Which Oil? (Feeding)

M

Mlini

Well-Known Member
Joined
8 August 2011
Messages
629
Visit site
Had a lady from Baileys come to the yard to assess our horses diets. I have been advised to put him on Baileys No. 4 and Outshine. He needs the feed to keep the weight on and to help build topline and add condition. He is an exracer, 16.3 and 6 years old, currently in what I would call light work (hard work for him!!) around 30 mins a day, getting fit for summer. :) He was originally on C&C and Alfa A when I first got him, as he was a rake! :o This has done most of the work adding the weight but now he has gone off his sloppy dinners, hence the change in diet.

She recommended that I add an oil to his diet. But didn't say which type of oil would be most effective. I had a quick look online and saw quite a few different 'horse' oils but someone on my yard feeds normal 'human' oil. Is there a lot of difference between the 'human' oils and the 'horse' oils? Cost isn't really an issue but (obviously) I wouldn't want to be buying a £20 bottle of oil, when one that costs a couple of pounds will do the same job. And is there a difference between the type of oils, soya/linseed/cod liver... Or do they all do the same job?

A quick picture of his weight after winter (taken last month, coat looks dull due to malting :o - He is actually quite shiny really :)) How do you think he looks? - Vet is coming out next week for a health check, weighing and condition scoring session! I'd like to hear your opinions too :D

IMG_0708.jpg
 
Micronisde linseed, around £20 for a 3month supply from feedmark, you can get it cheaper but I order alot from them and its just easy free next day delivery too
 
If she has advised No4 and outshine are you going to feed this?

Outshine is a high oil supplement, so I wouldn't imagine you would need extra oil on top.

I feed all mine No4 and outshine, seems to work a treat
 
How surprising the Baileys lady recommended all that feed! :rolleyes:

Personally i think he looks well, just needs a bit extra condition & topline - nothing good old Dr green can't sort out & correct work.

Do you have good summer grazing? If so you will notice a huge difference once the grass starts coming through.
For now i would be feeding ad-lib haylage & plenty of turnout on good grass.

Feed wise i would avoid outshine & topline cubes, these combined with spring grass could make for one loopy pony.
I would feed someting high in fibre like Fast Fibre with micronised linseed.:)
 
forestfantasy said:
How surprising the Baileys lady recommended all that feed! :rolleyes:

Personally i think he looks well, just needs a bit extra condition & topline - nothing good old Dr green can't sort out & correct work.

Do you have good summer grazing? If so you will notice a huge difference once the grass starts coming through.
For now i would be feeding ad-lib haylage & plenty of turnout on good grass.

Feed wise i would avoid outshine & topline cubes, these combined with spring grass could make for one loopy pony.
I would feed someting high in fibre like Fast Fibre with micronised linseed.:)
Click to expand...

This exactly^^^
 
I started feeding mine No 4 after advice from Baileys and she went absolutely loopy.

I feed her soya oil and linseed oil in speedi beet and she absolutely loves it! She also gets pink powder. Her summer coat is coming through super shiney and she's really gaining some topline now. She also gets ad lib hay.

All I'll say is, make any adjustments VERY slowly so you don't end up with a monster!
 
forestfantasy said:
How surprising the Baileys lady recommended all that feed! :rolleyes:

Personally i think he looks well, just needs a bit extra condition & topline - nothing good old Dr green can't sort out & correct work.

Do you have good summer grazing? If so you will notice a huge difference once the grass starts coming through.
For now i would be feeding ad-lib haylage & plenty of turnout on good grass.

Feed wise i would avoid outshine & topline cubes, these combined with spring grass could make for one loopy pony.
I would feed someting high in fibre like Fast Fibre with micronised linseed.:)
Click to expand...



Haha..you cynic you!
 
Glad forestfantasy said it first!!

The Bailey's lady is BOUND to sell you their new product, which is probably their most expensive. Then, it shows her up a bit by saying for you to add more oil!!! Will she come back and clean up the sloppy diarrhoea your boy leaves once you've added all that oil? Clearly no understanding of the horses gut and how it absorbs nutrients.

I add oil, but in tiny amounts and would never use corn or soya as they are GM. Sunflower is a better balance of omega 3/6 and that is only if I run out of micr linseed.

Sales people are funny creatures ;)
 
i feed my ex racer speedi beet, dodson and horrel build up mix, a dash of cod liver oil and a scoop full of pink powder in each meal. does him pretty well! hes putting the weight on nicely and his coat is starting to look shinier, although its still moulting and probably wont look its best for another few weeks (or months if it continues to be so cold!)
 
Another vote for micronised linseed from Charnwood. If you soak fast fibre or calm and condition overnight, it's not so sloppy.
 
I wouldn't recommend feeding cod liver oil to a horse - they are vegetarians, they are not designed to eat fish.

If he needs the extra calories then vegetable oil, sunflower oil or soya oil will work.
 
Another vote for Micronised linseed. Its high in anti inflammatory. Soya and veg oil are high in pro-inflammatory, so if you horse suffers from arthritis, laminitis, allergies etc these oils could make things worse.
 
nirikina said:
I wouldn't recommend feeding cod liver oil to a horse - they are vegetarians, they are not designed to eat fish.

If he needs the extra calories then vegetable oil, sunflower oil or soya oil will work.
Click to expand...

Agree, how can cod liver oil be a "natural" source of food for a horse!
I'd never give food of an animal/fish origin to a herbivore.
 
Happytohack said:
Soya and veg oil are high in pro-inflammatory, so if you horse suffers from arthritis, laminitis, allergies etc these oils could make things worse.
Click to expand...

The veg oil sold in most supermarkets is actually rapeseed oil which has a good ratio of Omega 3s to Omega 6s (although not as good as linseed). Soya and sunflower are the ones that are particularly high in Omega 6s and therefore pro-inflammatory.
 
Ahh, interesting to hear all of your opinions. I have actually added the no.4 instead of C&C now, with Alfa (not the Outshine) and it has given him sloppy poos!

I had the vet out yesterday, he said condition-wise he is perfect :D:D which I am very happy to hear as he was skin and bone when I got him. I mentioned the feed change and he echoed all your answers about spring grass and that he looks fine as he is and shouldn't need all that feed. :D Just topline that he needs, which I am working on :) He also said he doesn't need any extra added oil and that would (also) be a waste of money. So thanks for all your answers but I don't even need any. Silly Baileys woman!

For all that have asked.. His racing name is Mlini. He raced twice in 2010 and came second to last both times, hence why he isn't a racehorse anymore :o lol
 
Glad your vet has given sensible advice.

Re cod liver oil, there is a debate amongst equine scientists as to if horses can digest it very well, what with it being a source they wouldn't ever come across in the wild. That hasn't stopped some companies from selling it, but if you look at half the ingredients in many horse feeds you do have to wonder what sort of testing they have gone through.
 
Fast fibre and linseed. The linseed is so high in oils and protein, it's brilliant stuff. You ca get a bag from charnwood mills for about 25 quid delivered and it goes a long way.
 
Baileys Outshine will help build topline along with correct work - of course so will many other feeds but I just wonder if the Baileys lady wasn't suggesting it purely as an oil supplement but also as a form of calories/protein.

I feed it to my poor doer as alongside her feed it's one of the only things that helps with her condition and muscle tone over winter, and as an added extra it makes the coat gleam.

Perhaps you should question her reasoning behind recommending oil/an oil type supplement and work from there.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top