Wheatfeed, oatfeed, and nutritionally improved straw

[stangs]

Fast Fibre and Veteran Light have come up in my search to find a way to stuff bute into horse. However, all I've been able to find on nutritionally improved straw/oatfeed/wheatfeed, the main components of these feeds, is this - https://thunderbrook.co.uk/what-do-you-feed-your-horse/ - which obviously is a very biased source. Plus the nutritional information of these feeds otherwise looks good.

So, horse feed gurus on here, how bad are these ingredients actually? I'm beginning to feel like there's no such thing as a healthy soaked feed.

 

[marmalade76]

Fast Fibre and Veteran Light have come up in my search to find a way to stuff bute into horse. However, all I've been able to find on nutritionally improved straw/oatfeed/wheatfeed, the main components of these feeds, is this - https://thunderbrook.co.uk/what-do-you-feed-your-horse/ - which obviously is a very biased source. Plus the nutritional information of these feeds otherwise looks good.

So, horse feed gurus on here, how bad are these ingredients actually? I'm beginning to feel like there's no such thing as a healthy soaked feed.

What's wrong with sugar beet? It's a straight, nothing added if unmollassed, low sugar, low starch, highly digestible fibre.

I've no idea if straw, oatfeed & wheatfeed are not good, but I'm guessing they're all fibre which is what horses are designed to eat.

 

[stangs]

What's wrong with sugar beet? It's a straight, nothing added if unmollassed, low sugar, low starch, highly digestible fibre.

I've no idea if straw, oatfeed & wheatfeed are not good, but I'm guessing they're all fibre which is what horses are designed to eat.

I'm not worried about sugar beet, more worried about how much 'processed feed' (if the TB link is to be trusted) is getting added to the mix. The Veteran Light has more wheatfeed than beet from the looks of it.

 

[marmalade76]

Feed straight beet, then.

 

[Sossigpoker]

I'm not worried about sugar beet, more worried about how much 'processed feed' (if the TB link is to be trusted) is getting added to the mix. The Veteran Light has more wheatfeed than beet from the looks of it.

TB feeds are sugary plus the company has a sex pest (Eddie Linehan) as a director. I'd feed anything over Thunderbrooks crap.

 

[Sossigpoker]

Wheatfeed and oatfeed are by-products of flour milling. They're high in fibre and in the case of wheatfeed low in calories , so ideal for horses with low energy needs.
I don't see anything wrong with either ingredient.

 

[HuskyFluff]

I don't think they're intrinsically bad things - it's fibre. However, I also take the view that if you're having issues getting drugs into your horse (mine's on prascend) then go with what works. Therefore mine has his tablet in a handful of sugary grains, something I'd never dream of feeding under normal circumstances, but it's the only thing that works!

 

[SantaVera]

My veteran is doing well on fibrebeet

 

[SussexbytheXmasTree]

On a side note fast fibre isn’t that tasty for trying to hide medication in. Neither of mine would eat it with or without medication in it. Neither or them liked Speedibeet either. Saracen Releve nuts or mix on the other hand is super tasty and is good at hiding meds.

 

[Fieldlife]

Fast Fibre and Veteran Light have come up in my search to find a way to stuff bute into horse. However, all I've been able to find on nutritionally improved straw/oatfeed/wheatfeed, the main components of these feeds, is this - https://thunderbrook.co.uk/what-do-you-feed-your-horse/ - which obviously is a very biased source. Plus the nutritional information of these feeds otherwise looks good.

So, horse feed gurus on here, how bad are these ingredients actually? I'm beginning to feel like there's no such thing as a healthy soaked feed.

It is a minefield as everything has downsides.

NIS isn’t as bad as that link makes out but it’s not super desirable either. It’s in the treat cubes I feed. But not in main bulk feed I use.

I think if you are only feeding a token feed to get supplements/ medicine down it matters less what you feed as long as it gets stuff eaten.

Agrobs mashes are more costly but contain nothing processed.

Alfabeet / speedibeet / fast fibre all good low sugar / starch soaked feeds for carrying powder.

Or for nasty tastes - Saracens Releve / Saracens recovery mash / copra are strong smelling super tasty feeds. If only feeding 1/2 mugful to hide powders probably ok too.

 

[stangs]

Feed straight beet, then.

Where would you recommend buying straight beet that's not too high in iron?

I don't think they're intrinsically bad things - it's fibre. However, I also take the view that if you're having issues getting drugs into your horse (mine's on prascend) then go with what works. Therefore mine has his tablet in a handful of sugary grains, something I'd never dream of feeding under normal circumstances, but it's the only thing that works!

Very true. It's just that we don't know how long he'll be on it for, and I don't want to be feeding anything too sweet come the spring. Mind you, if I can't find anything suitable, I'll probably be injecting it inside a carrot and getting it in him that way.

 

[marmalade76]

I don't think they're intrinsically bad things - it's fibre. However, I also take the view that if you're having issues getting drugs into your horse (mine's on prascend) then go with what works. Therefore mine has his tablet in a handful of sugary grains, something I'd never dream of feeding under normal circumstances, but it's the only thing that works!

Exactly, if you're only feeding a token amount, it's not going to do much harm.

 

[ycbm]

Wheatfeed and oatfeed are by-products of flour milling. They're high in fibre and in the case of wheatfeed low in calories , so ideal for horses with low energy needs.
I don't see anything wrong with either ingredient.

This. We have fed these for centuries without issues. Mine is on wheatfeed and loves it and looks great. Never had a feed so easy for the stables to mix his minerals in and get him to eat it. It's also less than £15 a sack for 25% more than in other feed sacks, 25kg.

I don't have any problems with NIS either, it's just been "softened" to make the fibre more digestible.

 

[criso]

Here's some info on oatfeed

https://smarthorsenutrition.com/ingredient-focus-oat-feed/

Wheatfeed similar only from wheat.

They are both sources of fibre and palatable.

It seems a lot of the tb criticism is around pesticides. That's an issue whatever you feed and it would be very difficult to go completely organic with horse feed.

 

[criso]

Agrobs mashes are more costly but contain nothing processed.

I love the Agrobs stuff and it's very palatable but the sugar/starch levels in the mash and Musli would be a bit high for a metabolic horse at 12.5%. Everything's natural but the grasses, apple and vegetables in it add natural sugars.

It's perfect for my fussy tb who's prone to drop weight though and the Musli mixed with Copra keeps him eating.

 

[Fieldlife]

I love the Agrobs stuff and it's very palatable but the sugar/starch levels in the mash and Musli would be a bit high for a metabolic horse at 12.5%. Everything's natural but the grasses, apple and vegetables in it add natural sugars.

It's perfect for my fussy tb who's prone to drop weight though and the Musli mixed with Copra keeps him eating.

I love the Agrobs stuff and it's very palatable but the sugar/starch levels in the mash and Musli would be a bit high for a metabolic horse at 12.5%. Everything's natural but the grasses, apple and vegetables in it add natural sugars.

It's perfect for my fussy tb who's prone to drop weight though and the Musli mixed with Copra keeps him eating.

Agree not super low. I feed the senior museli which is 1 starch 8 sugar. (Can’t remember the decimal places, totals 10.2%)

I’d say handful soaked probably okay for metabolic pony able to eat grass.

 

[Dexter]

Where would you recommend buying straight beet that's not too high in iron?


Very true. It's just that we don't know how long he'll be on it for, and I don't want to be feeding anything too sweet come the spring. Mind you, if I can't find anything suitable, I'll probably be injecting it inside a carrot and getting it in him that way.

I'd feed sugar beet and either grass nuts or chaff to make it even tastier. I wouldn't worry about the iron, but I do feed a FP balancer to mitigate for that.

 

[little_critter]

Where would you recommend buying straight beet that's not too high in iron?


Very true. It's just that we don't know how long he'll be on it for, and I don't want to be feeding anything too sweet come the spring. Mind you, if I can't find anything suitable, I'll probably be injecting it inside a carrot and getting it in him that way.

If this is a small token feed to hide meds then I would think the quantity of sugar beet you are using would supply minimal excess iron.

 

[TPO]

There's nothing really "wrong" with thr feeds mentioned in the OP.















A few years back BF folk, & I include myself, became quite evangelical about certain "bad" ingredients.







NIS was a big no because allegedly something caustic (can't remember what) was used during the process.



All the oat/wheat feed ingredients were likened to floor sweepings. They weren't to be fed as they were second rate ingredients.



Then there was an anti-sugar beet (including speedibeet etc) movement started up. Something to do with how it was processed in the hindgut.



The BF Facebook pages and websites were awash with it and it seeped into here too. Pretty sure I was guilty of reposting some links to thr sugarbeet argument and being anti NIS (also had a tlfew trimmers who were hard-core about certain ingredients and anti almost everything).



So I'm guessing that's where this stems from because all of that stuff has been fed for years without issue. I mean there's always an exception to every rule, especially with horses!

My 4 are bf and all have a base of Fast Fibre with no detrimental affect. They also get the lite & lean chop which I'm pretty sure must have NIS too. However there is no way the fussy horse would take meds in that feed. Had to buy a bag of cheap mix to hide the nasties in. His feet didn't fall off from a couple of weeks of eating junk food with his meds.

Previously he's had Baikeys Ease & Excel mix as his feed and despite all its "bad" ingredients him and his feed did grand on it (as did a previous ex racer).

 

[marmalade76]

What's NIS??

 

[TPO]

What's NIS??

Nutritionally Improved Straw

 

[Sossigpoker]

NIS is sprayed with an acid to essentially pre-digest it.
Straw is harder to digest than hay so this treatment just makes it easier to digest and safer to feed as there's less chance of colic.

 

[ycbm]

NIS is sprayed with an acid to essentially pre-digest it.
Straw is harder to digest than hay so this treatment just makes it easier to digest and safer to feed as there's less chance of colic.

I have also read that it can be treated with sodium hydroxide, an alkali, to produce exactly the same result.

Contrary to what Thunderbrooks say (is anyone really listening to that sexual pervert any more? ) that doesn't mean you're feeding your horse drain cleaner.
.

 

[maya2008]

If you don’t want to feed any feed at all for fear of what it may contain, then you can syringe bute in.

 

[criso]

NIS was a big no because allegedly something caustic (can't remember what) was used during the process.

Technically it is. Caustic Soda is another name for Sodium Hydroxide which is used to produce NIS and would be nasty if consumed neat.

However it's used in a lot of human food production too and isn't harmful.