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Temperament

  • My horse is quite nervy and fizzy. What can I feed to give him energy without hotting him up? ↓

    As a general rule, you should aim to keep the starch levels in a fizzy or nervy  horse’s diet to a minimum, which means choosing cubes over a mix as they will have a lower starch content than a mix with an equivalent Digestible Energy content (DE). Also, look for fibre and oil as energy sources as these provide slow release, non-heating energy which shouldn’t exacerbate excitability.

    Be sure you match diet to workload so that your horse doesn’t have excess calories to burn so consider your horse’s condition and workload and choose a feed which you can feed at recommended levels to maintain his condition as you want it and fuel his work. Good-doers may get all the calories they need from forage alone so a low starch, high nutrient balancer is ideal for providing essential nutrients without the calories associated with a traditional mix or cube.

    Many people believe that a higher protein level can exacerbate an excitable temperament but this is not the case. It is simply that feeds designed to support harder work consequently have a higher protein content but it is the greater energy levels supplied by these feeds which are more likely to cause a problem.

    Fractious behaviour and excitability can be a result of management and husbandry as well as diet so look at any causes of stress in your horse’s life and consider changing how you do things to help him stay calmer. A healthy gut is also important for a happy horse so ensure your horse receives plenty of good quality fibre to satisfy his physiological need to chew and to counteract any acidity in the digestive track.

    Find out more in the following articles:

    Matching Feed to Workload
    Feeding for Staying Power with Oil
    Routine Interference
    Gastric Ulcers

    Products you may be interested in include:

    Ease & Excel
    Ease & Excel Cubes

    Keep Calm 
    Lo-Cal Balancer
    Performance Balancer
    Top Line Conditioning Cubes
    All-Round Endurance Mix
    Slow Release Condition & Competition Mix
    Outshine high oil supplement
    Digest Plus prebiotic
    Fibre-Beet

     

  • My horse is a good doer but can be lazy/lethargic. What can I do to give him more energy without putting on weight? ↓

    It can be difficult to know what to feed a good doer that has low energy levels or is lacking in presence. Many people end up feeding reduced amounts of a standard mix or cube in the hope this will give them energy without weight gain. However, when feeding below the recommended levels of a feed, the diet will become unbalanced. This can deprive your horse of essential nutrients which can actually cause sluggish behaviour.

    The first step is to ensure the diet is balanced through the use of a balancer which provides vitamins, minerals and quality protein with a minimal calorie content. In many cases, balancing the diet can be enough to perk the horse up but, if you are still looking for more energy, you could introduce straight oats, alongside a balancer and quality forage, for quick release energy.

    Your problem with good-doers is that any calories not used for work, will go straight to the waistline so the quantity of oats should be varied according to workload to avoid excessive calorie intake when the horse doesn’t need it. Maintaining the recommended amount of balancer ensures the diet still remains balanced.

    Find our more in the following articles:

    Conditioned to Perfection
    Fat Club and Feeding Good-Doers

    Products you may be interested in include:

    Lo-Cal Balancer
    Best British Oats

  • My horse is a fussy eater. What advice can you give to encourage her to eat up? ↓

    Some horses are fussy about the flavour and texture of feeds and some have small appetites. Fussy horses can be a headache and it may be only trial and error which helps you find whether they prefer or dislike a mix or cube or certain ingredients. A reduced appetite can also be frustrating but may be for a number of reasons, generally stress-related.

    Ensure the horse always has access to forage and divide the overall concentrate ration into as many small meals as possible in order to avoid overloading the stomach and causing digestive upsets which can affect appetite. Consider feeding a digestive enhancer, like  Digest Plus, to support gut health, and whether the horse may have more serious problems, like gastric ulcers, which can suppress appetite.

    Nutrient or energy-dense feeds are useful when horses won’t eat large volumes so Ease & Excel and Ease & Excel Cubes are ideal when calorie requirements are high or consider using a balancer, like  Lo-Cal  or  Performance Balancer, which are designed to provide quality protein, vitamins and minerals and be fed by the mug-full rather than in scoops.  Outshine high oil supplement is similarly useful as it is a concentrated source of calories which can be added to an existing balanced diet to increase the overall calorie content without significantly adding to the overall volume fed.

    Find our more in the following articles:

    All About Digestive Enhancers

    Products you may be interested in include:

    Ease & Excel
    Ease & Excel Cubes
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