Horse Care

Re: how much??????

654494 — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 08:07:51 GMT

I raise all my own hay and oats so what the cost is varies somewhat and with 40 to 50 head if I bought it then the price would be pretty high. But the best way I've found to put and keep weight on a normal healthy horse is to give it all the good quality hay and or grass it wants 24/7. Horses are forage animals and mother nature didn't design them to eat grain thats something people decided they need. Really good forage will beat any grain or feed there is. A couple lbs of grain is fine for your average horse but the forage is the key to proper health and weight.

Re: how much??????

charooke — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 00:03:20 GMT

well charooke is a little thin she would deffintly look good if she gaind a 100pounds I like my horses tall and slim but with big muscles if that makes sence.

Re: how much??????

spragueme — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 22:28:54 GMT

Yes, my guys are on pasture 24/7. It's not a great pasture but it's big. They have it pretty much eaten down. That's why I'm feeding hay at the moment. They prefer to eat what little grass is out there to alot of hay. But it's really starting to get bare spots out there. So they hay keeps them busy. But this is my thinking, it maybe way out of wack and some may think I'm crazy. Which wouldn't be a first for me.

All three of my guys have different needs. Scout suffers from shivers. So he needs a high fat, low sugar/starch diet. That's why I got Safe Choice to begin with. Lush pastures are high in sugar and starch. Depending on your pasture and such. Scout was extreamly overweight last year. He was close to 1500 lbs. I was feeding cracked corn and oats. The worse thing to feed a horse with shivers because corn is high in sugar and oats are high in starch. But I did my reseach and switched his feed. He is getting back down to a healthy weight now. I try to ride more but not always possible.

Vanny is older and has nutrional and teeth problems. He cannot eat hay. But if he's on good pasture for more than an hour of 2, he get's diarhea. The Safe Choice is higher in fat than senior feed, so I'm keeping him on that. Plus since he cannot eat hay, I added the alphala cubes and beet pulp for fiber. Plus his supplements. Last year Vanny lost alot of weight, I almost thought that it would be his last winter. But since switching his diet, he has gain his weight back and then some. But Vanny has never been a bulky horse. I said before that his build resemble the picture that AQHA uses to show the parts of a horse.

Dandy is my youngest. He is built like a tank. He really doesn't need grain at all. But I give him just a little bit when I feed. It's not enough to over feed him and I'm feeding him the right stuff. There is no need to feed him extra sugar and starch that is in most feeds. That just makes a hot horse.

Re: how much??????

Anonymous — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:46:49 GMT

spragueme, are your horses on pasture? I was curious because you feed your 3 less (hay/grain) than I feed my 2. I don't feed supplements..... but maybe if I make some changes to my feeding program I can be getting better "use" of my grain & hay!

Re: how much??????

Anonymous — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:43:03 GMT

I would stay away from the oil as well. I've heard of feeding up to a cup... definitely not 6!

I have to laugh about the "coffee can" method becuase I use it too & wonder how many people feed their horses from coffee cans? Only I use the big cans & Stitch gets a full can & Magic gets 3/4. Maybe I could try cutting down on their grain & feed more hay.... hmmmmmmmmm

Re: how much??????

spragueme — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:22:07 GMT

I would stay away from the oil for now. How is her weight right now? I feed Scout 1 1/2 small coffee cans of feed. Vanny get 2 cans plus his other stuff and Dandy get's 1/2 can. My guys are on pasture 24/7 but the pasture is getingt down so I'm feeding them hay 2X daily to compensate.

Re: how much??????

charooke — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:14:18 GMT

well im probaly going 2 be movin them 2 a race stable thats in town so they will be inside a barn charooke is well between the 2 she use to be a hard keeper win we were in bc but since we moved 2 ab she doing alot better at the monet she is on a pastuere

Re: how much??????

charooke — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:10:48 GMT

thank u. I think ill try that out on charooke. I know alot of people that add like 6cups of oil to there horses feed what do u guys think about that?

Re: how much??????

spragueme — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:10:30 GMT

Depends on your horse. Is she an easy keeper? Is she on pasture now? Feed more hay than grain. Hay will keep her warmer in the winter than grain.

Re: how much??????

charooke — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:06:45 GMT

how much safe choice should i feed my horse?

Re: how much??????

spragueme — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:06:29 GMT

Safe Choice is made by Nutrena. Go onto their website and it'll tell you all there is to know. Many of us here use it.

Like I said, it's a high fat feed with low starch. It's a balanced feed the will keep the weight on without the starch and sugar. That's what will make your horse "hot". But it will also keep the weight off a horse too. That's why I highly recommend it. It keeps the weight off Scout, but puts the weight on Vanny. Strange but true.

Re: how much??????

Anonymous — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:04:19 GMT

http://www.nutrenaworld.com/Screens/ProductDetails_Equine.aspx?ProductID=170

Safe Choice is a high quality pelleted food that is safe for all age horses.

Re: how much??????

Anonymous — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 20:02:37 GMT

Wow... already there is going to be a lot of variety in the answers! I think a lot depends on the individual horse.

I have a 16 year old Arab & an (almost) 1 1/2 year old gelding. I have been feeding Safe Choice for about a month now & am very pleased with it so far. A bag will last me 4-5 days.

I feed approx 50 pound square bales & go through about 3/4 bale a day. They would like it if they got the whole bale... lol. But at $8.75 a piece (& that was a good deal for buying in bulk!) I try to keep their extra "snacks" to a minimum.

I don't feed any supplements. I do add Jeffers "Get Away" to help deter flies.

Re: how much??????

charooke — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 19:56:08 GMT

k thank u so much I use 2 feed charooke peet pulpe and this stuff that looked like dog food that came in a purple bag it was verry high in fat. What is safe choice and what does it do?

Re: how much??????

spragueme — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 18:57:26 GMT

I have 3 horses to feed. I have them all on Safe Choice which is $9.95. It last me 1 week for 1 bag. But they all get different amounts. Then I have Vanny on Alphala cubes, $10.95 per bag, and beet pulp, I forget how much that is. Beet Pulp last me a long time and 1 bag of AC last me 2 weeks. My supplements are some what costly. $50 for MaxFlex, $30 for rations plus and only $8 for my probios. But my supplements last me a couple of months. My hay right now is $2.00 per bale. I feed 2 of my guys 2 flakes twice a day right now. Vanny can't eat hay. One bale will last me 1 1/2 days. I buy my hay in bulk.

My horses are not race horse so I have no idea as to what to feed a race horse. As for your senior, I would recommend the Safe Choice. It's higher in fat than senior feed without all the added starch and sugar.