Help with feeding horse whilst on holiday

[TPO]

At the moment she’s on 1 ½ mugs of speedibeet, 1 ½ mugs of leisure mix and a handful of pony nuts mixed with a bit of carrots. This is split between two feeds; breakfast and tea in order to allow her to take her supplements and bute. She’s a really good weight now, she got quite fat at one point so I reduced her paddock (we have very good grazing) cut down her feeds and hay and increased her exercise and she’s lost about 15KG, according to the vet she needs another 10KG off and she should be about right.

I asked if you had any suggestions for feed which I could try as I would need to give quite a large amount of leisure mix and nuts to make up for the lack of speedibeet in the feeds.

If the vet has said that your horse needs another 10kg off and then "should be about right" why are you 1) feeding speedibeet just now (there are lower calories soaked feeds available if it's needed as a carrier) 2) feeding a mix and nuts (not being facetious, genuinely why are you feeding a leisure mix/pony nuts/those ingredients?) 3) going to increase the leisure mix to replace speedibeet (implying that the beet/need for a soaked feed isn't as a carrier and will increase calorie content of bucket feed).

I would never cut down on hay but if you have restricted the good grazing and the only reason to feed is to give supplements why not use the smallest amount of low calorie soaked feed as a carrier?

Not having a go, it just seems like a big contradiction and was wondering why.

 

[Ellietotz]

If the vet has said that your horse needs another 10kg off and then "should be about right" why are you 1) feeding speedibeet just now (there are lower calories soaked feeds available if it's needed as a carrier) 2) feeding a mix and nuts (not being facetious, genuinely why are you feeding a leisure mix/pony nuts/those ingredients?) 3) going to increase the leisure mix to replace speedibeet (implying that the beet/need for a soaked feed isn't as a carrier and will increase calorie content of bucket feed).

I would never cut down on hay but if you have restricted the good grazing and the only reason to feed is to give supplements why not use the smallest amount of low calorie soaked feed as a carrier?

Not having a go, it just seems like a big contradiction and was wondering why.

Following this, could you just soak a cup of pony nuts and leave it at that? Unless there is a particular reason your horse has the mix etc, there might be another feed that could do the same thing. If you just want something soaked for the supplements, a cup of fast fibre will soak in a minute and that'll be all you need and they can feed it as soon as it's soaked, no risk of going off either then. Then if you want the extra weight gain, you can get this with the grass/hay instead of more feed. Keeps it simple then?

 

[ester]

Goodness, this thread has turned sour. Am I missing something ? My YO is brilliant and offers a first class holiday livery service, but I still bag up my horses feeds and medication for a friend on the yard to feed on the odd occasion I go away. It gives me peace of mind that nothing gets forgotten due to an emergency happening on our 60 horse yard. I don't think this means I don't trust the staff, it's more of a recognition, that staff are extremely busy and temporary special instructions can get overlooked.

I don't think anyone has suggested that bagging up ahead of time won't make life easier for those looking after the horse, it's why they can't use speedibeet which seems and that the preference would be to change your horse's feed for a week that I can't get my head around.

 

[hopscotch bandit]

I don't think anyone has suggested that bagging up ahead of time won't make life easier for those looking after the horse, it's why they can't use speedibeet which seems and that the preference would be to change your horse's feed for a week that I can't get my head around.

Sorry been on waste management training.

I was originally thinking of changing the feed for a week before holiday and the week whilst I'm away (to introduce a new feed gradually) and who knows I may have kept it going. But I think I'll just stick with the nut and leisure mix combo which I usually leave for the staff to feed when the horse is on full day care once a week. I do that for ease for the staff not because I DONT TRUST THEM! I bag up the evening feed for that day and the breakfast for the next morning which the YO is grateful with the supplements already in and then they just wet the feeds, no need for soaking.


I did have her on A&P Veteran Vitality but found it was weight gaining so put her on the VV lite version which I ended up throwing away as she didn't like it and refused it (not as sugary I suspect). I started her on speedi beet to encourage her to take on board more fluid as she has had a slight impaction colic and I am conscious of this being a potential problem in the winter anyway. The vet who attended the colic said it would be a good idea. At this time she was having chaff. But she got bored of the speedibeet and chaff on its own. So I added the leisure mix which is a very low mix to add interest to what would be a very boring and bland diet and to encourage her to eat her feeds and the supplements which due to their nature need enough feed to mix in. I also knew that the leisure mix which has mint and carrot added would encourage her to eat.

Then the vet looked at her teeth, noticed gaps with food build up on the front tops and bottom and said to cut out the chaff due to the gaps in her teeth and its easier for these things to stick. Said the nuts were okay to continue in the snackaball. So then we were back to speedibeet and leisure mix. I also added a very small handful of high fibre cubes as she gets a mug full of these in her snakaball already and to add volume to mix the supplements in. She started wolfing down the feeds due to the leisure mix that I added, literally screaming for her tea when before she kept leaving a small amount, by this stage the bowl was literally licked clean. The amounts I give her won't make any difference to her weight. I make the feeds sloppy.

By my own admissionn she was overweight. I was aware of this, she suddenly balooned due to the grass and having a sudden spurt which caught us out. The hay I reduced very slightly, I weighed it and it worked out around 2KG per day less I was feeding her. The field I reduced from 1/2 to a 1/3 or less. The exercise I increased by an extra hack a week. SHe's never had laminitis and touch wood never will, I do my damnest to prevent this.

She has always been extremely reactive to the slightest reduction in feed/hay/grazing and within days (literally 2 or 3) of cutting down or reducing field size even slightly there is a visible difference. Sometimes due to the grass she can bloat but you can still make out her ribs very slightly. I do know the difference between bloating and fat before anyone suggests otherwise.

I look after my horse extremely well, as do the staff. They are not grooms but staff. I am on a very busy mixed DIY/full livery yard. I know I can rely on them. But I try to make less work for them so when she is on FDC I make up all the nets the night before, and the feeds with supplements/bute added and labelled. I also indicate what rug I want her to have on the next day by leaving the headcollar threaded through it but I will be totally respectful if the staff feel she doesn't need one or needs more or less. Phew, this is exhausting. I hope this answers all the questions.

I think this post has been done to death now so will walk away but thanks for the help. Back to training for the rest of the day.

 

[AdorableAlice]

I hope they are not reading the thread. If I was your groom I would be most insulted.

No you would LOVE them to be reading this thread so dont come that. You have totally twisted my words to cause maximum trouble. Anyone with half a brain can see what you are doing. Why do you get so much pleasure from constantly ripping my posts apart, distorting the words and trying to make them into something there not in order to cause maximum trouble. How sad are you???? Have you seriously nothing more productive to do with your time than troll???[/QUOTE]

Ah well, there goes my record. Eight years on the forum without being criticised. I have no idea what a troll is so that comment is lost on me. There is no doubt I have half a brain, after all who, with a whole brain, would keep horses for 45 years and remain knackered and skint heading into old age. Have a good holiday, I am sure your staff will cope and your pony will be fine.

 

[Leo Walker]

I have no idea what a troll is so that comment is lost on me.

You are the furthest thing possible from a troll. The OP does a pretty good impression of one though.