Impacts of Grain

I think I've kind of had a wake up call lately...

I like to think we feed our horses an average amount - all the ones we ride get a minimum of 2 litres of feed a day some get 4-5 litres... the prospect of them being hot because of the grain never really crossed our minds. We want them to hold their weight and being on a regular work schedule with just forage isn't enough.

We have boarders at our place and with board comes the grain so we've been feeding everyones horses up the way we feed our own and it didn't take long for folks to start asking us to stop feeding their horses or to atleast cut them back because they can't handle them...

Do you feed your horse to avoid/gain energy? If so what do you chose to feed/not feed?

I feed the two horses at our place 3L of purina hi fat/hi fibre a day plus, 2 cups purina equilizer (split into two feedings) and as much hay as they can eat throughout the day. The ponies get 1/2 cup equilizer in the morning and 1/2 cup haystretch in the pm. As well as the big guys, as much hay as they can eat throughout the day. In our area the local hay will not maintain the weight on the boys in the winter - it just isn't high enough quality. I've tried feeding less grain to the boys but they drop too much weight. I don't find any of them to be hot - pretty much the opposite. And they are all pretty much couch potatoes/pasture ornaments.

Bay-Lee is on free choice hay, 1 cup of BOSS and 1/2 cup flax seed twice a day and he is has laid back has they come and he keeps his weight on..., he can not tolerate feed, I put him on Fat/fiber last fall and I thought he was going to have a heart attack from his nerves, I brought him to another barn last summer, and I started to see a difference in him while riding, he was hyper, not listening and an extreme pack of nerve, I asked the barn owner about it and she said that once in awhile she would give him a handfull of grain. Imangine, just a handfull.... So thats what works for us...

Grain.. is a thorn in my side.. I mean a big pain in the buttercup.. feed or not to feed, how much to feed, what kind to feed.. grain = colic grain = hot.. christ all mighty I'm at loss .. so many different opinions and so many friggin choices.. so don't ask me what I think because I have no freakin clue.. I just try the hit and miss approach now when it comes to Gunnar.. much to complicated for my liking.. :S

Wissy ... you're so specific in your answers! :doglaugh.gif:

We feed free choice high quality hay 24/7 for all the horses, the adult horses get 1.2 kg of Nutripak (basically high fat high fibre), 1 cup of flax and 1 tablespoon of kelp daily, this of course is divided up into two meals. I mix their meal with hot water to make a mash every feeding - this helps to make it more digestable and reduce the risk of choke! I don't find the horses hot on this at all, I could not ride Blue for a month then get on and he would be as calm and cool as a cucumber :D Sure they have their days where the wind seems to blow a certain way and they all want to play, but I think the fact that they are out 24/7 and able to move around and exercise as they please is a huge help.

When I had Blue stabled when I first got him and he was getting a high energy sweet feed (now that I know so much about feed I will never feed sweet feed to any of my horses ever again!) he was very hot and always wanted to go, he was also stalled the majority of the day and didn't get a chance to stretch his legs.

hah Tammy, no sense in beating around the bush.. it is what it is a big pain in the buttercup
MB.. I agree with you about sweet feed, we haven't fed that for years now.. and never will again..
I think every horse should be fed as an individual, what works for one doesn't always work for another.. I'm still trying to figure out what works for mine..
Why can't all horses be like my old fellow used to be.. feed him anything, he was healthy, .. never coliced, you could not ride this guy for a year and he'd be the same as you left him.. I owned him since he was 12yrs old.. and he lived to be a ripe old age of 30...

I've heard a lot of positive reviews about hi fat hi fibre but we struggle to keep weight on them when we feed that... maybe we didn't try it long enough - we feed it for a little over a month and called it quits.

MB - how did you change your Paint mare's feed when she had the foal at her side?

When Kallie was starting to come into the final three months of her pregnancy I took ten days to gradually switch her over from the HFHF to the Omelene 300 (or Big'Un 300 they can't make up their mind on the name lol). So she was on that three months before foaling, I gradually increased her amount as she got closer, following the recommendations on the label as well as my own judgement, lucky for me she maintained her weight beautifully through the whole pregnancy and even after foaling she looked great! Once Tru was around it didn't take her long to get the idea of what grain as all about and I started offering her a bit of her mothers in her own dish, once Kallie was I started to wean Kallie and Tru I began to take Kallie off the Big'Un 300 and switch her back to the HFHF gradually while Tru remained on the Big'un 300. I'll keep Tru on the Big'Un 300 probably until she is 2 years old because it has the high levels of protein that a young growing baby needs!

I haven't fed any processed grains in years. If the weather is really cold (-20's) and its wet we'll soak a big bucket of unmolassed beet pulp and give them oats, BOSS, maybe flax, etc just to keep the fire burning. Everyone is out 24/7 and HUGE on bascially free choice haylage, water and minerals. Even Reese, our new boarder who arrived here dangerously thin in October has gained so much weight on this diet that you can't feel her ribs anymore. The key is that we unroll our round bales and spread out the hay so they have to move, then we know everyone has lots to eat without fighting over it.

Before I went down the natual route Beauty was fed processed feeds and she was an evil lady slipper. She still has her days/moments but before her diet and lifestyle changed she was dangerous. I will NEVER feed 'meal in a bag' type feeds ever again.

Most horse owners that I see who are feeding lots of grains and say their horses 'need it' are ones who are not feeding enough hay. Horses get more digestable calories from hay then they do from grains.

Oh I agree with you there BareFoot.. Gunnar gets free choice hay and doesn't need grain.. he holds his weight really well..
By the way is Reese by any chance Reese's chocolate chip???? If so she is a nice horse..

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By the way is Reese by any chance Reese's chocolate chip???? If so she is a nice horse..

Nope, C Side Securitte

Barefoot, what minerals do you give and how do you give it ??? and do oats not make the horses hot ???

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Most horse owners that I see who are feeding lots of grains and say their horses 'need it' are ones who are not feeding enough hay. Horses get more digestable calories from hay then they do from grains.

I find that comment quite interesting - our horses are out 24/7 on full choice haylage and there is ample room for everyone to eat...

We find that when they're being worked regularly which is a full blown sweat everyday just forage doesn't cut it... although we keep it pretty simple with oats and mineral.

We had a lady who sent her horse for training and didn't want us to feed him any grain. We told her we didn't feel it was a good idea but she was adament so he didn't get a stitch of grain. Her horse went home in rather poor shape and all the other horses in for training may have lost a little but were still well above average. Of course he is one horse and all horses "hold their own" differently but there was certainly a difference at the end of a month between him and those getting grain.

I agree D-cutch some horses who are worked everyday most likely cannot manage on forage alone. But of coarse there are others who can hold their weight and energy without it. Like Wissy said Gunnar does not need grain and has actually gained weight since he was taken off grain, but everything is backwards with him lol He's not normal :). He also doesn't need the energy! I found such a change in him after we took him off high fat, he was so much more manageable and sensible!

Horses that are heavily worked 4-5 days a week probably burn more calories than horses just standing around in the pasture.But like Wissy said, it depends on the horse. I know horses that hold their weight really well and are worked 3-4 days a week and ones that struggle to hold their weight, or have the energy to maintain a training schedule, it just depends on the horse and you have to add or take away what is needed. I work with horses that are on grain 3x a day so I have seen all different diets, body and energy types. They are in shape and not coach potatoes that's for sure.

D-cutch- all the horses I work with are on either olomene or crushed oats there are a few that are on hay pellets only but those are the really naturally hot horses lol Those guys don't need an extra fuel! As well some get beet pulp or bran at night, and some are on different grains altogether.

I'm using Minovit loose minerals from the Coop at the moment. They are not ideal as the last ingredient is molasses, but I didn't have a lot of extra money this time around and my boarder had a new bag and needed a trim so we traded. They also have a blue salt lick.

As for the oats, I don't notice any difference in them when fed oats, but we don't give that much and as I said, its only when its really cold and they need a little something extra (below -20 and wet or really windy).

I know everyone has there own opinions on feeding Beet pulp, but I love it....it is a little extra that does not make them hot!!! At the new barn I'm at all the horses get a scoop of beet pulp some more some less depending on the horse, and there grain, and they are having a wonderful winter....

Just my 2 cents.....BUt I do agree with grain becoming a confusing topic..Everyone seems to have there own way of doing things....

I find it really interesting hearing everyones approach - I find at times we get on a one way street and it is great to hear what others are doing...kind of broadens the horizons....