Critique my feed choices, please.

[SanguinePenguin]

I have a unique situation, as I keep my horse at home, so please try to understand where I’m coming from before being too hard on me

Currently, my 4yo OTTB is in fine shape, with decent weight (I’d call him a 5) and good energy/fitness, so I don’t feel I need to make sweeping changes across my program, but as we move into the winter months I’d like to get a little more weight on him and I’d like to reduce the total VOLUME of feed. Before you ask, his teeth have been checked, he is up-to-date on vaccines, worming, and he does not have ulcers, or at least not to any degree that he exhibits symptoms of any kind.

Here are a few things to consider:

• He is a picky/slow eater and I have found he likes Haystack Special Blend the best of all feeds.
• This works especially well for me because, wait for it… I have a hard time keeping my free range chickens out of his feed bucket when I feed a grain-based diet. He eats so slowly, I have to feed him in the pasture because there’s no way he’ll finish before I have to go to work.
• Twice a day, he gets 6 qts SB + vit/min supp. formulated for the PNW + MSM + ~1qt soaked beet pulp. He is on pasture from 8:00AM to 1:00AM and gets free choice grass hay (in pasture and in stall) and free choice alfalfa pellets when in his stall.
• I have recently added whole oats to his diet, in the form of either soaking them with the beet pulp and adding them in his daily feeding, or, more recently, just giving him ~2lbs dry in a bucket in the morning when he’s turned out first thing, which he devours quickly (but not too quickly. I throw some oats on the ground as a sacrifice to appease the chicken goddesses).
• This is because he was leaving a bit of his evening meal (that’s fed at 1:00AM when I get home, in his stall) and I would find the chickens in his bucket.

Here is my proposed feeding plan as we move into winter:
8:00AM: ~ 3lbs dry oats, fed straight up, first thing, in pasture.
1:00PM: 3qts SB + MSM + vit/min supp. + ~1qt saoked beet pulp, in pasture
1:00AM: All of the above, but oats in separate bucket, plus free choice alfalfa pellets, in stall.
Free choice grass hay and lots of pasture all day.

So, he’s been out of work and as he comes back to work I expect him to start cleaning up his feed. Nevertheless, how would you suggest I reduce volume and increase calories? Oil he will tolerate, but I’m not sure which kind to add.

[Simkie]

@SanguinePenguin

…and he does not have ulcers, or at least not to any degree that he exhibits symptoms of any kind.

So that slow, picky eating is often a sign of ulcers. Especially in a young TB who hasn’t been treated for ulcers since coming off the track.

I’d treat this horse for ulcer asap. Use what you like–nexium is my fav, for ease of use and cost–and see how that changes the way he eats.

It’s not clear what you’re trying to get from the oats. If you want to reduce volume and increase calories, go to something like TC Senior or Ultium. Add oil if needed for more low volume calories.

[JB]

Whole oats and beet pulp are high volume:calorie things to feed, so not what I would have in this diet.

HSB is a un-fortified hay pellet, with some added fat (way down the list) so also not very calorie-dense.

You don’t need to be adding MORE food, not even oil (nutritional fortification is so low here, fat calories are not the first go-to), you need to be changing to more nutrient- and calorie-dense food

What brands of food do you have access to?

Purina Ultium is one of the highest calorie feeds, and is well-fortified.

[Palm_Beach]

I’m just super impressed you are feeding and bringing horses in at 1 AM.

[J-Lu]

Following what JB said, I’d suggest a high fat, fortified grain. I suggest Purina Ultium or Nutrena Pro Force Fuel or Fiber, which are high fat, fortified grains.

I also, would not feed straight grains. The difference is like you eating oats for breakfast or a fortified cereal like Cheerios or Special-K. Unless you are taking a multi-vitamin daily, the fortified cereals are best.

[TheHunterKid90]

I have never had a problem keeping weight on and good condition feeding straight whole oats, but we also feed the best alfalfa that we can source. However if it’s not working or you don’t have access to high quality forage, I 2nd the purina ultium!

[Obsidian_Fire]

I am in the PNW also and I also feed Haystack. Why are you feeding addt’l beet pulp when HS already has it? That’s just one more can of feed to deal with.

My senior, also an OTTB, gained plenty of weight on: Haystack + Triple Crown Senior + V/M supp, alfalfa (about 5-8 lbs per day) and free choice grass hay.

His amounts were 6# per day of HS, 3# of TC Sr, whatever supp’s I added, soaked into a mash. Twice a day.

My newer horse, younger and came to me thin, I also put on the same diet and she looks fabulous now.

I also agree to deal with any ulcer issues, that may well help you.

[suzyq]

My OTTB has always been a slow picky eater. His favorite feed is ultium, and bonus is it’s high calorie, so that’s what he’s had for a long time, 3.5 lbs twice a day. I recently switched him to purina ration balancer, oats, alfalfa pellets, ground flax, salt. I throw in a cup of water to mix it all up. He gobbles it down and is putting on weight! I’ve never seen him so excited to eat his food. He gets 1 lb rb, 1.5 lb oats, 1.5 lb alfalfa pellets, 1/4 cup flax, 1 tsp salt twice per day. He also has free choice pasture/grass hay.

[Obsidian_Fire]

More thoughts…why alfalfa pellets, why not alfalfa hay? And feed more of it. Would definitely be cheaper than pellets.

[cutter99]

@Obsidian Fire

More thoughts…why alfalfa pellets, why not alfalfa hay? And feed more of it. Would definitely be cheaper than pellets.

Many areas don’t have high quality alfalfa hay available. You can get pellets or cubes just about anywhere.

[SanguinePenguin]

@Simkie

So that slow, picky eating is often a sign of ulcers. Especially in a young TB who hasn’t been treated for ulcers since coming off the track.

I’d treat this horse for ulcer asap. Use what you like–nexium is my fav, for ease of use and cost–and see how that changes the way he eats.

It’s not clear what you’re trying to get from the oats. If you want to reduce volume and increase calories, go to something like TC Senior or Ultium. Add oil if needed for more low volume calories.

I treated him prophylactic-ly when I brought him home, with Omeprazole. The slow eating, I think, is due to the high volume of feed, not having any competition for his food, and being out of work. The last two days that I have brought him back to work (walking only, hacking out around my property) he has eaten everything fairly quickly and has been anxious for the food, standing at the fence nearest the feed room and grumbling when I don’t deliver it fast enough. Today, I fed him at 8:00 and 1:00 and everything from both feedings was gone within an hour.

Obsidian Fire–I add the beet pulp probably as a reflex more than anything. Now, however, I’m adding it as a balancer for the oats, since the calcium : phophorus ratio in each feed is the inverse of the other.

I agree with everyone that I need to feed better quality forage, but we baled our own hay this year so I’m trying to use it up, for space and financial reasons. However, I realize I could probably save money if I just donated it and started over.

[Obsidian_Fire]

@SanguinePenguin

I treated him prophylactic-ly when I brought him home, with Omeprazole. The slow eating, I think, is due to the high volume of feed, not having any competition for his food, and being out of work. The last two days that I have brought him back to work (walking only, hacking out around my property) he has eaten everything fairly quickly and has been anxious for the food, standing at the fence nearest the feed room and grumbling when I don’t deliver it fast enough. Today, I fed him at 8:00 and 1:00 and everything from both feedings was gone within an hour.

Obsidian Fire–I add the beet pulp probably as a reflex more than anything. Now, however, I’m adding it as a balancer for the oats, since the calcium : phophorus ratio in each feed is the inverse of the other.

I agree with everyone that I need to feed better quality forage, but we baled our own hay this year so I’m trying to use it up, for space and financial reasons. However, I realize I could probably save money if I just donated it and started over.

Honestly, what I see in your proposed feed regimen, you could skip the beet pulp for the CA:P ratio. Grass hay is fine on it’s own - you don’t need supplemental calcium for that. Alfalfa on its own is yes, higher in calcium but not so out of balance that you need a phosphorus supplement.

Your ratios are fine, really. If you’re terribly worried or just want a baseline to help, try FeedXL. It’s inexpensive for a month, put your feed into it and you can get a general baseline.

Financially speaking, good hay really is your best choice.

[JB]

Grass hay is often, at best, equal-ish in calcium and phosphorous. Yes, some batches are a much better balance, but in general grass-based diets benefit from more calcium.

Add a high-phosphorous cereal grain (or anything, including unfortified rice/wheat bran) and you go farther into the phosphorous direction

The problem is we don’t know how many pounds of alfalfa pellets he’s eating “free choice”, we don’t know the actual analysis of the grass hay.

FeedXL isn’t a bad idea - it’s got some limitations, meaning it will tell you if there is enough or too much, but won’t tell you if the various mineral ratios are correct or not.

But honestly, if you’d just pick a good quality fortified feed, as high calorie as you can get that’s still good, he’ll be getting a lot less volume. Use a feed bag if necessary to keep chickens out, if there’s not a way to stall him and still have him finish in a reasonable amount of time.

Purina Ultium and Triple Crown Complete are 2 of the better quality, higher calories feeds (1900 and 1700 respectively, give or take) that are more likely to be available. TC Sr and Seminole Wellness Sr, both in the 1500 cal range, are also possible options. A fat supplement can be used with them for some more concentrated calories without a great deal of additional volume.