New Hoof Friendly Diet Not Going Well

W

wiglet

Well-Known Member
Joined
1 February 2002
Messages
1,071
Location
England
Visit site
I have been changing my girls diet to something much lower in sugars to help her hoof quality. Unmolassed chaff, fast fibre and Forageplus Hoof Health Balancer.

It's not going well :(

I know it's early days but she's a TB, old and VERY set in her ways. She eats some, well picks at it really then just leaves it. I know everyone will say she'll eat when she's hungry but, she drops weight quickly and I don't want that.

This morning I gave her breakfast but forgot the Forageplus balancer. She totally ate up :O licking the bowl and everything. Okay, it's the balancer she doesn't like. When it was recommended to me, Pro-plus (or something like that name) was also mentioned. I will probably try that one next but... will it be the same taste as the Forageplus stuff?

Are there any other fussy feeders out there that eat it? Would like you views please.
 
I'm pretty sure I'd never get minerals down my TB in fast fibre and unmolassed chaff. ;)

I feed sugar beet (with the molasses rinsed off), oats, linseed and bran. This keeps weight on my fussy TB, he licks the bucket clean, and I've detected no increase in footiness after swapping from fast fibre. I think it's a matter of trial and error to find a base that works for you.
 
Did you start at the full amount? If you did then you may need to build up very slowly until she accepts the full dose. My big lad won’t eat his minerals in Fast Fibre but he gobbles the lot up if I use soaked Spillers High Fibre cubes which he seems to have no tolerance problems with – I only use 300 g 
 
Some barefooters (inc myself) add copra meal to the food to increase palatability. I also find adding a bit of dried mint helps with the taste too :)

I personally use Equimins metabalance as my BF balancer as my gelding has cushings. My other horse is a picky princess and I find I have to hold the bucket or even hand feed her when I first change her food until she gets used to it. If I am holding the bucket it seems to become more attractive to her.

Edited to add my mare isn't mad keen on the oat chaff so if she gets very picky I tend to feed her just the fast fibre and supplements as I only use the chaff to pad it out a bit.
 
I glossed over the details! It's not just unmolassed chaff and FF. There is linseed in there and I also added Spillers HiFibre nuts - she likes these very much, picking them all out carefully before leaving the rest. I then added spearmint which encouraged her to sniff and pick a little more but she won't eat up.

Not tried oats, could be something to try am sure she will eat those. Do you feed any specific kind of oats? Tiger oats? Or just good old fashioned oats?

Is bran any good? Thought it was frowned upon these days?
 
I know people have had problems with the prohoof too.

I think it shows you how much flavouring and sugar they add to the commercial balancers to make them palatable


Mine picks if it's just his speedibeet but I feed Copra which is safe for barefoot horses and he licks the bowl clean.

A little goes a long way, a handful will fluff right up, it's very high in calories and oil so would help her maintain weight

The other thing to do is having established it's the minerals, add a tiny bit initially and build up slowly so she gets used to the taste.

I don't necessarily agree with the they'll eat when they are hungry approach, a yard manager tried it with a dodgy batch of hay at the yard with my tb, I was away for work at the time and came back to find him looking like a toast rack, he's lost about 30kg rather than eat rank hay.
 
Ali2 - no, didn't start at the full amount - started with a tiny scoop and worked up to half measures before she said no. Not even got to full amount yet :(
 
My mare is very fussy with supplements, so I have had to change her onto the liquid pro feet from naf, which I syringe down her! I use equijewel for weight gain, which seems to work well, and be quite palatable. I avoid cereals, so don't touch oats with a barge pole, but thats just me. I also use alfa beet, as it is non molassed, and is great for weight gain.
 
wiglet said:
I glossed over the details! It's not just unmolassed chaff and FF. There is linseed in there and I also added Spillers HiFibre nuts - she likes these very much, picking them all out carefully before leaving the rest. I then added spearmint which encouraged her to sniff and pick a little more but she won't eat up.

Not tried oats, could be something to try am sure she will eat those. Do you feed any specific kind of oats? Tiger oats? Or just good old fashioned oats?

Is bran any good? Thought it was frowned upon these days?
Click to expand...

haha i saw your writing about my gelding there! he was the same lol I soaked his fibre nuts, it kinda makes a fibre mash type thing and mix that with the fast fibre. He couldn't seperate them, so ended up eating it all :)
 
i'd try soaking the fibre nuts too - works well for my fussy one :) I do also use bran becuase my analyses told me that we needed more phosphorous.
 
Okay. Tonight's dinner will have soaked fibre nuts added in and I will drop the qty of Forageplus back down to a small scoop for a few days before trying to build it up again.
Let's see what Madam makes of this :D
 
And flavourings can help - but you need to work out what your horse likes. Chamomile, lemon balm, rose petals fennel seeds, fenugreek, hawthorn berries, rose hips, brewer's yeast, celery are all popular
 
Marmite Lucy, you forgot Marmite :D

I also had one that liked chilli paste but I think she was probably a bit speshul.
 
OP - my TB mare wouldn't eat Fast Fibre either after a few months on it. She is now on Pure Feeds Pure Easy (10% sugar and starch combined) and is licking the bowl clean. She also gets Pro Hoof and micronised linseed.
 
Just a quick word to say oats are not evil. And when I've been glancing on the barefoot board they can be used for horses needing weight. I prefer whole oats that I pour boiling water over and let steep. Cracks the kenernals. No oats in poop. I make everything a mash so they get their supplements. Mine were picky years ago when I first started the diet but they don't know any different now.

Terri
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top