| Staying
Out - What Should I Feed?
Hello,
I
own a very fat welsh sec d mare, she at the moment
lives out 24/7 but will be in the winter months.
She is in a 8 acre field that is full of lush grass,
she is I would say three times over her 'Normal' weight.
BUT she can't be separated from my other 5 horses,
she goes mad and try's to jump back in with them.
At present we have no stables (are saving up) so she
has to stay in the field with the others.
She is worked about 4/5 times a week only light schooling,
I was advised to STOP feeding her but thought that
she might lack something (Vitamins and minerals ECT).
I would like some kind of advise on what I should
and shouldn't feed her?
And also I was advised by a vet to feed my horse (Whae
she had lamanitis)Bran and only bran, this made her
lose alot of weight and took a lot of pressure off
her bones but in the end she had to be put down. What
affects would feeding just bran (with limestone) have
on my mare?
Thanks
for the enquiry! Here we go!
From
the information provided I would recommend feeding
a balancer, such as Baileys Lo-Cal, which will provide
all the vitamins, minerals and proteins without the
extra calories/starch which will encourage weight
gain. Lo-Cal would also be advisable to feed to those
horses/ponies that have laminitis as it is very low
in starch.
The
Lo-Cal has been formulated to be fed as the sole concentrate
source as a forage balancer for horses and ponies.
It is a small palatable pellet containing essential
nutrients to promote a healthy coat and hooves, maintain
condition and maintenance of muscle without significantly
increasing calorie intake. The Lo-Cal also contains
a yeast culture to aid fibre digestion and efficient
gut function. The Lo-Cal is designed to be fed in
small quantities thereby minimising calorie intake,
but providing good levels of vitamins and minerals.
It is free from traditional grains such as oats, maize
and barley.
Being
extremely versatile Lo-Cal can be fed as the sole
concentrate ration when a low calorie feed is desired
or used to complement the energy content coming from
your traditional oat based diet. Where a horse is
being fed less than the recommended quantity of a
standard compound feed but is holding condition the
Lo-Cal can be used to “top up” the micronutrient
levels in the diet to meet the requirements for performance.
The
quantity of Lo-Cal to feed would depend on her height
and breed, you could add a handful of chaff to the
pellets to ensure she chews the feed properly and
doesn’t bolt the feed.
Bran
is a fibre source and does not provide any calories
or good quality proteins, hence why she lost so much
weight. Bran is deficient in calcium, that is why
you were advised to feed limestone flour alongside
as a calcium source. There are better alternative
feeds available on the market nowadays that can provide
a balanced diet with fibre and that are low in starch.
When
changing the diet do so slowly, ideally over a period
of 7-10 days thus avoiding any digestive upsets.
I
hope this information is of help to you, should you
have any other questions or concerns please do not
hesitate to contact me.
Kind
Regards
Lorna
Jowett (BSc Hons)
Equine
Nutritionist
www.baileyshorsefeeds.co.uk
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