Feeding Help

[maxapple]

I have a welsh x arab pony (14.1) who lives out 24/7. he is currently on good grass and gets fed a small dinner of simply chaff and pony nuts (gets a slightly bigger one if we've done hard work)

He's a perfect weight at the moment - but as the summer draws to a close

I want to plan my feeding regime for the autumn winter.

I currently ride 5 / 6 days a week and compete twice a month on average (just local shows - jumping / dressage and showing) Next month I'm planning to do a few hunter trials and over the winter we'll probably be focusing on dressage and jumping.

He'll be living out in the winter (rugged) and will probably be clipped - not sure what clip yet.

I'm thinking about a feed balancer added to his current feed - something to make sure he gets the nutrients he needs and holds his weight.

He also needs non heating feed as he can be a wizzy little thing!

 

[michelleice]

there's a few competition mixes out there not having a comp horse anymore i can comment on any but may go to your local feed suppler and talk to someone there?

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

If your horse normally holds his weight pretty well then I would recommend Baileys Lo Cal Balancer. Mine have it all the year round, compete regularly & they look really well on it. At around £22-23 a bag it's also a fraction of the cost of Blue Chip.

 

[TGM]

Am I going mad, or did you ask this question on here before, a few days ago?

The best way to maintain his weight going into autumn and winter is to ensure he gets plenty of good quality hay or haylage as the grass quality drops. Use a weigh tape once a week to check his condition and when he starts to lose a little then start feeding additional hay/haylage. You may find that if he has plenty of hay/haylage he may not need more in the way of bucket food - the pony in my sig sounds very similar to yours and this approach works for her.

If you are feeding a much smaller amount of pony nuts than the manufacturer recommends then you won't be giving the full RDA of vit/mins, so if this is a concern for you then you might want to feed a balancer instead of the nuts as this will supply all his vit/mins as well as additional protein and probiotics/prebiotics. The probiotics/prebiotics are thought to maintain a healthy gut and ensure the horse gets the most out of its feed, and this is why balancers have a weight gain reputation.

An alternative to a balancer (and cheaper) would be to feed a broad spectrum vit/min supplement such as Equivite, Benevit etc. This supplies vit/mins but not the protein and probiotics/prebiotics supplied by a balancer, so is a good choice if you are only concerned with vit/min supply.

 

[TGM]

[ QUOTE ]
there's a few competition mixes out there not having a comp horse anymore i can comment on any but may go to your local feed suppler and talk to someone there?

[/ QUOTE ] Just because an animal is competing doesn't mean it needs competition mix, especially if it is a pony with a tendency to be whizzy!

 

[maxapple]

TGM - think you must be going mad lol.

Thanks for the replies. I like the idea of Baileys Lo Cal Balancer - think I'll look into that.

He used to be on competition mix when I 1st started riding him (I started with him on part loan) and he was a loony, so I'll be avoiding that.