feeding tips... sorry!

[serena2005]

ok im going to try something different, at the moment hes on calm and condition and chaff. but hes feeling a bit slugish recently so i want to give him a little extra, not sure what though, i was thinking just a normal pasture mix (think it has some barley in it) owner is totally against him having barley.

any advice?

 

[KatB]

Calm and condition wont give him any umph as youve prob realised!! What about the cube version of pasture mix? Not sure there is going to be much barley in pasture mix as its meant to be a non heating, and barley is known for being heating? i dont know though?! Something like working pony cubes, i know Baileys do some?!

 

[Nari]

If he has problems with barley it may only take a tiny amount to upset him. My ID is downright unpleasant on it - four days getting literally getting a handful of pasture mix (I'd got some for my pony & was being lazy about mixing breakfast) resulted in a dangerous bolt & almost a week of unpleasant behaviour until it worked out of his system. I know it's barley that's the problem as he used to be on a yard that fed straights & if he was ever given barley for a few days I'd get the same reaction. It seems to make him very "hard" & dominant, over-reactive & constnatly in a state of full alert. All this on far less than a handful of barley a day for less than a week!

My favourite feed for this horse is Tiger Oats. He always cleans up (can be fussy), looks great, has plenty of energy but isn't hot or silly (can be a problem with him). I think they're well worth the extra money over normal oats as they container a balancer & are higher oil & lower starch. If you really set on a mix Ride & Relax is barley free (but fairly low energy) or if you'll feed nuts all Baileys ones are barley free.

 

[serena2005]

oats!? i wasnt thinking of going that far down the scale.....

im not sure what hes like on mix with barley in it.

this is the most work consistantly hes ever done, when we first moved in i gave him a nut ball and he threw me off and another girl and threatened to get me off everytime i got on... took away nut ball and he went back to normal...

but then that also could be down to being in a new yard with a new rider.

owner said he went a bit loopy on feed with mollassed? (sp) i think thats what i mean but i get it mixed up with something else.

if i put him on a non heating pasture mix and doesnt make any difference i could move him up a bit more, but how often can you change a horses feed? i awlays thought it was the worse thing you could do.

 

[Weezy]

Tiger Oats are a fantastic feed and they dont hot a horse up like you would think

As for changing a horses feed - keep experimenting until you get the balance you like!

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

You could try Allen & Page 'Ride & Relax', no barley, no mollasses & No Alfalfa.

 

[CSYMolly]

I was in a similar position. Horse looks great, don't want to feed her more as she puts on weight easily but needed a little more oomph now she is working harder. Emailed Baileys with my thoughts and they agreed, try her on a little oats, just not naked oats as they might be a little too much, so she's been on a handful of rolled oats twice a day for about a week now and it has has the desired effect.

 

[serena2005]

thanks for all your advice... i think i need to do a lot of reading up!!