubes, feed balancer and a bit of speedibeet, plus 100ml linseed oil, he is as chilled as ever though, I really do love that about TopSpec.
Def have a chat with nicola, she is FAB!
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My mare was on Baileys no.4 nuts and they seemed to keep her calm and put condition on but they are relatively expensive and not sure exactly what they contain. It was what I was advised to feed for condition with no fizz! Once she was up to condition she went back to the cheaper ones!!
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Bit of a mistake as she's being a bit silly again!
 
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