Post by Michelle Clarke on May 17, 2009 10:44:24 GMT -5
I have had alot of people asking what we are feeding our horses lately, so I thought I would just put it out here for convience and an easier way to answer any questions.
We've built this diet based on lots of experience and tons of research. It is mostly geared toward the spanish type horses (with the tendancy for EMS and intollerance of certain types of sugars) and the fact that we don't vaccinate, so we keep the immune systems as healthy as we can.
We call it the "Spoiled-@$$ Horse Diet"
These are mixed by volume, I mix it up in layers in a big feed bin using a 3 quart feed scoop:
4 Clean whole oats
4 Crimped or Steam rolled oats
2 Barley
1/2 BOSS
1/4 Flax
Oats are an energy feed - Barley is a maintenance feed. Older horses will do better on higher amounts of barley (but don't go more than 50%) and altered oats (cut back on the whole oats). You can add in soaked beet pulp (to remove molasses) for older horses....you’ll have to play with amounts. Start out with 1/2 of a 3 quart scoop before soaking each feeding.
Add 3 days per week (I do Mon/Wen/Fri):
1 tbs of Sea Kelp - NOT “Source”
1/4 cup Herb Mix
1 tsp Diamond Yeast
I also use a mix I make of herbal water, Apple Cider Vinegar and local raw honey to mix in the herbs/kelp
3 days per week (I do Tues/Thurs/Sat):
Handful each of cut up Carrots, apples and pears
1-2 cups puree of Banana, Watermelon or Kiwi, Apple Juice or Pomegranate Juice
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup fresh crushed almonds
1/8 - 1/4 cup sesame seeds
I will also use fresh shredded coconut when I have the time! Great for horses with stomach issues. Also Aloe Vera juice helps irradicate/prevent ulcers and other stomach things.
* No bananas, pears, citrus fruits/juices or sesame seeds for nursing mares
* Nursing mares 1/2 cup fresh crushed almonds and 1/4 cup bee pollen (for extra lysine)
* No apple cider vinegar 30 days before breeding if you want colts....!!!!!
One day per week off of supplements (fruits, herbs, etc.) and BOSS/Flax - just feed plain grains, I do this on Sundays.
Most horses get 2.5-4 lbs. of the grain mix twice per day. Once they have adapted to the diet, you can adjust feeding, usually to less. Some of our horses only get fed once per day if they are mature and not really working.
Growing horses - weanlings and yearlings, generally get higher amounts. Our yearlings are now eating a little more than the two year olds due to growth, about 3.5 lbs twice per day.
The biggest concern people have on this diet is feeding too much starch. However, we have feed low starch diets with horrible results - they need it for energy, muscle and growth! What no one tells you is how much starch is too much. When a horse has too much starch, it gets dumped into the hindgut unproccessed and there it can cause issues as it changes the ph. A good percentage is no more than .5% of bodyweight. This means the average 1,000 lb horse can handle 5 lbs of grain products per feeding. Per feeding means every two hours. If you had a horse that needed more than the 5 lbs, you could just add another feeding in the middle of the day or at night check to make three feedings.
We feed Tipton grass hay and some horses get 1-3 lbs. of alfalfa each day (some growing horses and the broodmares/stallions and performance horses on hard work days).
Another concern is cost. A good bag of proccessed feed costs anywhere from $17 - $22 per bag. That is an average of .40/lb and if you feed 6 lbs. per day you are looking at about $72/month. If you actually fed what they tell you to feed (and this means all your nutrients are balanced), you would be broke and your horse would be fat!!
The grain mix averages out to .35/lb. and that includes the BOSS and flax. That is $63/month if you are feeding 6 lbs. per day - which is alot and most horses will be at 3-4 lbs. per day. Our mares and yearlings get that much - a little more the first month lactating and growth spurts for the yearlings, so figure about 7 lbs. per day.
The fruit is pretty inexpensive, the seeds/nuts are a little pricey, but you are not using alot. This stuff you can pick up when you do your weekly grocery shopping - most good food chains have bulk items where you can get the seeds/nuts.
The herb mixes are based on the Chinese Five Element Theory or specific for that horse (lactating, growing, performance, etc.). I have some clients that do not utilize the herbs and the horses do well without them. All things considered, it winds up costing the same as a high quality bagged feed.
We've had some great results on this program, including some very unexpected ones. I have a four year old mare that is greying and she already has a melanoma on her face. Since switching her to this diet, it is half the size. When Desi was gelded, I was worried about him being older, but it did not even knock him down one bit - hardly any swelling and no soreness. The vet was amazed at how it seemed not to affect him at all and he healed up rapidly.
Yes, it is more time consuming than opening a bag of feed and dumping it in the feeder, but anything really worth it takes effort! Really though, it takes me less than forty-five more minutes in the morning to prepare the fruits/puree for about 25 horses and only three times per week....and that includes making myself a smoothie!
We've built this diet based on lots of experience and tons of research. It is mostly geared toward the spanish type horses (with the tendancy for EMS and intollerance of certain types of sugars) and the fact that we don't vaccinate, so we keep the immune systems as healthy as we can.
We call it the "Spoiled-@$$ Horse Diet"
These are mixed by volume, I mix it up in layers in a big feed bin using a 3 quart feed scoop:
4 Clean whole oats
4 Crimped or Steam rolled oats
2 Barley
1/2 BOSS
1/4 Flax
Oats are an energy feed - Barley is a maintenance feed. Older horses will do better on higher amounts of barley (but don't go more than 50%) and altered oats (cut back on the whole oats). You can add in soaked beet pulp (to remove molasses) for older horses....you’ll have to play with amounts. Start out with 1/2 of a 3 quart scoop before soaking each feeding.
Add 3 days per week (I do Mon/Wen/Fri):
1 tbs of Sea Kelp - NOT “Source”
1/4 cup Herb Mix
1 tsp Diamond Yeast
I also use a mix I make of herbal water, Apple Cider Vinegar and local raw honey to mix in the herbs/kelp
3 days per week (I do Tues/Thurs/Sat):
Handful each of cut up Carrots, apples and pears
1-2 cups puree of Banana, Watermelon or Kiwi, Apple Juice or Pomegranate Juice
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup fresh crushed almonds
1/8 - 1/4 cup sesame seeds
I will also use fresh shredded coconut when I have the time! Great for horses with stomach issues. Also Aloe Vera juice helps irradicate/prevent ulcers and other stomach things.
* No bananas, pears, citrus fruits/juices or sesame seeds for nursing mares
* Nursing mares 1/2 cup fresh crushed almonds and 1/4 cup bee pollen (for extra lysine)
* No apple cider vinegar 30 days before breeding if you want colts....!!!!!
One day per week off of supplements (fruits, herbs, etc.) and BOSS/Flax - just feed plain grains, I do this on Sundays.
Most horses get 2.5-4 lbs. of the grain mix twice per day. Once they have adapted to the diet, you can adjust feeding, usually to less. Some of our horses only get fed once per day if they are mature and not really working.
Growing horses - weanlings and yearlings, generally get higher amounts. Our yearlings are now eating a little more than the two year olds due to growth, about 3.5 lbs twice per day.
The biggest concern people have on this diet is feeding too much starch. However, we have feed low starch diets with horrible results - they need it for energy, muscle and growth! What no one tells you is how much starch is too much. When a horse has too much starch, it gets dumped into the hindgut unproccessed and there it can cause issues as it changes the ph. A good percentage is no more than .5% of bodyweight. This means the average 1,000 lb horse can handle 5 lbs of grain products per feeding. Per feeding means every two hours. If you had a horse that needed more than the 5 lbs, you could just add another feeding in the middle of the day or at night check to make three feedings.
We feed Tipton grass hay and some horses get 1-3 lbs. of alfalfa each day (some growing horses and the broodmares/stallions and performance horses on hard work days).
Another concern is cost. A good bag of proccessed feed costs anywhere from $17 - $22 per bag. That is an average of .40/lb and if you feed 6 lbs. per day you are looking at about $72/month. If you actually fed what they tell you to feed (and this means all your nutrients are balanced), you would be broke and your horse would be fat!!
The grain mix averages out to .35/lb. and that includes the BOSS and flax. That is $63/month if you are feeding 6 lbs. per day - which is alot and most horses will be at 3-4 lbs. per day. Our mares and yearlings get that much - a little more the first month lactating and growth spurts for the yearlings, so figure about 7 lbs. per day.
The fruit is pretty inexpensive, the seeds/nuts are a little pricey, but you are not using alot. This stuff you can pick up when you do your weekly grocery shopping - most good food chains have bulk items where you can get the seeds/nuts.
The herb mixes are based on the Chinese Five Element Theory or specific for that horse (lactating, growing, performance, etc.). I have some clients that do not utilize the herbs and the horses do well without them. All things considered, it winds up costing the same as a high quality bagged feed.
We've had some great results on this program, including some very unexpected ones. I have a four year old mare that is greying and she already has a melanoma on her face. Since switching her to this diet, it is half the size. When Desi was gelded, I was worried about him being older, but it did not even knock him down one bit - hardly any swelling and no soreness. The vet was amazed at how it seemed not to affect him at all and he healed up rapidly.
Yes, it is more time consuming than opening a bag of feed and dumping it in the feeder, but anything really worth it takes effort! Really though, it takes me less than forty-five more minutes in the morning to prepare the fruits/puree for about 25 horses and only three times per week....and that includes making myself a smoothie!
