|
When formulating a ration for your horse in work, remember one thing -
use "COMMON SENSE". Don't feed a pony what you would a 17 hand hack. Use
your 'eye' if he is getting too fat, reduce your energy section of the
ration (carbohydrates).
As stated before, the preceding table is only a guide and you may vary
it to suit your horse. Your aim is to keep the animal in good (well
fleshed-up) condition (not fat), able to cope with the workload you
designate, but above all sound and healthy. More often than not, a plain
well-balanced diet is more suitable than the diet that contains
superfluous feed and every supplement and medication known to man.
If your horse is not working or looking as well as you desire, look at
your feed ration. Is the energy level too high or too low? If you are
feeding a lot of bran or pollard (high in phosphorus), are you putting
enough Folactin
in to balance the ration? If he dehydrates on the way to a show due to
nerves and profuse sweating, did you give him extra Salkavite the
night before? Take your electrolyte or Electropaste
with you on the day, it is easy to ward off dehydration - but once a horse
is dehydrated you have a problem to cope with.
An unusual example of a ration being fed in a successful Showjumping /
Eventing stable is as follows. This ration demonstrates feeding each
horse as an individual.
Total amount of feed per day:
Oats - 1.4 kg
Barley - 2.7 kg
Lucerne Chaff - 1.4 kg
Oaten Chaff - 1.4 kg
Bran - 700 gms
Salt - 60 gms
Pro-Mix - 250 gms
Folactin Blue - 60 gms
Salkavite - 30 gms
1 Biscuit Hay per day
Horse on pasture most of day.
This horse is worked for 30 minutes per day. Being a little bit
excitable, barley was substituted for a portion of the oat ration.
|
Feeding Programme Guide - Daily Ration |
A 500 kg Horse
Approximate Daily Ration
|
|
1. Oats - Basic energy source for the horse
|
Showjumper 2.5 - 5.0kg
Event horse 5.0 - 7.5kg
|
|
2. Corn - More concentrated energy source.
Can be increased above these levels for a horse with a small
appetite. Optional
|
(See page10)
|
|
*3. Cottonseed Meal or Soyabean Meal or Tickbeans or a mixture of
all three. To supply better quality protein for muscling, strength and
coat shine.
|
500 gms
|
|
*4.
Pro-Mix - Protein fortified with amino acids to correct
amino acid deficiencies in the diet.
|
250 gms
|
|
*5. Ranvet 500 Plus - High quality protein,
fortified with additional
amino acids, minerals, vitamins for the growing horse.
|
600 gms
|
6. Chaff - roughage. Mixture of lucerne and oaten or wheaten. Bulks
out grain ration, prevents horse bolting feed.
7. Lucerne Hay or Chaff
Roughage - essential for normal In any
functioning of
digestive tract.
8. Oaten Hay or Chaff - Roughage - for normal functioning of
digestive tract. Optional. |
5-10kg in any combination
|
|
9. Bran - Optional. Should not be more than 20% of
concentrate ration
|
250 gms
|
|
10. Pollard - Optional. Should not be more than 20% of
concentrate ration
|
250 gms
|
|
11. Racing Oil approx.
|
50-100 ml/day
|
|
12.
Folactin Blue - Macro and trace minerals and vitamins A, D3, Folic
Acid
|
60 gms
|
|
13.
Salkavite - Electrolytes, B Group
vitamins and vitamin E
|
30 gms
|
|
14. SALT - Sodium. Essential to make up for deficiencies in diet.
Regulates fluid balance. Replaces losses in sweat
|
60 gms
|
|
15.
Aminovite Plus - Multi-vitamin and trace mineral supplement.
|
30 gms
|
|
16.
Neutrolene or Neutrolene Plus - Buffer - Helps maintain pH of horses
blood. Helps prevent onset of fatigue.
|
90 ml
|
|
17.
Muscle-E - Vitamin E plus thiamine. To improve immune response,
performance and endurance. |
15-30 gms
|
|
18.
Settle'Em - Mega - Vitamin
B
Group and Magnesium
supplement to help calm nervous and excitable horses
|
30 gms
|
|
19.
Hoof Food - Biotin, Zinc and Amino Acid
supplement to 0 aid hoof growth and the regeneration of cracked and
damaged hooves |
30 gms |
|
* Note: Feed combination of 3 & 4 OR 5
only NOT
both.
|
|
This ration is suitable for a 500kg horse
-
if your horse is Galloway
size and weighs in at 300kg, then the ration above should be 3/5 of what
is recommended in feed (concentrates and fibre). It may not be suitable
to feed ponies high quantities or any quantities of grain.
The important thing to remember when formulating your feed ration is
that every horse is an Individual. If you are adjusting the feed
according to the size of your horse - adjust the supplements as
necessary, as per the product label.
|
Innovation