Please give me your opinion.

[showqa]

8 year old well bred horse, generally nice type but can have a tendency to being a bit bolshy at times.

A/On tiny amounts of feed, twice a day, with 9% starch and no mollases. Mainly on average quality forage. Lives out with access to a barn. No grazing. Worked 6 days a week.

To:

B/Stabled, other than for work. Fed three full scoops of feed 24% starch and covered in mollasses. 6 flakes of high quality forage. 2 hours turnout a day. No grazing. Worked 6 days a week, more intensely but for a shorter period of time.

Please can you tell me whether changes of behaviour are to be expected? Serious question.

 

[AdorableAlice]

Hopefully the change has been done gradually. I would be expecting a degree of 'freshness' and would be checking my parachute.

Why the dramatic changes ? I would be amazed if he didn't react to the huge increase in hard feed.

 

[soulfull]

Too be honest if you hadn't had so many posts I would have assumed you were a Troll as the answer is so obviously YES possibly even mega changes in behaviour

I am curious as to why someone would make such drastic changes

 

[Irishbabygirl]

Take it this is someone else's horse and they are wondering why horse is playing up...? Why change the feed so much?

 

[LaurenBay]

Yes. I think you can expect him to be fresh and more bolshy.

Why are you making such drastic changes?

If you could, stay in option A as it sounds much better.

 

[smellsofhorse]

Any horse that didn't react to the above change is a saint!

It should be done gradually so the horse becomes used to it.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Stabled, other than for work

^ This alone would cause my mare to go nuts (and I'm not talking about the TB that hates being stabled ). With the increase of hard feed too - I actually dread to think how loopy she would become.

 

[Ibblebibble]

in a word YES!

 

[showqa]

Thanks - so I'm not being precious.

I'm overseas training with my horse and being put under a LOT of pressure to change my routine to this routine. So far, he has had to be stabled more but actually copes with that reasonably well BUT I refuse to allow changing to their comp feed, I insist on turning him out into an albeit small paddock, on the grouds that I KNOW he will become difficult. I am, however, being regarded as something of a mamby pamby softy British owner - actually had one person say "You listen to too much of the science" when I was trying to explain why 24% starch hard feed and three scoops of it a day will blow his brains.

Hence, I wanted to make sure that I wasn't being mamby pamby but was talking sense. NOT easy in this very male dominated macho yard. But thanks for reassuring me.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

This reminds me of some comments my friend who now lives in Portugal made RE how horses are kept there V's here and why she doesn't have a horse there (I am aware that she was only talking about her local area - not the whole of Portugal).

There is nothing wrong listening to Science anyway - it is essentially a search for the truth.

 

[showqa]

It's very difficult, I can tell you. The training in the saddle is excellent, but in so many other ways I'm in a constant fight. The stable manager here thinks I'm just a pathetic female, and I'm not exaggerating when I say I'm hovering around at feed time to make sure my horse is not being fed rocket fuel so that he can prove something.

 

[AdorableAlice]

What a horrible situation to find yourself in. Could you tell the yard manager your horse has vet issues if he is overfed, ie tying up etc.