What feed changes have you made due to the rising cost of feed/hay/haylage?

[tda]

Was thinking about getting some readymash extra for the oap, £18.80, bought some grass nuts instead £11.60 ?

 

[SEL]

Only my old boy on anything pricey and he can have it for as long as he's happy - ditto his bute

Young cob is on a balancer because he went through a growth spurt and got a bit wobbly but he's only 4 so no point in short cuts

Vitamin E is my most expensive purchase

 

[Sir barnaby]

Switched from spillers pony nuts to mole valley as offers are great there saving nearly £5 per bag, I pass to go to work so makes it easier as don’t make special journey. Bought a cheaper 5 litre tub of linseed saving £10 and I’m sure it’s just the same as the expensive ones. The only thing I won’t scrimp on is fly repellant I prefer equimins or leovet power as they are brilliant I just shop around for best deals.

 

[Horseysheepy]

I don't feed mine a lot either, fortunately they are all pretty easy to keep. OH makes my hay so i shovel that in instead chaff and a balancer for the ridden one and that's about it currently so not much to shave off there.

Yep same here! I realise I'm so lucky to get homegrown hay and they are eating it like there's no tomorrow at the moment.
It's just the youngster getting chaff and balancer and the retired gang get a handful to stop those sulky faces making me feel guilty every morning!

 

[SilverLinings]

To those who've pointed out vets fees have gone up quite a bit, they have had to due to the massive increase in fuel prices (mainly since the war in the Ukraine) and the increase in the prices of a lot of drugs and consumables (since Covid, these price increases are also being seen in the NHS although the huge size of the NHS means it can negotiate slightly better deals for massive bulk orders). Most vet practices don't make as much money as a lot of animal owners think, and vets don't get paid an awful lot considering the antisocial and long hours and the responsibility (jobs start at £30k which is less than the UK average income).

Like a lot of owners I often blanch when I receive a vets bill, but the costs are on the whole fully justified, although like in any line of business there will always be a minority of practices that charge more than they need to. I do realise that the cost of vets fees is going to be really hard for a lot of people in the near future, and the type of horse that requires lots of vet care isn't one that can be sold, so I feel for a lot of owners. It is the only area where you can't really make much of a saving unfortunately.

Back on topic, fortunately my horses are good doers so only get a handful of chaff with a vitamin and mineral supplement so I won't really notice the price increase. I will definitely see more impact from the increase in the cost of haylage, but I don't have a cheaper option available to me. I do wonder whether the dry spring and summer here plus the massive reduction in grain exports from Russia and the Ukraine is going to result in a shortage of cereal-based hard feed this winter (which will in turn result in a significant price-hike).

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

To those who've pointed out vets fees have gone up quite a bit, they have had to due to the massive increase in fuel prices (mainly since the war in the Ukraine) and the increase in the prices of a lot of drugs and consumables (since Covid, these price increases are also being seen in the NHS although the huge size of the NHS means it can negotiate slightly better deals for massive bulk orders). Most vet practices don't make as much money as a lot of animal owners think, and vets don't get paid an awful lot considering the antisocial and long hours and the responsibility (jobs start at £30k which is less than the UK average income).

Like a lot of owners I often blanch when I receive a vets bill, but the costs are on the whole fully justified, although like in any line of business there will always be a minority of practices that charge more than they need to. I do realise that the cost of vets fees is going to be really hard for a lot of people in the near future, and the type of horse that requires lots of vet care isn't one that can be sold, so I feel for a lot of owners. It is the only area where you can't really make much of a saving unfortunately.

Back on topic, fortunately my horses are good doers so only get a handful of chaff with a vitamin and mineral supplement so I won't really notice the price increase. I will definitely see more impact from the increase in the cost of haylage, but I don't have a cheaper option available to me. I do wonder whether the dry spring and summer here plus the massive reduction in grain exports from Russia and the Ukraine is going to result in a shortage of cereal-based hard feed this winter (which will in turn result in a significant price-hike).

We have an equine practice near me that is pretty much double the price of everyone else in every respect. I don't use them now, not because of price but because their service is so awful, some of their vets are idiots (when you can microchip your own finger not once but twice by going in one side of the ponies neck and out the other before getting it to stay in at the 3rd attempt - as well as bring a scalpel and hibiscrub with you as its not the first time youve done it qualifies you as an idiot vet in my book) and their general attitude stinks. I honestly don't know why anyone uses them!

I only have natives now so slightly less expense in the winter than having the TB's.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

At least you got three visits lol… only superficial and he wasnt lame!

honestly they see us coming ??

I wouldn't have got a vet out to that but then I am more than used to treating that kind of thing or worse at work ??

 

[Barton Bounty]

I wouldn't have got a vet out to that but then I am more than used to treating that kind of thing or worse at work ??

He had an infection and i wouldnt have either, but they would not give me antibiotics without a visit!

 

[Sealine]

I paid £17.75 for a bag of Dengie Alfa A Lite last week Luckily a bag lasts me about 4 weeks at the moment as it's only something to feed with his Danilon twice a day. If I could find a cheaper alternative that he'll eat I would change. There is a cheaper feed store but it's further away so it's only worth a trip if I stock up on shavings, feed and dog food. My animals will always get what they need to be healthy and happy.

 

[TPO]

We have an equine practice near me that is pretty much double the price of everyone else in every respect. I don't use them now, not because of price but because their service is so awful, some of their vets are idiots (when you can microchip your own finger not once but twice by going in one side of the ponies neck and out the other before getting it to stay in at the 3rd attempt - as well as bring a scalpel and hibiscrub with you as its not the first time youve done it qualifies you as an idiot vet in my book) and their general attitude stinks. I honestly don't know why anyone uses them!

Knowing exactly who you are talking about I agree 100%!

 

[southerncomfort]

To those who've pointed out vets fees have gone up quite a bit, they have had to due to the massive increase in fuel prices (mainly since the war in the Ukraine) and the increase in the prices of a lot of drugs and consumables (since Covid, these price increases are also being seen in the NHS although the huge size of the NHS means it can negotiate slightly better deals for massive bulk orders). Most vet practices don't make as much money as a lot of animal owners think, and vets don't get paid an awful lot considering the antisocial and long hours and the responsibility (jobs start at £30k which is less than the UK average income).

Like a lot of owners I often blanch when I receive a vets bill, but the costs are on the whole fully justified, although like in any line of business there will always be a minority of practices that charge more than they need to. I do realise that the cost of vets fees is going to be really hard for a lot of people in the near future, and the type of horse that requires lots of vet care isn't one that can be sold, so I feel for a lot of owners. It is the only area where you can't really make much of a saving unfortunately.

Back on topic, fortunately my horses are good doers so only get a handful of chaff with a vitamin and mineral supplement so I won't really notice the price increase. I will definitely see more impact from the increase in the cost of haylage, but I don't have a cheaper option available to me. I do wonder whether the dry spring and summer here plus the massive reduction in grain exports from Russia and the Ukraine is going to result in a shortage of cereal-based hard feed this winter (which will in turn result in a significant price-hike).

To be fair, none of us were complaining.

We commented that it has happened and said it was the only thing worrying us in terms of our own finances.

The vet practice I use is excellent ( the big vet hospital in Huddersfield featured on Yorkshire Vet). I switched to them as the vet practice I was using, while much cheaper, was not providing a good service and I'd lost trust in most of the vets there.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

Like many people my horses come first and given one is prone to laminitis and the other EMS I will keep them in their low starch/sugar feed to carry supplements and use the same hay supplier. Same for my elderly cats, their food costs almost as much as my weekly shop but it’s necessary to keep them healthy. I’ve stopped the horses extortionate insurance with NFU as B was excluded for most things anyway and switched to Harry Hall for injury only and I can use less diesel by cycling to the yard and switch to Aldi from Tesco for basics. You cut your cloth accordingly as my grandma used to say.

 

[maya2008]

Interesting how many people think that switching brands or switching to straights is a bad thing for the horse. None of the changes we have made will impact them negatively in any way - in fact, losing the nuts for most of them is healthier (I fed them ‘cos the ponies liked them but was aware of the sugar content) and their vitamins and lysine supplements mix just fine into a handful of chaff and beet. Switching wormer brand won’t hurt them either - I stuck to named brands before because it was what I was used to asking for, not because it was actually better!

I guess I was curious asking this, if people found some brands cheaper than others, or more had switched to straights etc.

Mine get what they need to be healthy - they don’t actually need carrots, or brand name feeds/wormer. They also don’t all actually need the fancy high fibre haylage, but I am allergic to hay so it’s me who will suffer from that change! We can get straw and hay from the farmer down the road, and I can wear a mask and gloves…

 

[J&S]

I changed to a cheap coarse mix and cheaper chaff earlier this year. Ponies had come out of winter looking pretty good so I felt as long as I had something in a bucket for them to look forward to we would be alright. WRONG! My native companion pony, who is quite a spooky little thing but geat fun became virtually unrideable, total nervous wreck, I figured it to be the coarse mix pretty well straight away and so literally only sprinkled a tiny bit on the chaff and she came back to normal (for her!) My veteran mare basically started to lose condition, almost visibly! I upped the size of her feeds and gave her extra hay and felt she was just about coming back but she was not losing her coat properly, enough to make me suspect Cushings. The last two bags of feed I have bought have been what i was feeding previously, a traditional, well known product for good doers. The native looks a million dollars and the veteran mare looked so good to me that i put a saddle on her and rode her round the block just to prove i was right! I also had her tested for Cushings at the beginning of the month and she was negative.
So as far as I am concerned I am sticking with the more expensive but better product.

 

[sunleychops]

Nothing so far, I find the own branded stuff pretty crap anyway and not like there is an own brand Omega Rice or Ease & Excel