Which one of these feeding experts opinions do you prefer........?

[almrc]

Hello

I emailed this to feed companies regarding my horses feed:

I have 3 horses, which are all quite different and I would like to get an idea of what to feed them for winter. Below is description of horse and what they're currently eating. All of them live out all year round (except 3 or 4 of the really bad nights) and they are rugged. They have just moved into their winter field, lots of grass, which I have quartered. When it runs out they will be getting hay.

1. 9 yr old Cob (good do-er), in work 3-4 times a week, hacking. Fast-ish rides mostly lasting an hour to an hour and a half. She does indoor sj in winter. Good weight at the moment. Currently on one scoop happy hoof and top spec light

2. also 9 yr old, cob x hackney (good do-er), not in work. slightly over weight at mo. Has one scoop happy hoof and a powder/all round general supplement

3. 2.7 yr old 1/2 tb x 1/4 hanovarian x 1/4 nf so she is quite fine and still growing, the finest of the lot. She's on a scoop of alfa with a powder/all round general supplement. Not in work as such, just walks around the block.

The responses:

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TopSpec Equine
Top Specification Feed Balancers, Supplements and Blends

Hello,

Thank you for contacting us again.

From the information in your e-mail I would recommend you feed the following once a day in addition to ad-lib grass plus hay later: -

1. (assuming she weighs approx 500kg)
500 grams TopSpec Lite Feed Balancer
300 grams (1 Stubbs scoop) TopChop Lite or Happy hoof

2, (assuming he weighs approx 500kg)
100 grams TopSpec No:2 General Purpose supplement (or 500 grams TopChop Lite)
300 grams TopChop Lite or Happy hoof

3. (assuming she weighs approx 400 kg)
80 grams TopSpec No:2 General Purpose supplement (or 400 grams TopChop Lite)
300 grams TopChop Alfa or Dengie Alfa-A Lite

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Thank you for your enquiry into the SPILLERS® Careline regarding your three horses.

I am going to suggest a very similar diet for each of your horses. As 1. and 2. are quite good doers, I am going to suggest a product that when in work will give them the energy they require, but if living out will also provide them with the essential vitamins and minerals they require.

Looking at your horses over all diet, you are feeding him a low calorie, high fibre diet, correctly balanced with the vit and min supplement, however it can definitely be simplified to help keep things easier (and most likely cheaper!) for you as well. The product I am going to recommend for your horses is a relatively new addition to our range called SPILLERS® Cool Concentrate. SPILLERS® Cool Concentrate is based on the same idea as things like concentrated fruit squash, fabric conditioners etc as it is a 6 times concentrated hard feed. This makes it ideal for those who hold their weight easily by feeding the energy and vitamins and minerals without the bulk or extra calories. By providing all of the vitamins and minerals needed this will eliminate the need for the broad spectrum supplement and top spec lite – SPILLERS® Cool Concentrate also contains the following benefits;

- Live yeast to help aid digestive support
- Vegetable based omega oils, and amino acids to help aid the joints
- Quality protein to help support muscle tone
- Biotin to support hoof health
- Anti Oxidants including vitamin C to help aid respiratory health, and vitamin E to support muscle health
- Low calorie and non-heating, yet with enough oil to maintain skin and coat condition.
- Natural herbs to help tempt fussy feeders, including Garlic so you could eliminate the additional supplement from the diet


As 3. has to have a few more extra calories in her feed I am going to recommend feeding the SPILLERS® Cool concentrate alongside a scoop of SPILLERS® Conditioning Fibre. This should maintain her weight as we move into, and also help support her with a few extra calories while she is still growing and developing.

Each of your horses recommended ration is 500g per day which is two of the cups that are provided in the bag for you. This will make sure they are all receiving the daily recommended rations of vitamins and minerals.

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Thank you for your recent email to the Dodson & Horrell Nutritional Helpline.

1.
As 1. is a good doer and is currently maintaining a good body condition I would recommend feeding her Ultimate Balancer. Ultimate Balancer will provide her with all the vitamins, minerals and micronutrients she requires on a daily basis but without too many calories. Ultimate Balancer has a feeding rate of 100g per 100kg of bodyweight to meet vitamin and mineral requirements, so Annie requires approximately 500g of Ultimate Balancer per day.

To the Ultimate Balancer I would recommend feeding Safe & Sound as this will bulk out the diet and provide her with some slow release energy.

2.
As 2. is carrying a bit too much weight and has a tendency to be a good doer I would recommend a similar diet to 1. with Ultimate Balancer and Safe & Sound. 2. would require approximately 500g of Ultimate Balancer per day, to this you can add the Safe & Sound to bulk out the ration.

3.
I would recommend that 3. is fed on a similar diet to 2. and 1. 3. will require approximately 500g of Ultimate Balancer, with Safe & Sound added to bulk out ration. However as she is quite a fine build you may find that she needs more calories to maintain weight in which case you can add Kwik Beet (unmolassed, quick soaking sugar beet) and Soya Oil to the ration.

Do also ensure that when stabled or out on poor pasture that your horses have access to ad lib hay. This will ensure their guts remain healthy and provide them with a good source of slow release energy.

I would recommend fat scoring your horses on a regular basis to monitor their bodyweight, this will allow you to see if they are losing or gaining weight. I would recommend that your horses are 3 out of 5 on the fat score scale.


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What do you all think??

 

[Echo Bravo]

Why haven't you tried Winergy.

 

[megwan1]

what about baileys??? they can be quite good
or i would probs just go to your local feed merchant and see what they stock and recommend at least then it will be easy to get hold of

 

[loopeepee]

1) has lots of fiddly amounts, like 300g and 80g, wouldn't be for me.
2) sounds good
3) probably what i would choose - just checked and it's D&H, which is ironically what I have always fed mine.

 

[brighthair]

The Spillers advice sounds the best to me

 

[almrc]

So with the last option, for example-how does topspec lite differ to the Ultimate Balancer and how does happy hoof differ to Safe & Sound? I am guessing happy hoof isnt as slow releasing as safe and sound? sorry, just asking all these q's as I want to get it right for my herd

 

[TGM]

Is there any particular reason why you want to change what they are on at the moment?

 

[MurphysMinder]

I was at a talk last night on the veteran horse, included a talk from D & H rep which I was impressed with. I thought it would be just a big ad for their products but she actually stated that just because a horse reached 16 it did not automatically need a veteran diet and just keep them on their normal diet if they are doing okay on it. Also promoted grass/hay as being what horses are designed to eat. I know oPs horses aren't veterans just offering my opinion on D & H nutritionalist, I don't feed D & H myself and not likely to change at the moment but she did talk sense.

 

[almrc]

only because i am concerned, with winter coming that they may need a bit more. in winter i generally feed more, but as they only get fed once a day, i am concerned, obviously with feeding too much at once

 

[scallywags]

Ask Baileys, My sister called them a few weeks ago for our 32 yr old tb, and the woman she spoke to was great, and strangely not biased to any company, she sugested feeds from D&H, dengie, simple systems, and baileys, with amounts, all depending on what we could source
I think an unbiased nutritionist is far better than anyone, working to sell own brand products

 

[jvoyce]

i'd stick with what's working now and add calories with soya oil / speedibeet if they need it. Alternatively alpha a oil has the soya oil in so is less messy.

 

[SO1]

I am surprised that they all suggest the same diet for horses 1 and 2 bearing in mind 2 is out of work and overweight.

Surely feeding horse number 2 the same as horse number 1 would mean that horse number 2 would just get fatter and fatter as it does not work.

Have you tried Allen and Page they have a greater variety of feeds on offer.

 

[ISHmad]

We feed Top Spec products to our horses who range from a 2 year old youngster through to a retired veteran and have no complaints at all. Have always found the nutritionists there very helpful and all our horses are really well.

 

[perfectlypink]

I just think that they are the experts, if you have questions about why they have recommend what they have, i would call them and ask.

I have always found calling them better than over email as you can ask the questions as you go along. I have taken advice from lots of the diffferent company's in the past, i have always found it easier over the phone.

Good Luck with them.

 

[jazzyjeff11]

you should try Saracen -they are brillant -really helpful and if they need more info, they will ask for it! got my horse back on track quickly after years of faffing around -wouldnt feed anything else!