Alfalfa Pellets vs Cubes & Equinety

[sittingextendedtrot]

The never ending “how to keep at TB fat” discussion.

Moved about a month ago from a barn who was feeding bad quality hay and stopped graining my OTTB. The barn we’re at now is feeding nice orchard grass and is now getting 2.5-3 scoops of rice bran a day. He’s gained back some of his weight but is still very rib-y. I’m wondering what else I should put in his diet to help him just gain a layer of fat, now that we can be expecting winter to come up fast. Cool Calories? Weight Builder? Senior?

I’m leaning towards adding alfalfa pellets in with his rice bran. Obviously the cubes would be better nutrient wise, but are they really that much better?

I also started him on Equinety, if anyone has or is using it in their horse’s diet.

[foursocks]

There are a lot of options for putting on weight- you might just have to play around with a few things and see what helps most. My favorite for weight and general gut happiness is to give a flake or two of alfalfa along with regular hay every day. In the winter I give more, when the weather gets nasty. And, I use it for trailering, especially long distances. It can be a pain in the butt to get delivered and stacked/stored, but if you have the room it’s really worth it, in my opinion.

I have a 19 year old TB who is a big guy, and is a Training level event horse. He can drop weight like no one’s business, so I’m really diligent about keeping him on the higher side of the scale. We’ve done various things, including alfalfa cubes and pellets, beet pulp, rice bran, and fat supplements- but the alfalfa in straight hay format (and a really good feed- right now he is on Cavalor and thriving), is definitely my go-to for a TB who needs extra calories. I have a fat little WB who gets alfalfa, too, because he likes it and I’m a sucker, but I really buy it for the TB.

[sittingextendedtrot]

The only thing is, the alfalfa here in the valley has a lot of weeds in it so I’d rather stay away from bales.

[outside_leg]

Your situation sounds a little like mine. I just moved back to the NE after being in Maryland for the last seven months. My guy lost weight while on grass pasture, as we’d started to reach that time of year when the grass was losing its nutrients but the barn didn’t want to add hay. Since he’s been back up north, he’s put on weight again and is filling out. He’s a hardkeeper in general, so I have a few weight builders.

First, he gets free choice hay. More access to quality forage is the best thing you can do. You can also look into adding a hay net to slow him down and help with absorption.

For grain, my guy gets Safe Choice Senior and Nutrena Enpower Boost. The latter is a rice bran pellet, so if you’re already branning, you may not need it. He also gets Hay Stretcher mixed in with his grain. I have never noticed much difference in hay cubes versus the pellets.

Additionally, I feed pure Flaxseed Oil. I get mine from Santa Cruz Animal Health, which seems to be the most affordable. Be careful when shopping for Flaxseed Oil, as a lot of them are cut with soy or other oils. Soy in particular can cause allergic reactions in some horses.

Finally, I feed Tri-Amino for building muscle mass. Some vets like it, some say the science is still out. I’ve noticed a difference in his topline since starting it. Granted, we also do a lot of conditioning work, so who knows how much it plays a role. But it certainly isn’t hurting, so I continue to feed it. He also gets a probiotic to help his gut. Again, I noticed a big difference since we started it.

Personally, I haven’t had much luck with beet pulp, Coco Soya, or corn oil. But every horse is different. NeighLox Advanced has also been recommended to us. If my guy hadn’t started to pack on the weight after the move, I would’ve tried it. Supposedly it helps with nutrient absorption and can be beneficial to hardkeepers. Again, that’s just word of mouth, as I haven’t used it on mine.

Good luck! Some of these TBs can be really difficult. And don’t forget to consider whether ulcers could be affecting him. They’re an all too common problem in many TBs.

[Frivian]

Is your horse actually getting grain or just rice bran and Equinety? If no grain, I would start there to add essential nutrients and calories.

My horse gets Ultium and really doesn’t need too much of it because it is very highly concentrated (I think he gets like 2 quarts a day). BUT he is fed unlimited, high quality hay while in the stall and is on good pasture overnight. He also currently gets Super Sport (a protein supplement similar to Equinety) and was getting alfalfa while we were competing. I really believe the alfalfa made the biggest difference. Now that we’re just in “maintain” mode rather than gain, he doesn’t really need it.

[sittingextendedtrot]

@outside_leg

Finally, I feed Tri-Amino for building muscle mass. Some vets like it, some say the science is still out. I’ve noticed a difference in his topline since starting it. Granted, we also do a lot of conditioning work, so who knows how much it plays a role. But it certainly isn’t hurting, so I continue to feed it. He also gets a probiotic to help his gut. Again, I noticed a big difference since we started it.

Personally, I haven’t had much luck with beet pulp, Coco Soya, or corn oil. But every horse is different. NeighLox Advanced has also been recommended to us. If my guy hadn’t started to pack on the weight after the move, I would’ve tried it. Supposedly it helps with nutrient absorption and can be beneficial to hardkeepers. Again, that’s just word of mouth, as I haven’t used it on mine.

What probiotic do you feed? I found ProBio at the feed store but there are probably some better ones out there. I’ve never had him scoped because he shows no signs of having ulcers but I pulled him off the track when he was 9 so he probably does have some. I could just treat him with ulcerguard for a week and see if that helps…

@Frivian

Is your horse actually getting grain or just rice bran and Equinety? If no grain, I would start there to add essential nutrients and calories.

My horse gets Ultium and really doesn’t need too much of it because it is very highly concentrated (I think he gets like 2 quarts a day). BUT he is fed unlimited, high quality hay while in the stall and is on good pasture overnight. He also currently gets Super Sport (a protein supplement similar to Equinety) and was getting alfalfa while we were competing. I really believe the alfalfa made the biggest difference. Now that we’re just in “maintain” mode rather than gain, he doesn’t really need it.

Mine is pretty much on free feed- as long as he’s cleaning it up (which hasn’t been a problem) she’s been feeding a flake more almost every few days. I’ve heard not to use Ultium because of the sugar content though it does seem that a lot of people are feeding it. I would really like to put him on alfalfa, hence my question about cubes vs pellets.

[alteringwego]

Was just going to speak to the Equinety… I started it after a friend said how much she loved it. I was hoping for improved mood and a quieter mind. I have to say that it really was like a miracle supplement. I stopped it over the non-showing time and noticed a significant difference. Just recently re-started it when we moved farms and there’s definitely a difference. Not sure how it will help with weight but it does seem to improve a variety of ailments.

[Frivian]

Does your horse get a vit/min supplement? He may have a deficiency if he’s not getting any grain concentrate.

For the alfalfa cubes vs. pellets, I don’t really know which is better, but my barn feeds soaked pellets when they don’t have actual bales available. It seems to work fine for the horses who need it.

[FraggleRock]

Sounds like he would benefit from a high quality feed such as Triple Crown Senior, rice bran would be seriously lacking in vitamins and minerals. And adding the Equinety doesn’t make as much sense as just putting him on a complete feed since he clearly needs the calories

[silverdog]

I love Renew Gold. My horse was on pasture rest last winter and the grass dried up and he was too shy to get to the round bale enough so got skinny - he was fat when he got there and was just on a ration balancer. The farm added a second round bale and I switched to Renew Gold and a vitamin supplement and he filled out quickly. He is back with me and is on Total Equine, free choice grass hay, beet pulp and alfalfa cubes and occasionally some alfalfa hay because I’m a sucker. He still needs some more top line but he is looking pretty darn good. He walks about 15-20 miles a week in his rehab program.

[kaya842]

I will second renew gold! My horse is on 2lbs renew gold, mixed with 2lbs alfalfa pellets, and 1.5 lbs Purina Enrich plus along with free choice orchard grass mix and my horse is healthier, fitter, happier and in the best weight she’s ever been in. I will be subbing the Enrich for High Point Grass Pellets which is a vitamin mineral supplement (since there seem to be very little vitamins and minerals actually in the Enrich) and I will be adding either just tri Amino or tri Amino + Equinety for her Amino Acid requirements.