Hard feed: Vitamins and minerals??

S

SpruceRI

Well-Known Member
Joined
3 July 2006
Messages
5,368
Visit site
Stupid question this probably.... but does your horse only get the correct amount of vits and mins if you feed amounts as stated on the back of the bag?

My pony has just tied up. She's currently fed Allen & Page Calm & Condition, Hi Fi, and a sprinkle of Baileys Top Line cubes.

I've been recommended to give her a Selenium and Vit E supplement to guard against her tying up again. But I can see that these vits are contained within the C&C. I don't feed as much as is recommended on the back of the sack. She's only got a small appetite.

So do I give her the supplement as well, and at the rate stated on the back of that pot? Or less?!

Confused!!
 
Your horse only gets the correct amount of vitamins and minerals if you feed the reccommended amount. I normally fine the reccommended amount of any feed ridiculously huge, so will feed less and supplement ontop.

As for the tying up, I would change from the C&C to either D&H ERS pellets or saracen also have a feed sepcially for horses which tye up (name of it escapes me at the mo!). Both these are designed for horses which tye up. As I feed my mare less than the reccommended amount of ERS pellets I also add a selenium and vit E supplement (she tyed up a couple of months ago).
 
My livery yard does their own haylage and I had a foreage analysis done this year for my own interest.

We are very high in selenium and maganese but lower in copper and zinc.

Most supplements that provide copper and zinc WITH selenium so if I used them, I would be making things worse!

I spoke to Roger Hatch at Trinity Consultants who said he would be happy to use my analysis to create a bespoke feed for £40ish. The bio-availability of the feed he makes means it's much smaller doses and cheaper to use.

Basically, I would contact an independant nuutritionist (like Mr Hatch) and ask their advice.

I found the results of the analysis fascinating. Well worth the £47 it cost.

At the moment I am supplementing Vit E with human capsules for my old man. I squeeze 2 (2000iu) into his feed each day as he is on a forage replacing diet (dodgy teeth;))
 
Last edited:
Why not the C&C? It contains nothing that would cause the tying-up from what I can see.

I think I know how caused.

Mare is in at night, and out during the day. Normally she'd wander about all day, have a little trot about here and there. But since it's been snowy she's hardly moved from the hay pile.... so when I hacked her out... walked all the way down the road, got into the woods, she got overly excited, and wanted to leap about and gallop everywhere which isn't like her AT ALL... when we're hacking alone.

She overdid the leaping and bouncing and over-excitement.

Now that the snow has gone, she can be more active in the field, so hopefully it won't happen again. But will certainly be more careful with feed levels during bad weather like that.... and the vit supplement and salts.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top