Feeding on a budget

[MoonlitArcher]

Just wondering if anyone else will be feeding on a budget this year? If so, what are your go to choices?

My horse tends to drop a bit of weight this time of year, not horribly but he was on a very expensive diet last year and I’m hoping to make some swaps this winter. Last year he was on Saracen show improver cubes, fibre beet and chaff.. I think I used Alfa A. He got through a bag of cubes every 6 days (at £14 a bag) and Alfa A lasted just over 2 weeks roughly, at £15 a bag.

This year I’m thinking micronised linseed, normal sugar beet and a conditioning cube with just some normal chaff. I currently have heygates conditioning mix just as a cheap starter but I’m not sure I like it, it’s molassed so probably high in sugar. I’ve read that Baileys racehorse cubes are basically the same as the conditioning cubes and much cheaper, has anyone used those?

Im sure I won’t be alone in worrying about the financial side of winter this year, so I’m just wondering if anyone else has made some successful swaps. Of course, if he doesn’t hold his weight on cheaper stuff I will go back to what I know works. He is currently looking good so I feel like if I’m going to experiment, now’s the time!

 

[TPO]

Speedibeet is higher calorie than fibre beet and is cheaper, or at least was when I last checked. A slightly more expensive option that sugarbeet its lower sugar.

Dengie do a 20kg bag of conditioning chaff. It does contain alfa but is cheaper than AA oil. Wait and I'll just google its name... Cool condition & shine.

Grass nuts are a budget friendly way of adding calories.

Sometimes cheap feed are a false economy. They contain cheaper fillers and molasses. You can also sometimes feed less of a more expensive feed for cheaper than lots of less expensive feed.

It works out cheaper to feed one of mine with Baileys ease and Excel mix with extra chaff than needing to feed more of cheaper feeds like grass nuts & linseed.

 

[MoonlitArcher]

I agree, cheaper food is often full of not so good ingredients and I don’t want to feed anything thats not beneficial. I like the sound of cool condition and shine I haven’t heard of that one before. Think I’ll head down to the feed store and see what they’ve got in stock.

Thanks ?

 

[P.forpony]

Ive found it actually works out significantly cheaper when I’m feeding a balancer. Even though they’re expensive per bag.
Mine get d+h performance balancer, chaff and sugarbeet in some form or another with micronised linseed.
Just varying the rates of the last 3 depending on how much condition they need.

 

[planete]

Soaked Alfalfa pellets and Speedibeet plus micronised linseed. I have stopped feeding chaff as it tends to aggravate gum infections in my old boy with diastema and the diet is already high in fibre. I just add Pro Balance.

 

[ihatework]

In my experience, for the horses that genuinely do need grub for maintaining condition, then the best way to achieve this is ad-lib good fibre and then bucket concentrates.

I avoid filling buckets up with chaff and sugar beet. It’s generally counter productive. Commercial compound feeds aimed at ulcer horses are generally the way to go, although if your horse tolerates starch fine then conditioning cubes too. 3 times a day.

If you have a picky forage eater, then that’s where the chaff/Sb/grass nuts can help

 

[paddi22]

I got this down to a fine art because I was broke at one stage but still had a few horses in full work and competing. I worked out for my lot, that good quality oats and an oat balancer gave me the most bang for my buck at the time.
now I'm switched off cereal due to cushings and a barefoot diet, and I feed D&H safe and sound, equerry conditioning mash and a balancer. that was the next cheapest option I could find! the safe and sound has oil in it and joint stuff too, so I could knock out my oil and joint supplements.
I agree with ihatework tho. I get much better results and save cash by just letting them stuff themselves with forage and cut feed down a massive amount unless they are in very heavy work

 

[MoonlitArcher]

@paddi22 I have been wondering about going back to good old fashioned oats and barley. When I was a kid that’s all our ponies used to get, with chaff and sugar beet. Does anyone still feed this way? Does choosing a horse feed really have to be this complicated?

Ad lib hay is a given, although I often find he has left some of his hay in the mornings where all of my others will have eaten every last blade! He’s a nightmare ?‍

Definitely going with micronised linseed, have ordered some cool condition and shine so now it’s just deciding the grain, which I guess is trial and error. Thinking about it I’m sure I had a balancer last year as well, Baileys I think? Will do my research there too..

Thanks everyone ?

 

[paddi22]

@paddi22 I have been wondering about going back to good old fashioned oats and barley. When I was a kid that’s all our ponies used to get, with chaff and sugar beet. Does anyone still feed this way? Does choosing a horse feed really have to be this complicated?

I had them out eventing for a few season on just bluegrass oat balancer and oats and they all looked great and had enough energy without going loopy. I didn't even add sugar better or anything. I'd still be feeding that way apart from the fact my older lad has a diet issue and I just want to keep them all on the same feed. but it was so cheap to feed at the time, and they looked amazing on it.

 

[windand rain]

Soaked Grass, nuts grass chaff and micronised linseed dampened cheap and good value grass nuts £8 grass chaff £10 ish Linseed 20 quid lasts 4 fat ponies a month so should last a single horse at least as long

 

[jenniehodges2001]

Just wondering if anyone else will be feeding on a budget this year? If so, what are your go to choices?

My horse tends to drop a bit of weight this time of year, not horribly but he was on a very expensive diet last year and I’m hoping to make some swaps this winter. Last year he was on Saracen show improver cubes, fibre beet and chaff.. I think I used Alfa A. He got through a bag of cubes every 6 days (at £14 a bag) and Alfa A lasted just over 2 weeks roughly, at £15 a bag.

This year I’m thinking micronised linseed, normal sugar beet and a conditioning cube with just some normal chaff. I currently have heygates conditioning mix just as a cheap starter but I’m not sure I like it, it’s molassed so probably high in sugar. I’ve read that Baileys racehorse cubes are basically the same as the conditioning cubes and much cheaper, has anyone used those?

Im sure I won’t be alone in worrying about the financial side of winter this year, so I’m just wondering if anyone else has made some successful swaps. Of course, if he doesn’t hold his weight on cheaper stuff I will go back to what I know works. He is currently looking good so I feel like if I’m going to experiment, now’s the time!

I think that the manufacturer feeds rates are ridiculous, surely getting through a bag of cubes every six days for one horse is due to you feeding their recommended rate?

If I fed my WB x on the recommended feed rates he would be the size of a house.

Obviously they will inflate their feed rates so that you get through so many bags in a week. I'm not criticising but just saying that this is what I think.

 

[Ranyhyn]

Yeah I'm one who hays them well and feeds them as little as possible. Mine are still on just a balancer after summer (pony in light work and retired 19YO mare) and I dont plan to up it until HOPEFULLY end Nov- December.

 

[MoonlitArcher]

@jenniehodges2001

yea I always measure out the concentrates according to the rates suggested on the bag, then just top up with some chaff and split between 2 meals. It is a ridiculous amount of food to be getting through, especially at that cost. 5is is why I’m thinking of going back to the old fashioned stuff, certainly going to get a balancer and and give plenty of hay and see how I go ?

 

[tda]

You can get long (overnight) soak unmollassed sugar beet pellets around £7.00/20kg bag the brand is Trident
Grass nuts and micronised linseed.
Ad-lib hay/haylage
You might be surprised how well he copes

 

[Ownedby4horses]

Soaked Grass, nuts grass chaff and micronised linseed dampened cheap and good value grass nuts £8 grass chaff £10 ish Linseed 20 quid lasts 4 fat ponies a month so should last a single horse at least as long

^^^ This is exactly what I would suggest. We've never had anything drop weight on a such a diet, our old boys always came out of winter a perfect weight and looking perfect.

 

[fredflop]

Pony nuts and sugar beet. If the budget stretches to it include a vit and min powder

 

[ohmissbrittany]

I would go for less of a better quality feed, in my opinion. And if it's just calories you're looking for, you'll get more with a higher fat ration. (Look at Keyflow Key Plus, rice bran is pretty great and the vitamin E will put a shine on them. Micronised linseed is another great way to add healthy fats.)