What feed would you recommend for a horse that needs to lose weight?
Okay so I know how to switch feeds correctly and everything without harming the horse or making it colic or anything like that, I have done it before so I don’t need to be told how. I just wanna know what a good low calorie, high fiber diet would be for a horse that is trying to lose weight? I already have the amount I just need to know what kind of feed you recommend. Right now, I have my horses in our 40 acre pasture all day and they come in once a day to eat 2 cups of sweet feed. I know it isn’t the best feed because of all the molasses and other stuff, that is why I wanna switch. Please don’t be mean to me. Thanks.
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As far as low calorie feed goes, Purina has two great low calorie feeds. One is called L/S, low starch. The other is W/C, weight control. Both have been used on horses at my barn and both work very well. They are complete feeds, meaning they include all nutrients needed daily. The W/C is great because it is a pellet that is "poofed," kind of like rice crispies. lol. This way, your horses think they are eating more than they really are… thus: happy horse. lol.
As far as turn outs go… I would say you have a couple options. Do you have a dry lot available? If you do, put your horses in there with roughly 1/2 a bale of hay per horse, per day. (square bales, plain grass hay, nothing alfalfa or really green… the greener the hay, the more protein.) Spread the bales out, flake by flake. Keep ‘em moving. lol.
If you do not have a dry lot, could you section off your grass pasture? If you give them a smaller area, they will eventually turn it into a dry lot. You could turn them out on the grass for a few hours, then bring them back into the dry lot for the majority of the day.
Also, depending on how much weight you would like your horse you lose, you may consider taking it off feed completely until the weight is lost, then slowly bring them back onto a low calorie food in small amounts. When off the feed, be sure to provide a mineral block at least.
Muzzles work well too, but I’ve seen more than one horse have trouble figuring out how to drink with one on, so that is up to you.
Like I said, you have quite a few options. I hope this helps and best of luck
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amFirst of all, horses were designed to graze and eat forage, so your horse really doesn’t need any grain or sweet feed. Perhaps just a handful and then mix in a general vitamin supplement. But your horse doesn’t need 2 cups of ANY feed, let alone sweet feed.
You may also want to limit your horse’s grazing to a few hours a day. Horses can get "hay belly" from too much hay. Put the horse in a dry lot or use a grazing muzzle to limit the horse’s intake of pasture. Spring grass is especially rich and high in calories.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amwhen we have to bring a horse in off pasture for an injury we feed safe choice if we are showing a horse we will bring them out of the pasture and feed sweet feed to keep their energy up and they get ridden daily. other then that for the trail horses we just let them graze unless they have been worked hard.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amGallop recommended that I feed my whale SafeChoice. Mine gets very little grain, maybe 1/4 cup, just enough to mix her MSM in, so I haven’t felt the need to switch yet.
I would ask why you feed grain at all? Do you need to? Most healthy horses on grass don’t need much, for the fat or nutrients. Just make sure she’s got a mineral block and a salt lick, and if needed, feed her a different variety of grass hay than what is found in her pasture.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amIf your horse isn’t in hard work, it doesn’t need grain at all. Just give the horse its regular amount of hay and access to pasture, and if it’s not losing weight then, either limit its amount of turnout or put on a grazing muzzle. People feel they need to give their horse a proper "meal", but all too often we are hurting the horses with our kindness. If it’s getting all the nutrients it needs through its forage and mineral block, it doesn’t need grain of any sort.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amNone, and a grazing muzzle. I understand that your 9-year-old isn’t ridden at all so she really shouldn’t need any hard feed as overweight as she is. The bay doesn’t look like she needs grain either.
As long as they have pasture, a good grass hay, and a mineral lick, they should be OK. If they need grain to mix with, I’d go with a feed meant for IR or foundered horses.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amif your not usisng the horse theres plenty of pasture to go without the grain until winter when the grass is spare
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amSimple answer: None. If he is on 40 acres of pasture He is getting more then enough food as it is. (that’s why he is fat). Exercise is what he needs or restricting. If he is not old enough to exercise then restricting his grass is the only way. Save yourself the money to by him a nice brush or something useful. He really does not need more calories. If he is working then after his work he could have a small handful of high fiber nuts. NO grain please or mixes. Mine get fed if (& only if) they work…no work…no food.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amYou can use Triple Crown Lite AKA Pellets. Super lite feed for overweight horses.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:24 amidk what else you add to it but use the base as the Lite food