Help! What To Feed Cob With Increasing Workload?!

acorn92x

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I recently brought a 14.2 cob who was slightly overweight when she first arrived. Since I got her, she has been on a strict diet with minimal treats (The odd carrot here and there when she has been particularly good so nothing too sugary), no hard feed whatsoever and 2 medium sized small hole haynets (Dry hat) overnight (She's out during the day sharing a paddock with 2 other mares) and her hay is always gone by the morning. I ride 4-5 days a week for at least an hour at a time, mostly hacking doing lots of slow walk and trot work over hills with a small amount of canter (She hadn't been ridden consistently for about 4-5 months prior to me getting her so I wanted to build her up slowly) and the occasional 30-40 min session in the school (This too is mainly in walk). Over the past 2 weeks, she has a decent amount of weight and now no longer looks hugely roly-poly and has lost a fair amount of fat from her neck! I'm now considering putting her on a small hard feed as she is now looking less fat and is definitely fitter and could do with a little more energy for schooling as she is isn't as lively as she could be whilst doing anything in there. I was thinking of Hi-fi Lite or Alfa-A alongside a balancer like Baileys Lo Cal? I know Dengie also do a balancer to accompany either Hi-Fi or Alfa-A so could this potentially be better?

I'm quite useless with feeding (Although I have the sense to weigh feeds etc!) and find it so hard to understand what to actually feed in the first instance!

Thanks in advance :)
 

milliepops

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I think you're thinking along the right lines. I feed both of my good doers on a straw/alfalfa chop like HiFi lite (actually the countrywide one as it hasn't got any molasses) and a balancer and some salt. They've got plenty of go and they look well with access to a bit of grass and plenty of hay.

I find my cob's energy levels are more about fitness and attitude than feed.
 

C1airey

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I've just been through exactly the same with my LW cob who's now looking very slim and slinky, but runs out of steam if he's out for a fast hack or a hard schooling session. I feed him half a small scoop of oats. They don't send him loopy and they definitely give him the energy he needs. As he has a joint supplement and a couple of other bits to hide in his feed, I also feed him A&P's Fast Fibre. The weightape hasn't moved an inch since March.

I use whole oats as they keep longer and he doesn't need much - just soak them overnight to make them more digestible.
 

stormclouds

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I'm in probably the same situation as you - bought a very round 14.2 a few months ago, and after lots of hacking, weight is coming off but needs a pick me up feed-wise!

My friend's a nutritionist, and she advised against Baileys Lo Cal (which his previous owner had him on), said to try Equigel instead, so I'm going to have a chat with the woman who sells it and see what she has to say. Chaff wise, he was on Simple Systems Timothy chop, but didn't like it, so he's now on Top chop lite. I'm not a massive fan of Baileys or Dengie, so wouldn't use them.
 

acorn92x

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I think you're thinking along the right lines. I feed both of my good doers on a straw/alfalfa chop like HiFi lite (actually the countrywide one as it hasn't got any molasses) and a balancer and some salt. They've got plenty of go and they look well with access to a bit of grass and plenty of hay.

I find my cob's energy levels are more about fitness and attitude than feed.

Thanks for your replies everyone! I'm glad to see I'm on the right lines with what I thought.

I completely agree with the above statement about cobs energy levels relating to fitness and attitude - my mare is very happy to hack and will go for a good couple of hours in walk, taking in her surroundings and it's quite obvious that she really does love it. The cannot be said for schooling however although since picking up a bit more fitness, she does seem to have gotten into the swing of it a little more. She's a very clever horse and has picked up things very quickly so I think a bit more sparkle will come with her fitness increasing more (Which I intend to work on still through hacking, not really doing anything too serious in the school at the mo as I'd rather sweeten her up with hacking and then work more on schooling throughout winter as she'll be fitter then).

I'm going to pay a visit to my local feed merchent at some point this week and have a look at what balancers they do. I've read some more on the Hi-Fi one and it sounds like it could be quite good. I've always liked Dengie products but would be happy to consider other balancers if anyone has any other good reports from other brands in a similar horse to mine?
 

fatpiggy

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I would keep it simple to be honest - up the hay ration. My Welsh D x mare burned energy like a bonfire, was always on the go, jogged for a pass-time and was mainly interested in galloping but I only gave her a very small amount of cool-mix in addition to her haynet. She was muscular and very fit, but not fat in any part of her body. Cobs are designed to do a bit of most things but generally at a lower level. A couple of hours hacking in walk is not work. So don't feed for something she isn't doing.
 

Gentle_Warrior

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Op. I had a cob which was lack lusture. He is now full of energy. i wanted to make sure he was getting vit's and min's. He has been on baileys local and hifi lite for years now. Even through winter with more hay and speedi beet added if lacking weight wise. He is looking so healthy at 22. He is also barefoot recently at the back. He is coping fine. Just need to sort cracks! !!!
 

acorn92x

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Brilliant, thanks for all of your help guys! It's been really interested to hear your thoughts and I'll take them on board. If I remember, I'll let you know what I put her on and how/if it affects her at all.
 

acorn92x

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Small update: I brought some Alfa-A last night along with some Baileys Lo-Cal (Had no idea how expensive this was so depending on what the effect of this is, I may look for a cheaper alternative if there isn't much difference). I'm splitting her feeds into 2 a day with a heaped mug of Alfa-A and half a mug of the Baileys Lo-Cal in each meal with a tablespoon of salt and a measure of Pollen-X as she is a slight headshaker too. I rode for around 45 mins last night and she was clearly tired by the end of it (Walk, trot, canter hack along it was mainly trot while we were off road which was for most of it) so hopefully this will help. I'm being careful to not overload her with the Alfa-A as have read that it can send some horses loopy so will see how she gets on.
 

Gentle_Warrior

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I found myself a bit short of funds for a period of time and changed to Spillers happy hoof. I very soon went back to Bailey's lo-cal and cut back costs at home, the difference was outstanding. in my eyes worth the money.

just as an example though
 

TGM

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Small update: I brought some Alfa-A last night along with some Baileys Lo-Cal (Had no idea how expensive this was so depending on what the effect of this is, I may look for a cheaper alternative if there isn't much difference).

I used to use Baileys Lo-Cal for my pony but now use Spillers Lite Balancer which does the same thing but works out a few pounds per bag cheaper, if that helps.
 

acorn92x

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Thanks for your replies Gentle Warrior and TGM.

I think it's a case of trial error with regards to what works and what doesn't. TGM, I didn't know Spillers did a Lite balancer so I might look into that. My feed merchants are very good and are always willing to order feed in that they do not stock so next time I'm there, I'll ask about that. I'm not mean, nor do I begrudge the cost if it works but the Baileys Lo-Cal was almost £25 a bag so if there is a viable alternative which is slightly cheaper, I'll look in to it. My cob is not fussy in the slightest (She devoured her dinner as if it was a 5 course delight last night) so I don't think she'll mind a cheaper alternative as long as results are similar.
 
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