Insane Feeding Amounts

[Birker2020]

Wow! I think it’s quite irresponsible of feed companies to be giving those ‘guidelines’. Imagine how many laminitics or metabolic horses are out there either as a result of this ‘advice’ or not doing their best because of it.

Feed companies have long known there’s no money to be made out of me!!

It's the same when the reps/nutritionists from a feed manufacturer visit the yard with their weigh bridge and advice. I am very cynical but I know that 99% of the horse owners will be told their horses should have the most expensive product - a feed balancer!

 

[Jambarissa]

Wow, if my horse got 5kg of feed I'd be on colic watch, that is bonkers.

How big and how much are these bags? That must cost £5 a day surely.

Handful of chaff, mix of herbs and soaked hay cobs to make it taste good.

TBF I would love to have the sort of horse you can feed rather than rationing everything.

 

[Jambarissa]

It's the same when the reps/nutritionists from a feed manufacturer visit the yard with their weigh bridge and advice. I am very cynical but I know that 99% of the horse owners will be told their horses should have the most expensive product - a feed balancer!

And those who are overweight will be recommended 3kg a day of the 'lite' feed

 

[P.forpony]

It's the same when the reps/nutritionists from a feed manufacturer visit the yard with their weigh bridge and advice. I am very cynical but I know that 99% of the horse owners will be told their horses should have the most expensive product - a feed balancer!

Which works out significantly cheaper per day than mix or cubes....

And means the 99% of horses that are in light work or overweight and don't need to be fed 4.5kgs a day of hard feed are still getting their nutritional needs met at a much lower calorie and volume intake.

Sounds like good sense to me.

 

[santas_spotty_pony]

It is crazy! I think most people would struggle to feed that amount to make sure they were getting all of the correct vitamins and minerals. I currently feed Equimins tip top supplement and it’s literally a tiny scoop as it’s super concentrated and then just add some chaff to it, much more practical!

 

[pistolpete]

Mine has the molasses free half a Stubbs scoop. Just to check him over and a once a day treat. I know he doesn’t need it. Most leisure horses would do better on grass and hay.

 

[YourValentine]

What's also crazy is the belief that horses need a balancer to get all their nutritional requirements - very clever marketing!

I'd never heard of a balancer till I moved to the UK.

If you have good grass and quality hay that should meet 90% of their nutritional needs, the other 10% could probably be met by sending some time browing hedgerows on hacks.

They are grazing animals by nature. They are designed to get all they need from grass and browsing trees.

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

TBF I would love to have the sort of horse you can feed rather than rationing everything.

My last warmblood who was 18.3hh and neither a good nor poor doer in very average work was like that, it was so unstressful! He had a Stubbs scoops of alfalfa pellets and a balancer cup of coolstance copra twice a day and looked great, I could have fed him twice that and he’d only gain to a point but not get fat.. never met or heard of another like him though I have to admit.

That being said, he had free access to hay when in and would easily do a 6 string Heston bale in just over 2 weeks - at £50 a bale that was tight!

 

[SpeedyPony]

I'm currently feeding the 'moderate work' volume of soothe and gain to the old boy who is in no work at the moment, as he's become quite a poor doer in the past coupke of years. He used to get fat on thin air though, so I suspect as mentioned above that they are basing their recommended amounts on tbs and/or scaling from horses in fairly hard work.
I'm genuinely not sure how people would get the recommended volumes of some lower calorie feeds down their horses though, I've pretty well reached the limit of what he can consume in two feeds, so if he needs more he'll need lunch/oil adding.

 

[P.forpony]

What's also crazy is the belief that horses need a balancer to get all their nutritional requirements - very clever marketing!

I'd never heard of a balancer till I moved to the UK.

If you have good grass and quality hay that should meet 90% of their nutritional needs, the other 10% could probably be met by sending some time browing hedgerows on hacks.

They are grazing animals by nature. They are designed to get all they need from grass and browsing trees.

Good grass means different things to different people...

For our horses it would be native pasture with a variety of different grass types and a good variety of other herb and plant types.

This kind of pasture certainly doesn't exist in any area of the UK I've ever lived in.
It's all been 'improved' for commercial grazing of cattle and sheep.

Yes horses are browsers and grazers but if they're turned out on a rye monoculture with post and rail fence then it's not going to help much.

Unless you're doing regular soil and forage analysis there's no way to be so confident their needs are being met.
That's why the balancer. It's peace of mind.

 

[Penguin_Toes]

What would be a good concentrated balancer to add to some grass nuts and chaff?

Are they always powder or can you get pellet ones where only a small scoop is needed per feed? I imagine they might eat up pellets better?

And I don't suppose there is something out there that also has some oily herbs in too?

Just wondering if I can make my own life a bit easier!

 

[Auslander]

What would be a good concentrated balancer to add to some grass nuts and chaff?

Are they always powder or can you get pellet ones where only a small scoop is needed per feed? I imagine they might eat up pellets better?

And I don't suppose there is something out there that also has some oily herbs in too?

Just wondering if I can make my own life a bit easier!

My balancer of choice is Equimins Advance complete, which comes in either pellet or powder. Alf always looked super on it, and it was one of the few things he always agreed to eat. He had 80g a day (17hh MW) which is the max dosage
Most of my liveries are on either Topspec Comprehensive or Topspec Lite with half a scoop of alfa-a molasses free twice daily, plus plenty of hay. They all live out 24/7 most of the time

 

[Penguin_Toes]

Thank you!!

 

[Chippers1]

I feed Spillers and they are a bit more realistic with their feeding guides; for example for horse and pony cubes they say a stubbs scoop hold 1.7kg and recommend 2kg for a pony in work, so just over a scoop a day plus forage. I know that will be too much for some ponies but I think due to the vast levels of experience with people buying horses that they need to start somewhere to give a bit of guidance. Agree that for most it is way too much though so they do need to make some changes!

 

[whirlwind]

What would be a good concentrated balancer to add to some grass nuts and chaff?

Are they always powder or can you get pellet ones where only a small scoop is needed per feed? I imagine they might eat up pellets better?

And I don't suppose there is something out there that also has some oily herbs in too?

Just wondering if I can make my own life a bit easier!

Another one for equimins- mine will all just eat it as a treat so I can just go round with it in my pocket and give everyone a handful. Makes feeding in the field much less stressful!

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

My balancer of choice is Equimins Advance complete, which comes in either pellet or powder. Alf always looked super on it, and it was one of the few things he always agreed to eat. He had 80g a day (17hh MW) which is the max dosage
Most of my liveries are on either Topspec Comprehensive or Topspec Lite with half a scoop of alfa-a molasses free twice daily, plus plenty of hay. They all live out 24/7 most of the time

I've just bought it for my 2 I struggled to get them to eat powdered stuff and now they are a bit older I want them to have everything they need.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I feed Spillers and they are a bit more realistic with their feeding guides; for example for horse and pony cubes they say a stubbs scoop hold 1.7kg and recommend 2kg for a pony in work, so just over a scoop a day plus forage. I know that will be too much for some ponies but I think due to the vast levels of experience with people buying horses that they need to start somewhere to give a bit of guidance. Agree that for most it is way too much though so they do need to make some changes!

I like spillers feeds mine love the speedy mash they are one of the feed companies that don't add iron as well so good for barefoot.

I have used there balancers as well and I use the fibre nuts as treats so a bag of those lasts me ages, its also handy as you can soak those to make a mash in winter I put hot water on them and feed as treat if it's really cold.

 

[lynz88]

What's also crazy is the belief that horses need a balancer to get all their nutritional requirements - very clever marketing!

I'd never heard of a balancer till I moved to the UK.

If you have good grass and quality hay that should meet 90% of their nutritional needs, the other 10% could probably be met by sending some time browing hedgerows on hacks.

They are grazing animals by nature. They are designed to get all they need from grass and browsing trees.

I think part of the problem (especially for me) is that many places don't have good grazing and the hay can significantly vary. Mine is also the skinny TB on a WB frame type and has done significantly better when given a balancer, even back home (can't remember what he was on back home but it did him well!).

My balancer of choice is Equimins Advance complete, which comes in either pellet or powder. Alf always looked super on it, and it was one of the few things he always agreed to eat. He had 80g a day (17hh MW) which is the max dosage
Most of my liveries are on either Topspec Comprehensive or Topspec Lite with half a scoop of alfa-a molasses free twice daily, plus plenty of hay. They all live out 24/7 most of the time

I put mine on Equimins AC (I use the powder so I can mix in a few other bits and bobs) and is currently only on Fibre cubes, linseed, oily herbs, and hay and he is looking fab but if needed, will have a chat with yard to add the dengie lami meadow grass. It is working very, very well for him.

I tend to find the effectiveness of a balancer highly depends on what else is being fed.

 

[magicmoments]

It's the same when the reps/nutritionists from a feed manufacturer visit the yard with their weigh bridge and advice. I am very cynical but I know that 99% of the horse owners will be told their horses should have the most expensive product - a feed balancer!

That's why I used an independent nutritionist, but of course that costs. There's alot of false information out there.

 

[equinerebel]

What's also crazy is the belief that horses need a balancer to get all their nutritional requirements - very clever marketing!

I'd never heard of a balancer till I moved to the UK.

If you have good grass and quality hay that should meet 90% of their nutritional needs, the other 10% could probably be met by sending some time browing hedgerows on hacks.

They are grazing animals by nature. They are designed to get all they need from grass and browsing trees.

Yes, because UK grazing is generally pretty poor and turnout usually restricted.

Mine has a (stubbs) scoop of topspec grass, a smaller (miscellaneous) scoop of spillers daily balancer, oil and herbs. Thankfully she is neither a good nor a poor doer, the trouble is finding feed she'll actually eat lol

 

[myheartinahoofbeat]

If the feed companies really cared about horse nutrition surely they would give proper advice and achievable feeding quantities. Half the time it just sounds like they want to sell as many bags as they can. Cynical, I know.

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

I have tried various balancers with various horses over the years and have never seen a material difference in any of them... Maybe I should have another try

 

[Goldenstar]

I have had horses hunting three days a fortnight on ad lib haylage and a balancer type supplement . They looked fantastic .

Last year mine lived out until January wore muzzles in the field most of the time had severely restricted haylege and H hunted on just a little more haylege than the others got .
The amounts quoted are insane for horses in the normal type light work most horses do now .

 

[Goldenstar]

The first thing you need to do when deciding how much food a horse needs is look the horse not the bag of food if he’s fat don’t give him any if thin then you need to think about how to feed him .

 

[Fieldlife]

Mine has the molasses free half a Stubbs scoop. Just to check him over and a once a day treat. I know he doesn’t need it. Most leisure horses would do better on grass and hay.

this is not typically true unless you really have access to diverse meadow hay and grass, which is sadly fairly rare.

Most grazing and hay is monoculture, and most horses need more than grass and hay to stay in ideal health. Typically zinc, copper, selenium, sodium, magnesium insufficient in most hay and grass only diets (but does vary by area).

Doesnt mean need bucket food, but does mean some balancer / vit and min powder might be needed for optimum health. Most farmers will supplement cattle to correct hay and grass deficiencies!

 

[Fieldlife]

If the feed companies really cared about horse nutrition surely they would give proper advice and achievable feeding quantities. Half the time it just sounds like they want to sell as many bags as they can. Cynical, I know.

IME of having a rep out to various yards, whilst not hugely deep in their knowledge, most are giving sensible advice, based on the horse in front of them and the weighbridge. Heard lots say minimum feed e.g. chaff and mugful of balancer etc. I think can be too critical.

 

[Fieldlife]

What's also crazy is the belief that horses need a balancer to get all their nutritional requirements - very clever marketing!

I'd never heard of a balancer till I moved to the UK.

If you have good grass and quality hay that should meet 90% of their nutritional needs, the other 10% could probably be met by sending some time browing hedgerows on hacks.

They are grazing animals by nature. They are designed to get all they need from grass and browsing trees.

You are out of date, and not well informed.

Sadly most hay and grasss in UK available for horses, is not diverse, is 1-2 species and doesnt typically meet the essential mineral requirements. "Good" in terms of plentiful / healthy / lush grass does not become more diverse.

I cant speak for what other countries have by way of grazing.

Access to species diverse meadow hay and grass that would meet all nutritional needse is sadly fairly rare in the UK, and far rarer now than it use to be.

Most UK horse grazing, is ex cattle, mainly rye, and overgrazed and stressed.

As most grazing and hay is monoculture, and most horses need more than grass and hay to stay in ideal health. Typically zinc, copper, selenium, sodium, magnesium insufficient in most hay and grass only diets (but does vary by area).

Doesnt mean need bucket food, but does mean some balancer / vit and min powder might be needed for optimum health. Most UK farmers will supplement cattle to correct hay and grass deficiencies! And they dont waste money on unnecessary things.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Most of my liveries are on either Topspec Comprehensive or Topspec Lite with half a scoop of alfa-a molasses free twice daily, plus plenty of hay. They all live out 24/7 most of the time

Top spec Comprehensive is known for sending many horses loopy, including mine . Also alfalfa.

I was slow on the uptake with the Top Spec balancer because I regarded as just a vitamin supplement and didn’t consider it to be a possible cause of the loopiness, but it was.

I was aware that alfalfa could cause problems, and it did, so I stopped it straight away.

I feed very little to no hard feed, but I do feed a good balancer from Progressive Earth.

 

[maya2008]

They have always been high. 20 years ago, I remember the recommended amount was 4 scoops a day.

We feed straights, but in winter, anything dropping off too fast will probably end up on the equivalent of four scoops a day - over four feeds though, not two. Ours aren’t stabled so anything low in the pecking order with a high metabolism can struggle by February. It doesn’t cause any issues feeding that much (beyond enticing them to actually eat it!) and does solve the problem. We only do that for a month or two a year. For the rest of it, they’re on minimal feed to carry vitamins, minerals and lysine.

 

[Auslander]

Top spec Comprehensive is known for sending many horses loopy, including mine . Also alfalfa.

I was slow on the uptake with the Top Spec balancer because I regarded as just a vitamin supplement and didn’t consider it to be a possible cause of the loopiness, but it was.

I was aware that alfalfa could cause problems, and it did, so I stopped it straight away.

I feed very little to no hard feed, but I do feed a good balancer from Progressive Earth.

Thankfully mine are all pretty sane - mostly OAPs here!