The science in feeding - what are you supposed to look for?

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chaps89

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I find feeding a really interesting topic. I started the online equine nutrition course but unfortunately half way through it coincided with changes in personal circumstances and I never finished it (going off on a slight tangent if anyone knows the course I mean, it was run by the royal dick vet school, if anyone has a link if they're running it again could you send it me please?)
What are you actually looking for in a feed- what things do you want to be high levels present of, and other things low level?
How much does horse type (poor doer, stereotyping here, but tb vs (again stereotyping) good-doer cob) make a difference to what to look for in a feed? And how much does work load effect it? (ie, horse in heavy work you want high levels of protein (for example) but horse in lesser work would want lower levels of this)
For example, the following are normally provided on websites/feed bags as nutritional analysis, of each of these do you want high or low amounts?
Digestible Energy (MJ/kg)
Oil (%)
Protein (%)
Fibre (%)
Starch (%)
Vitamin A (iu/kg)
Vitamin D (iu/kg)
Vitamin E (iu/kg)
Selenium (mg/kg)
Copper (mg/kg)
Zinc (mg/kg)

Also, (gearing the post now slightly for my own circumstances) for a good doer who doesn't really need a feed, are balancers the way to go and do you look for anything different in their content?
Or just a mineral/salt lick in the field/stable?
Or a handful of chaff and a vit/mineral supplement mixed in?
Or do we all get too hung up on a horse must have feed & pills & potions and is it ok to just feed nothing other than reasonable quality forage if the horse looks well?

Just interested in learning and when picking feed I like to know what I'm buying/supposed to be looking for!
 
probably not the answer you want, but...science is all well and good but ultimately the horses opinion is the only one that matters.

my own horse is a TB (so stereotype says hot, buzzy, fussy), has had ulcers, has EPSM.

competing PSG,schooling GP.

the ideal diet for him should have been a low starch conditioning feed plus an alfalfa based chaff, or something specifically aimed at metabolic horses.

neither winergy condition (ultimate low starch condition) or saracen re leve (energy from oil for EPSM) worked for him at all.

what is working is Havens slobbermash (something like 38% starch!) and winergy high energy used as chaff! plenty of controllable energy,stamina, fabulous condition, ulcers all good, EPSM perfectly under control.

to boot he is barefoot and the above are not really BF *friendly*.

he looks and feels fantastic, but science would say his diet is all wrong!

in same vein, Fig (sis's horse) IS a buzzy hot head TB, also barefoot, but doesnt react to mollasses at all, but goes completely barmy on alfalfa, so again throws all theory out the window!

like everything with horses, you have to be prepared to look outside the box, especially if you have something a bit special needs.
 
Completely 100% agree, up until now I've just worked on the basis of does the horse in front of me look thin/ok/fat, clean shiney coat & seem happy/have enough energy to do what I want without being a fruit loop and it seems to have worked (that said, said horse was only ever in very very light work due to health problems anyway)
But looking at a new horse who will theoretically actually be in work I was looking at different feeding options and then realised I didn't actually know what I was supposed to be looking for :o It's a bit of a moot point for now as up until now he's survived on grass & hay & seems fine for it, is doing light work so far but thinking for the future if weight drops off in winter, or the workload increases etc I would like to make an educated choice in feeds rather than picking at random. Plus I'm nosey and once I think of these questions I like to know if there's answers!
However, as you say, no point feeding the 'correct' feed if horse in front of you disagrees! Out of interest, what made you do the exact opposite to what you 'should' have done with his feeding- was it purely, it wasn't working so thinking outside of the box and playing around until you found something you liked & worked for you both? (Lurk a lot in Competition & training part of the forum so know about the ups & downs with CS particularly- not trying to sound stalkerish here btw!)
 
hi,

yes basically in the 4 years ive had him we have tried all the *correct* ways of getting the energy he says he needs, in to him, ie oil (in oil form, in linseed, in high oil feeds and high oil chaffs) and fibre based feeds with no or few cereals.

it reached crisis point early this year really as he's now competing PSG he just didnt have the stamina, and his muscles kept cramping up- he was irritable, losing condition and felt flat to ride.

i read a lengthy thread on the mash on the BD forums and by chance the lady who supplies it in the midlands is a friend of a friend and we met up at a party and i got a few bags to try. I now regularly buy it from her and am going to start getting 3 months at a time now we know it works.
i was very sceptical as the starch should make his ulcers, feet, and EPSM worse. Its almost entirely cereal based but does also have a bit of alfalfa and linseed in it.
24hours after starting it i knew it was working, he was more forward to ride but in a happy not stressy way. i guess im fortunate in that he pretty quickly tells me if a feed is for him or not, i normally know within 24-48 hours if its upset his ulcers.

with the high energy, i guess i decided that because this horse goes against the grain in nearly every way, to try something else that technically shouldnt work! the slobbermash and alfa a oil wasnt *quite* enough in terms of energy/condition and whilst he has been good on releve +mash, the releve is ££££££ to be used as a *base* feed if you know what i mean, 5 bags a month just to top up his feed seemed a stupid amount of money to waste (but reducing the amount of re leve just made him flat again and also affected his topline).

he was better on alfa a oil and mash (no releve) but not perfect........

was trying to think what was an even higher DE chaff than alfa a oil and suddenly though of Fig's winergy, which is very chaff-y.........................so why not use the high energy as the fibre portion of his feed...................................so far he gets 1.5 scoops of his winergy *chaff* a day, plus the mash, and looks/feels amazing. and ill only need 2 bags of the winergy a month instead of 5 bags of re leve, so bank account happier too!
 
I did that course, I learned very little that I didn't already know and was disappointed to find out that it was sponsored by one of the feed companies (can't remember which), which meant that it dd recommend feeding a balancer, when there is actually a debate to be had about whether it is necessary or not.
 
Pearlsasinger said:
I did that course, I learned very little that I didn't already know and was disappointed to find out that it was sponsored by one of the feed companies (can't remember which), which meant that it dd recommend feeding a balancer, when there is actually a debate to be had about whether it is necessary or not.
Click to expand...

Are you talking about the course at Edinburgh Uni - that wasn't sponsored definitely no feed company names mentioned

It consolidated what I knew - but then I am in my 60's and so was always taught the importance of fibre over concentrates.
 
That's the course I mean. The videos of the digestive system clearly were made by one of the feed companies and credited as such. I'm just a little younger than you and was taught the same as you, so possibly my opinion of the course content was a bit unfair but I was expecting more about allergies/intolerances from the pre-course 'blurb'.
 
SCMSL said:
You do know beetpulp is also a "waste byproduct ingredient" right? And yet its a very useful feed-stuff when correctly integrated into a horse's feeding regime.
Click to expand...

Beet pulp has been fed to horses for decades - the mollased sort though!

It's interesting that now people are feeding it unmollassed - its very bland without the mollasses

Don't read the feedbags as I don't feed commercially processed feeds as they contain so much rubbish.
 
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