Science needed around feeding

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HaffiesRock

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There is a mare on my yard who this time last year was very overweight. She went on a diet and exercise programme and after Christmas looked fab. Since about Feb this year she has got thinner and at one point looked ill (eating fine) Vet came out and said she was a little thin but nothing to worry about.

Anyway, shes on OK grazing (my gelding is doing far to well on it!) but still looks very thin. I have suggested she put hay in the field and frinwd said horse doesnt touch it so its wasted. I suggested she tried hayledge and she said she would just up her feed.

Shes on a stubbs scoop of conditioning mix, same of fibre nuts and a handful of chaff a day. Friend said she will be adding sugarbeet to this ration from the weekend and then twice daily feeds when it gets cold. I have tried to tell her that the horse needs more forage and not loads of sugary feed in one hit (horse in very light work)

So what I want to know really (no point in mentioning a feeding regime as it wont be taken on board) what I want is some science behind feeding. Calories in grass, hay etc, percentage of forage to hard feed. That kind of thing.

Thanks
 
There's no harm in the horse being fed a bucket load of fibre. Molassed straw chaff is pointless for weight gain, but alfalfa chaff or grass chaff will add calories. I fed a poor do-er half a bucket (soaked volume) unmolassed sugar beet, 3 scoops alfalfa chaff, mug of oil, a large scoop Spillers Slow Release Energy Cubes and a scoop high fibre cubes. Made a full bucket of feed in total and took about 40min to eat. It wouldn't cost much more than what your friend plans to feed and being mostly fibre would be more easily digested. Feeding lots of cereals wastes money because it won't be digested properly and it can also cause digestive upset due to making its way into the large intestine undigested. Vets fees for colic and laminitis cost lots, not to mention the lack of riding. If your friend is bothered about waste, perhaps that sort of knowledge may interest her. It's hard to be on livery having to stand by while others let their horses get preventable health problems.
 
If it is not eating hay or haylage I would tell friend to get its teeth checked. Also, unless you are being charged extortionate amounts for hay/haylage, it is usually much more cost effective to put on weight with extra hay, than extra hardfeed. Friend might actually pay more attention if you point out that she could be saving some money!
 
if the vet has said she is a bit thin but fine, why are you getting involved?

is she out on her own? if not the hay in the field will probably be a waste of time.

i would assume the vet looked at teeth so that would rule them out

and at the end of the day a bit thin is far better than fat
 
If there is good grass in the field then she probably won't bother with hay anyway. Horses aren't meant to eat hard feed, it is humans that think they need it. I feed a handful of sugar-free hard feed with lots of chaff and some linseed oil which helps keep weight on and gives slow release energy. Any of the top feed companies will give advice over the phone on calorific values and science info. Also, Is she wormed regularly? It is difficult when it is someone else's horse though as they will do what they want even if it has a detrimental effect!
 
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