Increasing protein to build muscle? Help!

[LGRHorses]

Hi all, Happy New Year!

I am having a feed dilemma with my horse, in that I am seriously struggling to get him to build muscle! And had the same issues last year, too.
He is in medium work, after having a winter holiday. I think I am feeding him plenty for his weight/work but I just can't seem to get him to build ANY muscle or any more weight. To the point where his shoulders are almost inverted and he has poor top line, but his weight is perfect. Body score of 5/9 and 530kgs, can feel ribs but not see them. Bum muscle is ok, but not amazing.

Horse:
10 year old Irish Sport Horse x Cob gelding.
Never been a great doer, but not skinny either.
Scoped & treated for ulcers this time last year & back xrayed clean.

I know we can't feed topline and it should come from correct work, but I'm at a loss as to what else I can do? He competed a full season last year and barely built anything.

Current feed regime :
In the field on a bale of good hay during the day. He's not one to stand at the bale and eat constantly.
In at night on ad-lib haylage, has a net and a rack and always has some left in the morning. (Tried to leave him out 24/7 last year and it made no difference).
Hardfeed twice per day:
1 heaped stubbs soop of Alfa-A Oil
1 stubbs scoop of rolled barley
1 stubbs scoop of conditioning mash
1/2 stubbs scoop conditioning nuts
150grms of EquiJewel

With all of that conditioning feed, he is only just on the cusp of being the right weight, even though he is in medium work, and not building any muscle. But these are all low-ish protein feeds, is that the issue?

Current work schedule:
He is a combined driving horse. So basically, driven eventing.
He is currently worked around 5-6 days per week at varying levels and exercises, but currently not in full, competition level work.
Probably schooled in the arena 2/3 days a week
Hacks out the other 3 days, lots of walking and trotting up and down decent hills. Both working and long and low.
I can't ride him, so it makes it difficult to do lots of easy, long and low hill work and so when he goes uphill he is always pulling the carriage - surely this should help building shoulders too?

Can anyone help or suggest what I might be doing wrong, or what I could try to help him build muscle before the season starts and he goes into full work? As I really wouldn't like him any lighter than he currently is, but can't really feed him much more!!

Thank you so much if you've made it this far!

 

[P.forpony]

First up I sympathise with your frustration!
My tb took forever for me to find the right feed to keep him looking and feeling right.

The biggest thing that leaps out to me at first is meal sizes.
Their stomachs are the size of a rugby ball and work best at not more than 2/3 full. Current guidelines are not more than .5kg per 100kg Body weight. So not more than 2.5kg for a 500kg horse.
It sounds like your current meal sizes are exceeding this by quite a lot, meaning that his ability to digest what you're putting in will be compromised, and the high starch content can lead to hind gut issues when it passes through undigested, and pose an ulcer risk in a horse already susceptible.

My approach to a horse like this is to focus on meeting their basic nutitional needs of vits and mins, then supplying protein, good quality as well as quantity. Then adding calories as necessary.

So I would start with a hi spec performance balancer that had good levels of lysine, threonine and methionine. These are the three limiting amino acids that will halt muscle development if insufficient in the diet.
Then I'd add a complete conditioning feed.
And if you still need calories then add fat like equijewel or linseed. Ensuring to balance the fat addition with sufficient vitamin E if necessary.

It might take some experimenting with feeds to find the right combination of those 3 ingredients but the basic concept has always worked for me

Current diet of the tb for example,
2 meals a day, per meal,
d&h performance balancer - 1/2 cup
Ease and excel mix - 1 stubbs scoop (1.3kg)
Micronised linseed - 1 cup
Vitamin E

If he needs more I can add another scoop of ease and excel as a third feed and reduce the balancer. In the summer when he needs less, I cut the ease and excel and linseed down and increase the balancer, so it basically stays the same I just adjust the ratios of each as required

 

[AmyMay]

Do you have a photo?

 

[TGM]

Hardfeed twice per day:
1 heaped stubbs soop of Alfa-A Oil
1 stubbs scoop of rolled barley
1 stubbs scoop of conditioning mash
1/2 stubbs scoop conditioning nuts
150grms of EquiJewel

Is he really having all that lot twice a day? Or do you mean that is his total feed in a day, split into two feeds? If the former, then that is way too much to feed in one go, especially as there are some high starch feeds in there. The equine stomach is only small and giving large hard feeds can result in undigested starch being pushed through to the hindgut which can kill off the beneficial bacteria there.

 

[ihatework]

Thats a lot of different feeds and quite a volume. For a horse with ulcer history I'd want to cut out the barley too.

I'd stick with one brand of conditioning/ulcer feed and feed the recommended amounts split across 3 feeds a day. Give it a couple of months and see where it gets too. Can top dress with Equijewel too.

My go to is Baileys Ease & Excel but there are plenty of others on the market too, Saracen, Spillers and A&P all good options

 

[Elno]

Analyze your hay.

It's a strain on both your economy and the horse's body feeding protein without knowing how much protein the horse is already getting through his consumption of hay.

Also, that is A LOT of feed

 

[Hormonal Filly]

We analysed our hay and it was low in protein.

My mare gets Dengie ‘just grass’, a very small amount of sugarbeet so she eats her supplements which is scoop of pea protein, scoop of micronised linseed, balancer, vitamin E, salt and magnesium.

I’d contact a nutritionist, sounds like it would be worth the money as you’re feeding SO much hard feed it’s surprising he is only maintaining his weight and not putting muscle on.

 

[Mfh999]

With feeding that huge amount I'd be wondering is he warm enough; contrary to opinion, both cobs and ISH can be a bit nesh! Is he happy with the company he's with and not bullied? Also, what about his teeth?
My go to for weight gain is usually D & H Barley Rings (soaked) or Baileys' stud nuts. Equerry Conditioning Mash is also very good. I'd also swap your barley for oats, far less heating. I'd ditch anything with alfalfa in.
But honestly, if you are working him properly from behind for as much as you say then his muscles should be well developed. If they aren't then I'd want a vet check and bloods taken just to make sure he's not carrying some hidden syndrome/condition.