Losing condition - something to add to his diet?

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rosepa

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My horse's weight (16.3hh warmblood) has started to drop off again this winter. I only bought him a year ago, and he was very skinny then, but by end of summer was at a good weight. Anyway, I'm not sure what to add to give him the extra calories needed - oil, or changing regular Alfa to Alfa a oil, or linseed maybe?

He is not very feed sensitive, at least it doesn't affect ridden work, but he loves a gallop around his field. Currently he has ad lib haylage and is fed twice daily:
Scoop of conditioning cubes
Scoop of Alfa
Balancer
1/2 scoop sugar beet
Handful of flaked maize (yard manager recommended - I'm not so sure?)

Any help would be great please! Thanks :)
 
My part loan came to my friend very skinny. Hes on one feed a day (two blew his head) of sugerbeet and conditioning mix, with a full cup of micronized linseed and a whale net of haylage (a very large net that holds about two nets worth) he looses weight VERY easy, for example over three days he dropped a good 50kg when a field mate left. He puts it on okay though too.
 
I think the micronised linseed sounds good then. Will take out maize flakes and try that and maybe swap Alfa to Alfa oil! Thanks :)
 
I had same thing with my new TB swapping the speed beet to fibre beet, she was already on 2 mugs of micronized linseed so increased it to 3 to 4 mugs.
worked great, I've now been able to cut linseed back to 2 mugs a day
 
I've put my big boy on half a cup of sunflower oil. It is a very good way of getting the calories in. He is huge and we are always struggling to keep weight on him.
Also, not sure if it is practical for you, but the yard staff are now giving him breakfast, lunch and supper so they can up the quantities without having to give enormous feeds.
He is on a general cube / mix, chop and alfabeet, plus Equivite, Propell and the oil. He's 19 and looks and rides like a horse half his age.
 
another one who agrees with the linseed! I buy a 15kg bag from mole valley, all of mine are on it in varying amounts.
I switched to straights a few years ago as I was concerned with how much filler, like wheat dust, was compressed into cubes (some brands are not as bad as others ). so mine are feed plain alfalfa chaff, oats, alfalfa pellets soaked and micronised linseed. personally even if they are not feed sensitive i avoid sugar so prefer soaked alfalfa pellets to sugar beet
 
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