Oats not working?

[DonskiWA]

I have a super chilled Holsteiner, very healthy, happy, no pain issues. We are eventing at 80cm and he’s in moderate work. As I mentioned, he is super chilled, and this carries through to his work ethic. So I upped his feed with 1kg oats (whole, soaked overnight) for a bit more oomph in the engine. Nothing. Crickets. Nada. They’re not even making him fat!
Has anyone had this before? I‘ve not ever had to feed oats and previous two horses were more ‘go than woah’.

 

[ycbm]

It's a myth that oats are a heating food. You could try oil, it worked for one of mine. Up to 500ml, but increase it slowly.
.

 

[GreyDot]

If he's in 'moderate work' try building up his stamina with interval training, hill work, etc. and you will get more of an engine.

 

[DonskiWA]

It's a myth that oats are a heating food. You could try oil, it worked for one of mine. Up to 500ml, but increase it slowly.
.

Yes, already on oil, copra, lucerne, beetpulp, vit/mins, etc.

 

[DonskiWA]

If he's in 'moderate work' try building up his stamina with interval training, hill work, etc. and you will get more of an engine.

Journey in progress

 

[ycbm]

OK, can you give us more of a clue what you mean by laid back? Is it sparkle in the dressage you want or is he running out of steam on the cross country?
.

 

[Jellymoon]

Anecdotally, people find haylage and alfalfa can give their horses more ‘fizz’ if that’s what you are after. And maybe a competition mix with lots of barley and starch, but these are very out of fashion these days, not considered to be very good for the horses.
However, I’m not sure there’s that much you can do with a genuinely laid back type, except maybe hunting?!

 

[DonskiWA]

OK, can you give us more of a clue what you mean by laid back? Is it sparkle in the dressage you want or is he running out of steam on the cross country?
.

OK, can you give us more of a clue what you mean by laid back? Is it sparkle in the dressage you want or is he running out of steam on the cross country?
.

Bit of both really. Just that X factor is missing. Our last dressage judge commented that it all looked a bit laboured. He can get around an 80 course in time, but I’d be working my butt off to get him round in a 95 time, and that’s really not that fast. Perhaps I’m just not use to this ’type’. My previous horses were an OTTB and an Anglo-arab.

 

[DonskiWA]

Anecdotally, people find haylage and alfalfa can give their horses more ‘fizz’ if that’s what you are after. And maybe a competition mix with lots of barley and starch, but these are very out of fashion these days, not considered to be very good for the horses.
However, I’m not sure there’s that much you can do with a genuinely laid back type, except maybe hunting?!

They might good things to try possibly. I’d love (fox-free) type of hunting, but none near me I’m afraid.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

TBH, it sounds as if he is the wrong job/home. If he is laid back, he is laid back and feeding him things like alfalfa which will only make him fizzy if they make him uncomfortable is unfair/abusive imho.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

I wouldn't be surprised if breed and fitness are a part of it.

 

[Carrottom]

Assuming he is a fairly large horse I don't think that 1 kg is very much. When you consider a racehorse would be fed at least 4 kg daily in full work, usually more.
I would try rolled oats, increase the amount, and go galloping a couple of times a week for a few weeks to increase fitness.

 

[holeymoley]

Seen this done before. Unless it’s fitness and stamina, the horse is the horse it is. No amount of feed will change it.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I think people underestimate what it takes to get some horses fit. My PRE is a bit of a fat man in a horse suit and takes more time to get fit than my TB did. So this horse might take a bit more, perhaps.

There's also training. So many riders (not saying you specifically, OP) can create a dull horse too. So look at your training a bit as far as variety and being in front of your leg goes.

If you've looked at nutrition, fitness, and training, then the horse just is the way he is. If he's not your type, then you have some decisions to make.

 

[rabatsa]

When a lot younger I fed my laid back chap for extra energy. It made no difference to his way of working but it did make him very traffic shy. Within 48 hrs of stopping the heating feed he was back to his normal traffic proof self.

 

[Red-1]

I don't think you want him any less laid back, what you want is for him to learn to be in front of your leg?

Is he young? I find that some young horses take ages to pick up fitness.

 

[Celtic Fringe]

My son evented his Anglo-arab x cob who was fab at his job but it was REALLY hard work keeping the horse fit enough (eventually he went out at Intermediate). They went to the gallops twice a week and had a fairly fast hack on one or two other days plus a couple of days in the school. It is hilly near us so that helped a lot. He was fed conditioning cubes and turbo oats during the eventing season and was quite lean. A TB would have had more stamina and been easier to get fit in the first place.

It has taken around 5 years to get my cob strong enough for a Prix St George dressage test and building stamina has been a big part of that too. He hacks up and down steep hills a two or three times a week and does two or three short bursts (20-30 minutes)in the school during the week as well as in-hand, lunging and pole work. Trips to the water treadmill also helped. He has competition mix and balancer but also some naked oats in the lead up to Regional Finals.

With both horses a lot of variety has been really helpful to keep them fit and enthusiastic. Both live out all year.
Edited to add that the eventer did not start until he was 8 and the cob when he was 6 so they were both fully grown (skeletally mature) before starting quite hard work.

 

[Ossy2]

I think you need to look at the bigger picture here. If a judge said my test looked laboured I’d take that to mean it wasn’t in front of the leg not that I wasn’t feeding it enough oats.
It’s a combination of having the right fuel and the right training. Getting a horse in front of the leg is hard getting a horse fit for a BE90 or BE100 is hard never mind the higher levels. Unless you have a horse naturally with a lot of blood the times for BE XC are tough. I would look at your training program and possibly look at a balancer for performance horses as well.
I don’t see your issue is one you can just chuck oats at sorry!

 

[DonskiWA]

I don't think you want him any less laid back, what you want is for him to learn to be in front of your leg?

Is he young? I find that some young horses take ages to pick up fitness.

Yes, 7 yo.

 

[Red-1]

Yes, 7 yo.

If he is a big build especially, I would say you will have a different feel by the time he is 9.

I would concentrate on training to get him quickly off the leg, do interval training so he learns to react up and down through the gears and train him to do that through your body position so you don't have to nag.

 

[Cortez]

If you are trying to create impulsion with feed, you're working on the wrong end.

 

[Jellymoon]

If a judge said my dressage test looked laboured, that would ring alarm bells for me and I would be checking him for discomfort. Or perhaps even thinking that this is not the job for him and he’d be happier doing something else, and you’d be happier with something more forward.
Or perhaps try to find a trainer that really understands how horses move who can help you free him up a bit, and do loads of hacking and cantering, get him really fit.
How much forage does he have? Because they get more of their energy and stamina from their forage..

 

[Errin Paddywack]

When a lot younger I fed my laid back chap for extra energy. It made no difference to his way of working but it did make him very traffic shy.

This happened to my sister with her very laid back NF. Just as idle but traffic shy.

 

[ihatework]

Provided the horse is not in pain, then lack of oomph is partly their default nature and partly training.
You have to get them properly fit and be religious about having them in front of the leg.

Or you do what I do - sell them and accept they just aren’t your type!

 

[Red-1]

Provided the horse is not in pain, then lack of oomph is partly their default nature and partly training.
You have to get them properly fit and be religious about having them in front of the leg.

Or you do what I do - sell them and accept they just aren’t your type!

If you do sell, I bet you would have a queue of people wanting a horse who can make the times lower BE, who is also laid back.

 

[ycbm]

Unless you have a horse naturally with a lot of blood the times for BE XC are tough.

Sorry but I don't think this is true, below Novice. I inadvertently got time faults for too fast at Novice on a horse that was a light MW half bred. On a cob I never got time faults at Intro. 70/80/90/100 times should be a piece of cake to most horses that have been got fit enough to gallop that length of course and safely jump that number of fences.
.

 

[Ossy2]

Sorry but I don't think this is true, below Novice. I inadvertently got time faults for too fast at Novice on a horse that was a light MW half bred. On a cob I never got time faults at Intro. 70/80/90/100 times should be a piece of cake to most horses that have been got fit enough to gallop that length of course and safely jump that number of fences.
.

I’m not really sure what your disagreeing with here as I think we’re saying the same thing! You said it yourself, “should be a piece of cake for those that have got their horses fit enough to gallop that length of course”. The issue is to get that is hard work on the riders part. People don’t put in the hard work and then wonder why they don’t meet the times or their horse is laboured.

 

[sport horse]

Have you had your vet run bloods on him - he could be anaemic and still look well

 

[Orangehorse]

Agree with the blood test.

But I found it a lot of hard work to get a non TB fit, I couldn't believe it, having had really keen TBs that practically got themselves fit and went at any sort of work with lots of enthusiasm previously.

A young horse will take time to build up fitness, but generally agree with the "short sharp galloping" and lots of variety. There are books about getting a horse fit, and it can be quite hard to get a lazy horse going as they get cheesed off with lots of long galloping.

But if he is doing the time OK at the moment you are going in the right direction.

 

[DonskiWA]

Lots to think about here. Thanks for your words. Yes, I think i hvpave underestimated the work it’s going to take to get him fit. And yes, in front of the leg is going to take skill and time. So, in a nutshell, fitness, patience and skill. Thankyiu