# Feeding Thoroughbreds



## Emma S (28 September 2010)

Just thought I'd see if anyone else is suffering with the same issue this year,

I have 2 prone to weight loss TB's both exracers and have very slender frames. I am struggling to find a feeding programme that works to keep weight on and not blow any brains, and at the same time not costing the earth! 

I have tried calm and condition, ride and relax, baileys topline, and all the general well known fattening brands, Last year I ended up feeding my gelding chaff, sugar beet and flaked barley and that only just held some weight on his quaters and the mare went bonkers so had to cut out her barley.

People have said to me about just feeding high oil chaff and sugar beet but they bothe event and work consistently hard throughout the winter. 

Any ideas?


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## PonyFeet10 (28 September 2010)

My 22 year old thoroughbred also struggles to hold her weight, I fed her on alpha a oil mixed with sugar beat and a dollop of added oil to keep her in good condition and this worked wonders for her! Not sure what to add for energy levels for eventing but I'm sure somebody else on here could help with that or ask for advise from your local feed store. 

Hope this helps, Alex.


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## Dizzle (28 September 2010)

Speedibeet, vegetable oil, high fibre nuts (just beacuse they tempt him to eat it all!) and lots of forage, ad lib hay both in and out if you can manage it.

Also worth investigating if there are other issues, my tb was a very very poor doer until he was treated for stomach ulcers, that was in June... how I was getting to the point I was debating having to muzzle him!


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## PonyFeet10 (28 September 2010)

Just had another thought, haylage instead of hay too? As it holds more nutrients  

Alex


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## posie_honey (28 September 2010)

as much ad lib haylege as possible - never have the standing without haylege in and out - then have you tried simple systems? they have good results for weight gain 

personally - i swear by outshine as a good conditioning suppliment


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## maggy-may (28 September 2010)

When i first got my horse he was very highly strung but at the same time he had been miss treated and was very poor we fed him boiled barley. Although it stunk the house out it worked a treat without sending him bonkers, my friend also feeds hers on barely rings he is very hyperactive even tho he is getting on a bit he is still in hard work and these work well with him. Sorry if not much help just suggestions for different types of barley you could try


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## sammiea (28 September 2010)

My TB mare (sadly she was PTS 2 wks ago) was just like this then I discovered Winergy Equilibrum!!! What a god send this stuff was  Orginally she was on the growth (under WE advise) but they then brought a Senior out so I swapped to that and she still kept her weight  its super low in startch so unlikely to blow your TB's brains either, it certainly never afected my girl unlike all other conditioning feeds!

ETA - so impressed with it over the last 2yrs that my new ned will be fed on it to although the low version


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## Britestar (28 September 2010)

Like posie_honey said. Start by feeding as much haylage as you can, this will also mean you can feed less hard feed. I have found that putting down huge buckets of feed can  put off a fussy feeder.

I have a 3/4TB who was very picky and always difficult to keep weight on. I changed to ad lib haylage a few years back ( we had a bumper crop) and cut down his hard feed to compensate. What a difference. Within 2 months his shape had changed totally, and he looked forward (and still does) to his tes and breakfast.


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## Katie P (28 September 2010)

I feed my TB ex-racer on Calm and Condition with Alfa A Oil and haylage and he does ok. I also add, MSM and garlic to his feeds.  My friend feeds her boy on the Alfa A Oil with Buildup cubes and adds Globalvit, an oil and Cortaflex.
xxx

Another thought.  Have you considered contacting one of the racehorse rehoming charitys for some advice?  The Thoroughbred Rehabilitation Centre are the one I'd recommmend.  Very helpful and friendly x


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## SmartieBean09 (28 September 2010)

I personally can not recommend Spillers Slow Response Cubes highly enough.  They are whole cereal free so the starch levels are minimal.  Their energy comes from the high levels of fibre and oil in the cube.

My veteran mare can stress weight off at the drop of a hat.  She is currently on 2 feeds a day of Alfa A and Slow Response Cubes costing me a total of around £25 per month.

She is wintering out this year and so I shall just switch the Alfa A to Alfa A Oil and add Speedibeet.   I will also add Pink Powder if need be, as I am a huge fan of this.  It really helps them to get the most from their feed.


I have noticed an amazing difference since switching to these cubes.  Her whole body shape has changed and she is well covered.

I pay £8.95 for a 20kg sack of these and feed 1.5 round scoops per day for my mare.


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## alsxx (28 September 2010)

I cant feed any molasses to mine as it turns him into a viscious git! Therefore I am limited pretty much to straights. Have tried molasses free mixes etc but not really had any luck finding one that compliments him. 

He is naturally on the lighter side, he has ad lib forage - either good grazing or hay (or combination) depending on time of year (he lives out 24/7 during the summer and comes in at night in the winter unless the weather is nice and then he is more than happy out), and feed wise I currently feed per day (split up into at least 2 feeds) 1 scoop of Alfa A oil, 300g of micronised linseed, 1 scoop of soaked speedi-beet, and 1 scoop of soaked oats (less to none at all if he is not working or work load reduces). He also gets seaweed for all round supplementation. He was looking pretty good on this diet before I added the oats, and I added these for a bit of extra energy as his workload was increasing - he looks absolutely fantastic now and is in no way fizzy at all. His weight has increased slightly so now he is just right, has a wonderful shine to his coat and now has dapples (in september!). And he loves his food now, and he used to be rather fussy!


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## amiacat (28 September 2010)

My 12 year old TB gained and kept his weight over the last winter and is currently the heaviest I've ever managed to get him, he doesn't seem to have dropped any weight since (fingers crossed this post doesn't jinx me!).

He has:
standard coarse mix
alfa-a
sugar beet
outshine
pink powder

Since putting him on pink powder I have seen the best results, I think he's really absorbing all the nutrients now. He's not on loads of outshine but I think it helps the keep the extra bit of weight on needed for winter, and makes his coat shiny!

Nothing of the above is heating, and he's not excitable on it.

Hope this helps x


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## keeperscottage (28 September 2010)

Our two TB ex-pointers look fab during the summer but are starting to drop off now. Last year we fed Calm and Condition, Alfa A Oil, AlfaBeet in vast quantities and as much hay as they would eat but they still looked poor. One, a now 19 yar old mare, hunts regularly and we have the problem in that she is very hot - she doesn't realise she's 19 - so we have to be careful how we feed her. We also have a 4 year old Selle Francais x KWPN graded mare gelding and we fed him on Winergy Equilibrium Growth and he came out of the winter looking really good. Whilst at Badminton, I spoke to a Winergy rep and she recommended that we fed both the 19 year old mare and the youngster on Equilibrium Low, rather than Growth, which I'm keen to try, but my daughter (who now pays 100% for her horses, so has the last say on how they are fed) is keen to keep the mare on Calm and Condition, although is swapping the Alfa A Oil for Happy Hoof in an attempt to improve her poor quality feet. Anyone else tried Winergy Equilibrium Low?


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## dressagecrazy (29 September 2010)

My 25yo TB is blooming atm & has done all summer my Vet saw him this morning & said he looks fantastic. The trick for my boy is a high oil diet.

I feed -
-Topspec lite balancer, he was on senior but ive had to swap him onto what everyone else has as it was costing to much.
-Topspec Topchop Alfa
-Topspec Conditioning cubes 
-Speedibeet
- high dose of micronised Linseed.

He has 2 feeds a day & is fed very much by eye i always have done as i only weigh tape when im due to worm.
He also gets ad-lib Haylage all year round & is on fantastic grazing.


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## doris2008 (30 September 2010)

Fibre fibre fibre!! In an attempt to keep sanity levels how about good old doctor green? Grass nuts..you can feed a bucket for them to graze on overnight. Unmolassed sugar beet also.
I have wintered my TB on various combinations usually consisting of Calm & cond or no 4 alongside alfa a oil and pink powder (cant recommend this enough!). If he seems a bit light I will add either grass nuts or sugar beet. He loves either!
He will be tried on Top Spec Cool Cond Cubes this winter as have heard so much praise for them - high fibre no cereals. Perfect for a scatty TB!


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## Oberon (30 September 2010)

Sounds like he needs a diet low in cereals and starch as that is what produces the nutty behaviour.

Ad lib haylage.

Fibre base (speedibeet/Happyhoof/Fast Fibre/Dengie HiFi/Alfalfa pellets)

For weight - Wheat bran aka "Thirds" - very cheap, low starch, high fibre weight gain. Needs to be fed with limestone flour if not already balanced. Or Rice Bran if you can get hold of it.

Micronised linseed - cheap, good for gut, conditioning, coat and joints. 

Brewers yeast (main ingredient in Pink Powder - just cheaper) - assists in gut absorption.

Fenugreek - weight gain, horses love it.

For energy don't be afraid of using oats. Rolled oats soaked beforehand can be safely fed and the horses love them. They won't go nuts on them - it is the starch that causes problems, not the oats.

I feed my old boy carob and although it stinks like feet - he goes mad for it, as does my really picky younger horse. The high calcium in it offsets the phosphorous in the wheat bran I feed.

http://www.valleyviewanimalfeeds.co.uk/

I also like the blends from this company

http://eshop.equinatural.co.uk/epages/BT3755.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/BT3755/Products/006

I also feed some Readigrass to give them something to chew on. I am a bit suspicious of grass nuts. Possibility of preservatives in the process.


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## Perrie (30 September 2010)

I feed my 21 year old TB mare:

Alfa A Oil,
Maintenance Nuts,
Speedibeet,
Healthy Hooves,
Barley Rings,
A good dollop of Soya Oil.
As much hay as she wants.

She is looking much better now than she was a month ago as she was dropping weight terribly.

XxX


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## criso (1 October 2010)

Mine is actually quite a good doer not because he can live on nothing but because he has a really good appetite so it's easy to get lots of forage into him.
I find if I give him both hay and haylage he eats more as just as he's getting bored of one, he can start on the other.


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## K27 (1 October 2010)

What about Alfa Oil, Spillers Slow Release cubes as they are good for excitable types as v low starch and high fibre /oil , and Pink Powder to provide extra vits/mins if you aren't feeding the recommended amount of cubes- which is fab for condition, and also if they are of a stressy nature!

And good qulaity hay/haylage.


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## minniemouse (1 October 2010)

Oberon said:



			Sounds like he needs a diet low in cereals and starch as that is what produces the nutty behaviour.

Ad lib haylage.

Fibre base (speedibeet/Happyhoof/Fast Fibre/Dengie HiFi/Alfalfa pellets)

For weight - Wheat bran aka "Thirds" - very cheap, low starch, high fibre weight gain. Needs to be fed with limestone flour if not already balanced. Or Rice Bran if you can get hold of it.

Micronised linseed - cheap, good for gut, conditioning, coat and joints. 

Brewers yeast (main ingredient in Pink Powder - just cheaper) - assists in gut absorption.

Fenugreek - weight gain, horses love it.

For energy don't be afraid of using oats. Rolled oats soaked beforehand can be safely fed and the horses love them. They won't go nuts on them - it is the starch that causes problems, not the oats.

I feed my old boy carob and although it stinks like feet - he goes mad for it, as does my really picky younger horse. The high calcium in it offsets the phosphorous in the wheat bran I feed.

http://www.valleyviewanimalfeeds.co.uk/

I also like the blends from this company

http://eshop.equinatural.co.uk/epages/BT3755.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/BT3755/Products/006

I also feed some Readigrass to give them something to chew on. I am a bit suspicious of grass nuts. Possibility of preservatives in the process.
		
Click to expand...

I feed nearly the same as above apart from oats, tried all the top conditioning feeds but my boy needs a low starch feed and is a stressy type  he also has a sensitive gut and is also intolerant to Alfa a, now  his bucket feed consists of  thirds bran, limestone flour, speedibeet, baileys outshine,naf haylage balancer and brewers yeast with a handful of readigrass in his bucket feed and a small skip full of readigrass for him to munch on overnight. Recently added aloe vera juice and licqourice herb for his sensitive stomach!

  Also ad lib haylage and if i put nuts in his snack ball in winter it is either D & H slow release cubes or ERS pellets He has put loads of condition on with this diet and looks fab!


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## Tnavas (2 October 2010)

Keep teeth well cared for, keep warm and feed micronised or extruded foods. I had several as school horses and they lived out 24/7 in Christchurch (NZ) winters - snow and cold winds off the Antarctic. Plenty of hay both meadow & Lucerne. Also Haylage.


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## Chester15 (2 October 2010)

You could be describing my boy here!!!  Anything "conditioning" sends him into Lala land! For the last year I have had him on Simple systems blue grass nuts, high fibre nuts and a handful of Baileys no 14 lo cal balancer.  He also gets magnesium and Equifeast Cool Calm and Colllected calmer.  He looks fab, is holding his weight well and is the most chilled out I've ever seen him.


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## AndySpooner (2 October 2010)

The most cost effective way of keeping wieght on a TB has to be ad lid hay or haylage, also Simple Systems has some really effective balancers. Remember that most horses are too fat and unfit.

Unless you are working them really hard avoid of buckets of hard foods.

Behavioural problems are normally caused by sugars in the diet and the addition of any sort of molassed feed is asking for problems, laminitis being one.


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## Cornish Thoroughbred (3 October 2010)

When i first bought my thoroughbred he was poor as a chuch mouse but my local equine denstist suggested soaked nuts twice a day. I feed mine at 8am and 8pm which is a simple feeding routine and has worked wonders with him. He is now a full height up to weight 17hh riding horse. 

hope this helps!


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## Emma S (5 October 2010)

Thanks guys!!

Some really helpful stuff there, Im interested that alot of you are suggesting pink powder, I'll have to have a look into this!


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## Horseback Rider (5 October 2010)

I ended up calling the thoroughbred rehabilitation centre and they were great. 

I was feeding scoop of calm & condition + scoop of mollichop calmer 

They advised to either up that or add alfa a oil which I have done.As that is what they use for most of there horses 

Horse is looking really well considering we have awful grazing!! he is in at night (with ad lib hay)  and out all day but no longer seems grumpy and hungry all the time


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## Jade17 (6 October 2010)

Hi! My friend has the same problem, her boy currently has D&H staypower cubes with alfa a and soya oil, three times a day! But her trainer has suggested feeding full fat soya, as she feeds all her competitions horses that are sharp that and it keeps them brilliant! If you google it, the company is based in Bedford x


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## ponypatter (8 October 2010)

I feed mine equibuilda and full fat soya flakes from graven horse feeds. Shes amazingly fussy and won't eat winergy (annoying as I used to get a good discount from a friend) and loves this stuff. in fact she gets positively annoyed if its not ready in her manger when she comes in! she's also barley intolerant and this (and winergy) is the only stuff that doesn't send her booloo. It's not cheap, but less expensive than wasting feed, and as she looks amazing on it, i figure I don't have much choice! Cost is due to quality ingredients (and doesn't contain cheap bulkers, such as barley used by mainstream manufacturers (admitted to me by emplyees of more than one feed manufacturer! John (the nutrionist) is also amazingly helpful and has always got back to me in a couple of hours when i email him. I'm not on thier sales team (the fatties get happy hoof!) but i do think it's fab, and a miracule cure for mine!


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## jon1210 (8 October 2010)

The best secret i have been told is some alpha a and grassnuts(soaked obviously) and it actually works at keeping weight on  and it isnt really heating


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## rcm_73 (8 October 2010)

sammiea said:



			My TB mare (sadly she was PTS 2 wks ago) was just like this then I discovered Winergy Equilibrum!!! What a god send this stuff was  Orginally she was on the growth (under WE advise) but they then brought a Senior out so I swapped to that and she still kept her weight  its super low in startch so unlikely to blow your TB's brains either, it certainly never afected my girl unlike all other conditioning feeds!

ETA - so impressed with it over the last 2yrs that my new ned will be fed on it to although the low version 

Click to expand...

Another vote for Winergy Equilibrium, I have two ex racers a 5 yo and a 19 yo and both are on the growth. Before this the 19 yo was reknowned as being the local nutcase and never went anywhere at a walk, now she is a different horse! The feed is fibre based rather than cereal & is complete so no need to add anything although I do add speedi-beet but never sugar beet as the molasses just hype her up! There is plenty of choice within the range incl low, medium and high energy aswell as the senior, growth and also conditioning. Have a look at their website http://www.winergy.com/
Like you I had also tried every other mix before discovering this stuff!


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## cellie (8 October 2010)

I have slender tb who does very well on calm and condition and fast fibre.Will be on haylage from tommorrow ,as much as she can eat.


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## dray123 (13 December 2010)

I find giving as much hay/haylage as they can eat and a smaller feed more often works. As high calorie as poss, linseed is good and sacarens equijewel


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## Roasted Chestnuts (13 December 2010)

If alphalfa doesnt blow their minds then add the pellets to hi fibre nuts then i feed a mixture of millichaff orig and mollichaf hi fire alphalfa.

Then sugar beet on top. If the look a bit peaky a coffee cup of Corn oil in each feed and a naf general supp.

My Poor doing TBx is looking rather portly, oh and I switched to hayledge this year as well.

Nikki xxx


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## toomanyhorses26 (13 December 2010)

Mine gets haylage over night and a feed of endurance mix,micronised barley and alfa a and keeps his weight really well on this. He is out for 10-12 hours a day in all weathers and is still nicely porky on this


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## Kenzo (14 December 2010)

I've had to put mine on a diet, due to not been able to work her due to the weather, however she's not a rangey type of TB, she's quite a good doer to be fair, but I have had others of that type on the below who have done well.

But she was on the below when she was fit and doing a lot of work:-

Sugarbeat (speedi)
A&P Fast Fibre
Alfa A High Oil
Hi Fi Lite
Bailey's No.6 Endurance Mix (great for weight actually if you double the amount and reduce work, low starch, slow release energy)
Powerdered Cod liver Oil fed in the energy ration not just the supplement ration.

Also had results with the weight and muscle gain supplements, if your horse tends to hot up on grains, this can be a good alternative, however many of the ingredients used you could just add yourself to a simple fibre diet, like flaxseed and vegitable fats (although some animal fats are used) as well as a supplement like pink powder to help the gut for better digestion of the food.


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## Toast (14 December 2010)

My tb can struggle with her weight, ive managed to find a balance that works for her.
She gets:

Allen & Page Old Faithfuls Special Blend
D&H Just Grass
Speedibeet
Sunflower oil


She gets this twice daily with ad lib haylage
x


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## Solstar (15 December 2010)

I've had great results this year with Hi Fi Senior, Basic Nuts, Flaked Barley and Calm & Condition. Ad-lib Haylage is provided and NAF HAylage Balancer. One is a full TB, 17yo, the other is a 3/4 TB x, 26yo.


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## Spyda (15 December 2010)

Have you thought of trying Copra meal? 

It's high in oil and doesn't hype them up. A great ecomonical conditioning feed. 

More info here: http://www.stanceequine.com/horsefeedproducts.php?CoolStance-Copra-2#nutrient

I now feed it alongside full-fat linseed meal, balancer, Alfa-A Oil and ad-lib hay for the poor doers.


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## Dot1 (21 December 2010)

We struggled to keep the weight on ours too without him throwing someone into next week or being a 'challenge' to handle.

In the end we found Alfa A and D&H Fibre nuts and pink powder worked well.  Instead of two feeds a day, we did three which really helped bulk him out.  Oh and lots and lots of hay..

Early on we found that he was sweating condition and weight off, so were giving him electrolytes on days he was worked which was 5/6 days a week.  I'm guessing thats not an issue right now!

Tried different feeds but in the end for him it worked being really simple rather than spending lots of money on different feeds.  But maybe we were lucky!


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## kellyfoss (21 December 2010)

I have a 16.2 5yr old ex-racer and have owned him since he was 3.  When i first got him I tried winergy equilibrium, which he did well on but still wasnt carrying as much weight as I would have liked - plus he wind-sucked terribly, so I also used the global herbs supplement for this.  Then I came across simple systems - and we've not looked back since.  In the summer he has a combination of lucie cobs (soaked), blue bag grass pellets and the total eclipse balancer. Now the weather is foul and everything freezes we've switched to lucie pellets, greengold, blue bag grass pellets and balancer.  He has hardly windsucked since he has been on this food (6mths) and is looking fab. Non-horsey husband watched him frolicking about in the indoor school last night and commented that he could notice a difference in his condition - enough said! I would recommend you give the helpline a call as they are very friendly and knowledgeable. Good luck!


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## PennyJ (21 December 2010)

The best feed we ever came across for a couple of TB's who would put themselves on hunger strike/drop weight without even blinking was Blue Chip or Top Spec Balancer, Spillers H&P nuts and HiFi.   No beet.  Once we put them onto this, they never looked back and we didn't have any more anorexic episodes from them.  It was lovely to see them "bare", all well covered and shiny, instead of with bones jutting out and generally looking like rescue cases.   And no silliness either.


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