young tb feeding options- straights

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cellie

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I have 4 1/2 tb who was very underweight just starting work, hes gained weight and adding muscle and not fizzy.
Im great believer in high fibre feeds but notice several people arent keen on calm and condition by a and p.If I wanted to feed straights what would you all recommend. Currently hes on ad lib hay t/o 24 hrs unless its very hot ,he has c an c alfa alfa chaff plus few pellets I add veg oil (last 2 weeks)and plan on adding fast fibre over winter possibly linseed.Hes looking quite nice now ,hes never going to be stocky tb anyway but just wondering how you all manage your tbs over winter. Previous tb had top spec and looked fab but its very expensive.
 
My tb's always looked their best on plain old unmolassed sugar beet, balancer and ad lib haylege. One of them got veg oil in winter as she was a poor doer. I recently switched my current horses to Fast Fibre, just as a base for balancer. I'll admit I only did it because of the hype on here. To be honest, they don't particularly like it and I can't see it has any advantage over the unmolassed beet which they much prefer and which has a better calcium ratio! Linseed is also a good option so well worth trying.
 
I agree, unmolassed beet (although I buy regular shreds and rinse before and after soaking which is a faff but very effective) linseed and adlib hay / haylage, if that's not enough then copra is very good for weight gain without fizz.
 
I have used linseed in past although it did make my mare fizzy but then she was hyper 99% of time without feed .My boy eats anything which is bonus :)
 
I feed my TB who needs to put on weight & muscle, linseed, oats and copra plus a balancer (pro hoof) salt and magnesium, and it's made a massive difference to him.
Copra is made by cool stance, it's high in protein & fibre, low in starch & sugar and is made from coconut flesh which has been cooked and ground (my boy loves it). Not many people stock it but you can order it online from 4dobbin. Or you can ring the uk rep who will tell you who stocks it.
 
Copra is very high in protein and I wouldn't say it was suitable for laminitic horses. Horses aren't set up to process high levels of protein and it ends up putting more strain on the kidneys and liver as they try to excrete the excess. Copra is also not recommended for youngsters as it's very low in lysine, which is the amino acid essential for growth.
 
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