Large horse needing more than 2 feeds a day. How do you manage?

Re. the readymash, I don't like the idea of feeding milk powders to horses.

If mine I would rather feed something like copra coolstance which is higher energy (15 DE v. 11.3 DE) and plant based. (albeit granted I don't think they would find many coconuts.) I would second the use of the mirconised linseed or something like equijewel.
 
Ester he was still slim for his build when I saw him previously so I would hazard a guess he might be hard to keep weight/condition on although he has 10" of bone so I guess I expect him to be a lot chunkier than he currently is. I spoke to the gentlemen who bred him and competed him until he was 7 and was not given the impression he was a poor doer although I may contact him again to check and see what they were feeding him then he was competing regularly at 1m-1m30 so I would hope he was in good condition then.
Nudibranch he was out in a 10 acre field with 2 other horses who are my retired boys they are in very good condition but he lost weight whilst up there. Ester no other signs of ulcers generally he is a very laid back horse is fine to girth up. Happily eats everything I put in front of him.
 
Hmm, it might just be a case of experimenting feed wise then. While keeping in the back of the mind that there is sometimes an underlying reason if they continue not to put on the weight expected. Especially at this time of year (10 acres of grass with two others it is a bit odd to drop weight. I'm not really practiced with poor doers though!
 
He is looking much better already :).
Grass usually gets them plump easily but if he is stressing and not eating then it is counterproductive. I would try alfalfa or grass nuts (perhaps with a cup of full fat micronised linseed) in the hope that the extra protein would help him get the muscle back and to avoid cereals in case he might be a bit sensitive to them. I believe you can feed large amounts of the nuts as they are just a forage that as been pelleted (so perhaps a large bucket for the night?). Oil is indeed the most calorie dense feed but it takes several weeks/months for the gut to get used to it and properly digest it so a long term solution. Alfa-oil (oil coated alfalfa chaff) is another one I like to put on weight and can be fed in large stubb scoops without worry, and probiotics/yea-sacc is good too.

ETA: another advantage of alfalfa is that is it recommended in case of gut acidity as rich in calcium.
 
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Copra is a brilliant feed for condition, my poor doer is looking so much better since we swapped her from speedibeet to copra. She also gets micronised linseed which is brilliant for condition without being bulky. Then she gets Alfa A molasses free, some don't get on with Alfalfa products but it is worth a try , it is also good for ulcers.

I feed three feeds in winter when she is working hard. She gets one first thing before turnout, one when she comes in and one after working. Because her feeds are fibre based I don't worry too much about riding after a feed. I don't give her all of those feeds, could you leave one ready for someone else to pop in?
 
Unfortunately not he gets fed and turned out first thing by a friend and I go after work to bring in ride etc there isn't really anyone on the yard during the day and he's in the field
 
i do find all the absolutes on this thread hilarious and wonder how many of you have had to feed a seriously poor doer in work!

its all very well and good saying turn him away with loads of grass and hay but if the horse is a picky grazer and also fence walks he will lose weight..............this is what happens with our Fig. He has less grass than Goofy to start with each season, but because he picks, nibbles and walks the fence line his paddock is still knee deep in lush grass where as Goofy's (who is a hoover pig) looks like a nuclear bomb has gone off in it-bare in places and very short everywhere else.
all the grass in the world will make no difference if the horse doesnt want to be out there eating it!

in winter we hay the fields, Bruce and Goofy stand and eat it all day, Fig barely touches it, digs for grass a little, runs the fence a bit, digs a bit more, runs a bit more etc. so again hay in the field doesnt always =calories going in.

i would imagine that Figs feeds far exceed 2kg per feed but because he picks and nibbles that too he can be left with a huge feed in the field(which he will eat) and a huge feed overnight to pick at. i would also imagine that he exceeds 5kg a day total easily but has yet to explode or succumb to lami and if you check out our FB page you cant argue that he isnt working well, winning well and looking well :)

sammy-does your horse go out alone? if he does leave him with a big bucket feed in the field. then leave him with a big feed again overnight to nibble at. Thats if hes a nibbler, you dont want him to scoff 4/5kg in one go. Fig normally gets fed around 8pm and by 10.30pm still has half his feed left at least, bucket is clear by 5.30am. so hes taking hours to consume it, which is fine for his tummy :)

the best things we have found are:

havens slobbermash, but it can make some horses sharp, but it transformed my previous TB beyond recognition.

winergy condition if hes ok with alfalfa. Fig gets approx 2.5kg of that a day as his *base* feed.

soaked oats-really helped add more weight and bloom to fig when he couldnt have more winergy(he reacts to more than 2.5kg of winergy per day so we use oats instead)ssoak overnight in cold water.

micronised linseed

Equine Elite NZ megabuild is AMAZING! its a powdered supplement so wont add bulk to the feed but at full rations it adds amazing topline and bloom,would highly recommend trying it this if you cant leave him with big feeds to nibble.

because fig isnt mad keen on hay/grass but loves bucket feed, when he comes in at 3pm he gets a big bucket of mainly chaff and oats. just to get more fibre in to him, so if you cant leave your boy with a big feed overnight because he scoffs, you could at least leave him with a big bucket of chaff to get as much fibre in as possible(if you feel he needs more fibre and only picks at his hay).
 
Sammy1983 said:
Unfortunately not he gets fed and turned out first thing by a friend and I go after work to bring in ride etc there isn't really anyone on the yard during the day and he's in the field
Click to expand...

Ok so friend gives him a feed as usual before turnout, then you give him one when you arrive and one last thing before you leave.
 
Can I just sense check - Bonkers says the horse still looks too poor to work? Am I the only one that sees a yes slim horse in the recent picture but one that looks able to be ridden? He is a hat rack in the first but not the second??
Anyhooo... my 16.3 TB is not a great doer. If I she's not worked, then historically (when on her summer break from racing), she's actually gone backward in the field so for some unlimited turnout is definitely not the answer. When she first came home from racing she looked a bit better but not much than the first picture :( She picks at hay/haylage but will eat a good bucketful of grub. Through the winter we keep her on boiled barley with linseed, some chop and ulcerkind nuts which she does brilliantly on. It's taken a while to find the right balance but this seems to work for her. This winter is going to be interesting as she's not in work due to injury at the moment so we shall see.
 
h and f are the importers of it - if your local feed merchant doesn't stock it then yes they can buy via h and f
or you can contact h and f and they will advise you of your next local stockist - its fab stuff - I think they have some great before and afters either on their website or facebook page :)
 
Prince33Sp4rkle said:
i do find all the absolutes on this thread hilarious and wonder how many of you have had to feed a seriously poor doer in work!

its all very well and good saying turn him away with loads of grass and hay but if the horse is a picky grazer and also fence walks he will lose weight..............this is what happens with our Fig. He has less grass than Goofy to start with each season, but because he picks, nibbles and walks the fence line his paddock is still knee deep in lush grass where as Goofy's (who is a hoover pig) looks like a nuclear bomb has gone off in it-bare in places and very short everywhere else.
all the grass in the world will make no difference if the horse doesnt want to be out there eating it!

in winter we hay the fields, Bruce and Goofy stand and eat it all day, Fig barely touches it, digs for grass a little, runs the fence a bit, digs a bit more, runs a bit more etc. so again hay in the field doesnt always =calories going in.

i would imagine that Figs feeds far exceed 2kg per feed but because he picks and nibbles that too he can be left with a huge feed in the field(which he will eat) and a huge feed overnight to pick at. i would also imagine that he exceeds 5kg a day total easily but has yet to explode or succumb to lami and if you check out our FB page you cant argue that he isnt working well, winning well and looking well :)

sammy-does your horse go out alone? if he does leave him with a big bucket feed in the field. then leave him with a big feed again overnight to nibble at. Thats if hes a nibbler, you dont want him to scoff 4/5kg in one go. Fig normally gets fed around 8pm and by 10.30pm still has half his feed left at least, bucket is clear by 5.30am. so hes taking hours to consume it, which is fine for his tummy :)

the best things we have found are:

havens slobbermash, but it can make some horses sharp, but it transformed my previous TB beyond recognition.

winergy condition if hes ok with alfalfa. Fig gets approx 2.5kg of that a day as his *base* feed.

soaked oats-really helped add more weight and bloom to fig when he couldnt have more winergy(he reacts to more than 2.5kg of winergy per day so we use oats instead)ssoak overnight in cold water.

micronised linseed

Equine Elite NZ megabuild is AMAZING! its a powdered supplement so wont add bulk to the feed but at full rations it adds amazing topline and bloom,would highly recommend trying it this if you cant leave him with big feeds to nibble.

because fig isnt mad keen on hay/grass but loves bucket feed, when he comes in at 3pm he gets a big bucket of mainly chaff and oats. just to get more fibre in to him, so if you cant leave your boy with a big feed overnight because he scoffs, you could at least leave him with a big bucket of chaff to get as much fibre in as possible(if you feel he needs more fibre and only picks at his hay).
Click to expand...

glad the slobber worked for you - sent one of mine a bit sharp (so just fattened up using it - now weight maintained via different havens feed) the other one transformed and thrives on it
 
The horse doesn't look poor at all in terms of weight. He just needs some muscle, which will come with work. He's not going to build it standing around all day.

Sammy - I think you've done a great job!
 
Thank you SpringArising, Ester, lanky Loll and prince33sp4rkle. I was starting to panic a bit that I was doing something wrong, I know he still has a long way to go but I also thought it was more muscle he needed and was conscious of the fact he is only maintaining weight on current rations and I didn't want him to lose weight if I started working him a little more. I'll definitely try to get my hands on some slobber mash and Prince33sp4rkle I think I'll give the mega build a try as well. I'll also try the chaff overnight idea he used to get a big bucket of fast fibre but he stopped eating it.
 
Im no expert but just be careful mixing feeds with others - they are usually complete and balanced feeds - which slobbermash is...
I was told to feed it its own
Sometimes adding things can upset the balance - and therefore stopping it from working as effectively
 
BORODIN said:
Im no expert but just be careful mixing feeds with others - they are usually complete and balanced feeds - which slobbermash is...
I was told to feed it its own
Sometimes adding things can upset the balance - and therefore stopping it from working as effectively
Click to expand...

I very much doubt they are complete feeds in the same way dog food is - after all, horses get grass and/or forage of varying composition as well, no food in a bag or bucket is going to be complete for a horse. A manufacturer is bound to try and dissuade you from feeding other manufactures products alongside his, it's a marketing thing.
OP if you think he isn't gaining muscle, then it could be he is in need of more protein, which is the building block of soft tissue. Lysine is the most likely one he is short of, and selenium which enables the protein to be absorbed into muscle. Maybe a blood test to check his selenium levels (lots of soil is short but some horses seem to be able to absorb it better and too much is as bad as not enough) could help, as well as adding lysine which you can get in a selenium + vit E supplement or on its own from Forageplus?
 
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