More copra questions-this time feeding amounts

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PennywithHenry

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Me again-with more coolstance questions-apologies.

I'm finding it difficult finding feeding quantities info....

When I went to buy my first bag the lady at the shop asked Boo's size and said that feeding for condition was 1 scoop morning and night. Well this swells into quite a quantity! I divided her meals into 4, meaning that she's having 1/2 a stubbs scoop at each meal, rather than a full one, but these are still proving to be quite large feeds for her once they've expanded, and as a result she's leaving a lot of her hay.

I was recommended to drop all other hardfeed and just feed these 2 stubbs scoops (dry weight) of copra, split over two feeds and soaked. I can't really divide meals into any more than 4, and am worried that it isn't going to beneficial to her rehab if she's not eating her hay. Last night I shouldn't think that she had more than a slice between 10pm and 9am. My paddocks are practically bare but she barely touched her hay all day either.

Help/advice please
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Although I don't feed Copra, all the riding school horses on my yard are fed this and have been for about 10 years- and look incredibly well on it. Typically when water has been added they appear to have enough to cover the bottom of a wide feed bucket to a depth of 4-5mm - they are mostly good doers though so you could adapt this to your own needs
 
i only feed my big (17 hh ish) horses half a soaked and swelled scoop of copra. smaller ones get quarter a soaked scoop per feed! mixed with alpha a and nuts. 2 dry scoops will make a huge quantity too much for one horse me thinks! i wouldn't choose just to feed copra, as it wont be a balanced diet
 
I have a few on it and feed molichaff and nuts then i soak mine and give 1/4 in morning and night feeds - my ones that are out have chaff and half in morning and night with no nuts xx
 
I feed happy hoof and lo-cal with it. I use 200g (unsoaked weight) with a kettle full of hot water just at night and then build it up gradually. I think they recommend feeding from 0.5kg to 1kg dependant on size but i find thats a lot particularly to start with. I'm sure i read that you build it up gradually, last year i was feeding up to 400g (14.3hh welsh cob). I wouldnt feed it on its own either as i'm not sure of the fibre content, particularly if your horse isnt getting much roughage if she isnt eating her hay.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I feed happy hoof and lo-cal with it. I use 200g (unsoaked weight) with a kettle full of hot water just at night and then build it up gradually. I think they recommend feeding from 0.5kg to 1kg dependant on size but i find thats a lot particularly to start with. I'm sure i read that you build it up gradually, last year i was feeding up to 400g (14.3hh welsh cob). I wouldnt feed it on its own either as i'm not sure of the fibre content, particularly if your horse isnt getting much roughage if she isnt eating her hay.

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Thanks for that. They recommend feeding 0.5-1kg? I'm feeding for condition to a mare we got a few weeks ago, yet they told me it's best fed as a complete feed-this is what's throwing me. The amounts are enormous, and that's why she's not eating her hay. She was tucking into her forage fine up until moving over onto the copra. I'm worried as we have little/no grass so they're relying heavily on their hay, and it's as though she's too full to tuck in. She's not making any effort with haylage either, so I'm sure it's not a bad batch of hay, plus the others are tucking in fine.

She's moved from micronised barley, sugar beet and alpha a, with farnhams weight builder and biotal equine gold over to this, the bag has enough to give her her breakfast, then that's gone, and I only got it on thursday!!

It's the volume of the feed causing the problem, so maybe feeding smaller amounts alongside another product??
 
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