Feeding the good doer, coming back to work

[Ranyhyn]

My 16.2 sports horse is a frightfully good doer. She wintered last year in a lightweight all year with hardly any hay (that said we have fairly good grazing)

Anyway, now she is being brought into work, she's currently getting a token mugful of nuts to feed her a foot supplement.

I was planning to improve her forage first, of course only once her workload actually goes up (moving first to hay with haylage then full haylage) and seeing how she copes on that before adding a more substansial hard feed. But having never fed haylage, I'm interested to know if this will be too calorific for a good doer?

Also, looking to balance the diet then - should I go for the aptly named, Haylage Balancer, or is any feed balancer ok?

Thanks in advance

 

[Herts05]

To be honest I wouldn't feed her anything until she has regained a level of fitness and lost the right amount of weight.

 

[Ranyhyn]

Sorry should say, she has lost that weight. The weight appropriate for her out of work won't stand up to work for long without dropping, so now thinking forward to improving her forage.

Should also say, she's moved from home, to poorer livery grazing. The now photo is a little deceiving, you can easily see/feel her ribs and her wither is now a little bony.

This was her summer time 2011, far too fat and borderline LGL I'd say

and her winter weight

 

[be positive]

I would be giving her plenty of forage now, starting by mixing hay/ haylage is a good idea, she should be fine on just haylage, I use it for all mine with no problem, the horses get it ad lib over winter.
Feed wise I would play it safe start with fast fibre, if you feed this and build up to recommended amounts they should need nothing else, I use it with a few additions where required, adding linseed and other supplements it is easy to feed taking 30 secs to soak.
If you find she needs more for her work load linseed is ideal for extra calories without using cereals.