# Feed that's low sugar/starch



## Always-Riding (29 January 2015)

Having been completely bewildered by speaking to numerous feed companies, I'm nowhere near finding a feed! So what would you feed these two horses that must be low sugar/starch and ulcer/gut friendly. 

Horse 1:
8 years old WBxTB. 
In light-medium work currently but will be in solid medium level work come spring. 
Holds weight well
Is a complete hot head! Does stress and can weave. We've found magnesium to really help him. 
Doesn't need anymore energy. 

Horse 2:
Rising 4 year old. Wbxtb
In light work - hacking and maybe the odd show come spring/summer. 
Holds weight well
Is naturally lazy. 

Both are turned out daily, if not 24/7. When in, they have adlib good quality hay.


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## Havannah (29 January 2015)

Take a look at www.horsesource.webs.com - Jo is an independent equine nutritionist and all the HorseSource products are 100% natural. Check out HorseSource Seabuckthorn - brilliant for ulcer-prone horses with sensitive guts. 

Good luck!


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## be positive (29 January 2015)

Do they actually require a feed? I would just use something like speedibeet or fast fibre as a base to put in a broad spectrum supplement, with possibly some linseed,  otherwise use a balancer  with a molasses free chop if you want to put more in the bucket. 
The lazy one could have some oats as and when required, keep it simple they should get most of their requirements from good grass and forage, a salt lick or tablespoon daily is a good idea.


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## Justturnedfifty (29 January 2015)

Always-Riding said:



			Having been completely bewildered by speaking to numerous feed companies, I'm nowhere near finding a feed! So what would you feed these two horses that must be low sugar/starch and ulcer/gut friendly. 

Horse 1:
8 years old WBxTB. 
In light-medium work currently but will be in solid medium level work come spring. 
Holds weight well
Is a complete hot head! Does stress and can weave. We've found magnesium to really help him. 
Doesn't need anymore energy. 

Horse 2:
Rising 4 year old. Wbxtb
In light work - hacking and maybe the odd show come spring/summer. 
Holds weight well
Is naturally lazy. 

Both are turned out daily, if not 24/7. When in, they have adlib good quality hay.
		
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Hi there, I would highly recommend Fast Fibre and Dengie Healthy Tummy for Horse 1. Dengie Healthy Tummy is designed for ulcer prone horses and contains Protexin. Fast Fibre is low sugar and is pure fibre. Ad lib hay is recommended for horses that are ulcer prone and as much turn out as possible to relieve stress. Have you looked at Equifeast - great supplement for stressy horses. Highly recommend. 

For horse 2 much the same but add Saracens Re Leve - slow release energy feed, low sugar and no cereals/barley. Recommend adding Micronised Linseed for both of them and oil. 

Hope this helps, good luck!


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## kobi (30 January 2015)

I agree with be positive. Both the equivita and forage plus general supplements contains a good level of magnesium


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## Silmarillion (30 January 2015)

be positive said:



			Do they actually require a feed? I would just use something like speedibeet or fast fibre as a base to put in a broad spectrum supplement, with possibly some linseed,  otherwise use a balancer  with a molasses free chop if you want to put more in the bucket. 
The lazy one could have some oats as and when required, keep it simple they should get most of their requirements from good grass and forage, a salt lick or tablespoon daily is a good idea.
		
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This.


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## jam14 (31 January 2015)

For my tbs I use Horsecare 10 pellets and one has hi fi lite molasses free chaff and the other has molasses free alfafa (some horses go nuts on alfafa but this one is fine).


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## jam14 (31 January 2015)

PS  Be careful with magnesium as it is a myth it works with all horses.  Horses have differing levels of magnesium present already and the only genuine way of knowing if deficient in magnesium is to have your horse tested.  If not deficient you can overload the level therefore and make things worse.


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## JennBags (31 January 2015)

be positive said:



			Do they actually require a feed? I would just use something like speedibeet or fast fibre as a base to put in a broad spectrum supplement, with possibly some linseed,  otherwise use a balancer  with a molasses free chop if you want to put more in the bucket. 
The lazy one could have some oats as and when required, keep it simple they should get most of their requirements from good grass and forage, a salt lick or tablespoon daily is a good idea.
		
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Agree with this.  I stopped feeding my boy except for chaff and a balancer when he was in very light work, at the beginning of the winter I felt he needed a bit more but he's quite intolerant to sugars and starch, so I tried adding speedibeet to his chaff.  It's really done the trick, he's got energy without the silliness.  He only gets half a scoop (measured when dry) split between 2 feeds a day, but he's kept his weight really well along with a calm energy.  I feed Alltech Lifeforce as his balancer, it seems to really suit him and I like that it's a powder rather than in pellet form.


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## Mari (30 September 2019)

Iâ€™m piggy backing on this post as there have been good responses to the original poster.  What low starch & sugar feeds do people suggest for these 2 horses.
Horse 1 - 20 yrs old retired warmblood x laid back personality
has sign of very mild laminitis, tested positive for PPID / Cushings but has no symptoms.  Not overweight.
Horse 2 - 8 yrs old native. Good doer.  A bit of a stresshead. Can be tense & fizzy when ridden.
Sometimes has mild heat in feet.  Could be prone to ulcers.
I want to keep their feeds as low in sugar & starch as possible but they donâ€™t need to have the same feed, just the one best for the individual.


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## Bob notacob (1 October 2019)

Silmarillion said:



			This.
		
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Are you me .Seriously , sugar beet (only speedi beet cos its low in sugars) .Ponyclub rules of feeding . Feed something succulent every day .Speedibeet fills the bill. Use it as a carrier for a hay ballancer . Ps ,get after the lazy horse , its not a feed issue .


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## SEL (1 October 2019)

I'm another who used speedibeet or kwik beet. Add a chaff to bulk it out for the one who doesn't really need much, linseed or copra if the other needs weight over winter.


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## DabDab (1 October 2019)

Mari said:



			Iâ€™m piggy backing on this post as there have been good responses to the original poster.  What low starch & sugar feeds do people suggest for these 2 horses.
Horse 1 - 20 yrs old retired warmblood x laid back personality
has sign of very mild laminitis, tested positive for PPID / Cushings but has no symptoms.  Not overweight.
Horse 2 - 8 yrs old native. Good doer.  A bit of a stresshead. Can be tense & fizzy when ridden.
Sometimes has mild heat in feet.  Could be prone to ulcers.
I want to keep their feeds as low in sugar & starch as possible but they donâ€™t need to have the same feed, just the one best for the individual.
		
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Might be worth starting your own thread, as I suspect that people are just going to keep responding to the OP. 

Neither of your horses sound like they need a feed tbh (unless the oldie drops off in winter). Are you wanting to feed them a balancer or similar?


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## Red-1 (1 October 2019)

For horses just doing an hour steady hacking and a bit of schooling, if they are good doers I would simply cut feed out.

Mine is a 15.3 ID x TB and is having her shoes pulled today for a rest (she does not need a rest but I do - life is overwhelming me again!). As long as her feet look strong and she looks well she will now be on grass and hay, as she was most of last winter. 

If she drops off or needs a carrier for a supplement, I have Speedybeet (an inch in the bottom of a mug) and half a mug of Agrobs, once a day. Alternatively, she can have a pelleted supplement (Formula 4 Feet or similar) as a hand treat. 

As a side note, it is amazing how much time is saved by no feed. No buckets, no washing of buckets, no ordering, no opening the feed room...


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## Leo Walker (1 October 2019)

The lowest that I can find is Pink Mash. 0.5% sugar and 3% starch. I feed it to everything and am going to start charging commission as I recommend it so much!


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## Leo Walker (1 October 2019)

jam14 said:



			PS  Be careful with magnesium as it is a myth it works with all horses.  Horses have differing levels of magnesium present already and the only genuine way of knowing if deficient in magnesium is to have your horse tested.  If not deficient you can overload the level therefore and make things worse.
		
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Thats something that a morally corrupt supplement company like to say to promote their own ineffective calmers. It does only work if the horse is deficient, however UK grazing and forage is shockingly low in magnesium and it has many benefits.


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