Help please -forage query for old boy

AdorableAlice

AdorableAlice

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My big lad is ageing, 22 this year, teeth good, low level cushing and on 1 pill daily. Bloods good and checked regularly. He is a high maintenance horse who many would have given up on by now. He is retired and lives out with access to a large bedded shelter.

I have struggled with his feet since retirement but Pro Hoof has worked wonders and they are now reasonable with good soles. He also got chesty with a cough towards the end of last winter and needed vet intervention. He is fed AP Veteran/Vitality, linseed, Winergy Ventilate and add lib soaked hay. He can lose condition easily, ie, he has just had an attack of photosensitivity and dropped a lot of weight.

I have looked at the Marksway small bale horsehage and would like to try it (or similar) for him. Have any of you with older horses tried it. The dark blue bale states it is lami friendly and low calorie which is possibly no good for him. He needs lami friendly due to the cushings but he needs calories of the right type. Am I right in thinking ryegrass is not great for cushing horses ? I think that is the pale blue bag. If I get his feeding wrong his feet will soon be telling me.

I do buy in big bale farm made haylage once the temperature drops enough for it not to spoil (I have others to feed).

All thoughts welcome, many thanks.
 
AdorableAlice said:
I have looked at the Marksway small bale horsehage and would like to try it (or similar) for him. Have any of you with older horses tried it. The dark blue bale states it is lami friendly and low calorie which is possibly no good for him. He needs lami friendly due to the cushings but he needs calories of the right type. Am I right in thinking ryegrass is not great for cushing horses ? I think that is the pale blue bag. If I get his feeding wrong his feet will soon be telling me.
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Friends of mine with very sensitive horses (not diagnosed cushings but at least one laminitic) have had success with the Marksway Timothy - Purple bag I think. As far as I am aware the others are Ryegrass (green bag), hi fibre (blue) which is still ryegrass but late cut and alfalfa. (red).
 
My 22 year old cushings pony is on high fibre haylage (MVF own brand) and does fine on it. It probably is still higher calorie than soaked hay as the DE is about equivalent to ordinary hay.
 
Hi
Do you know what causes the photosensitivity?

Can't help with condition as my old boy(26) has no top teeth now, kicked out, but still is fed what he was fed as a 5 year old and keeps great condition, haylage, sugar beet and alfa a. Some horses drop condition as natures way to keep weight off painful arthritic joints. I use the Marksway horsehage (blue), always have...maybe it's that!!!! so I can vouch for it. Great stuff, I have a friend with a Lami pony who feeds Horsehage blue with no problem, this pony only has to look at a blade of grass and he gets an attack, she swears by it also. My boy has 3 sections a day of it in winter, he has amazing condition for his age.
 
I would feed the timothy over the ryegrass one given recent research.

condition wise how much linseed do you feed? Have you considered feeding copra?
 
The photosensitivity followed sunburn on his white legs. Really nasty and painful for him.

Linseed is fed at a mug full each end of the day. Never heard of copra, will investigate.
 
I feed Timothy haylage to a Cushings pony and a pony with Hind-Gut sensitivities. Marksway Horsehage do it, as do some of the smaller regional horse-haylage makers. My Cushings pony has had the High Fibre variety without problems, except that she hoovered it up very quickly!
The other thing we do is to give them plenty of Vitamin E as they don't get much grass and it is not plentiful in haylage.
 
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