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Winter conditioning with Saracen

Sacaren Horse Feeds talks us through the steps invovled with making sure you horse stays in top condition through the winter months. 

Step 1 - Forage 

What is Forage?

Forage is the primary source of fibre within a horse’s diet. This should form the foundation of every horse’s diet and should be taken into consideration if you have concerns that your horse is losing or not maintaining its weight well through the winter months.

Common forage sources include - 

Grass

Hay

Haylage

Chaff

High fibre feeds – can be used as a partial forage replacer

If you have concerns about your horse’s weight it is important to firstly assess how much forage your horse or pony is eating in a 24-hour period. In many cases, condition, performance, and mental wellbeing can all be improved if we know exactly how much forage our horses are eating and more importantly, if they are consuming enough to support and maintain their condition throughout the winter.

While most horses will continue to enjoy turnout through the winter, the quality and quantity of grass will be depleted and very often cannot be relied upon to meet the minimum requirement of forage that horse needs to maintain condition or offer a fully balanced diet. Supplementing turnout with good quality hay or haylage will ensure their fibre requirements are being met. This can be offered in the field, for those living out 24/7 or when they are stabled.

Did you know?

Horses rely on fresh growing grass to provide the majority of their antioxidant intake. During the winter months when turnout is restricted and access to quality grass is reduced, it is possible that grass alone will not supply a sufficient number of antioxidants, such as Vitamn E. Fedding a fully fortified feed or topping up with a Vitamin E supplement may therefore be required to support your horses immune and muscle health. 

How much should I feed? 

 

The amount of forage given will vary depending on a horse’s size, metabolism and workload. At a minimum, start with the basic guideline of feeding enough hay to equal approximately 1.5 - 2% of the horse’s body weight for (example 7 - 10kg for a 500Kg horse), and increase as needed when the temperature drops.

Download Your Weight Chart Here

Important Note – 

The recommended percentage is based on dry matter….

What does that mean?

In short, haylage is heavier than hay because it contains moisture. For example, if you filled two nets, one with hay and one with haylage, the haylage will be heavier. This will need to be taken into consideration if you are increasing forage to support weight gain and condition.

When the temperature drops don't forget to turn up the heating!

Fermentation of fibre in the horse’s hindgut is the major heat source that keeps horses insulated through the colder months and acts almost like their own internal radiator!

How do you know how much your horse is eating?

A simple way to assess how much forage your horse or pony is eating:

  • Weigh the amount of hay / haylage you are giving in one haynet for example the night net
  • Then weigh how much hay / haylage is left in the morning

Check if the amount being consumed is meeting the minimum 1.5-2% of the horse’s bodyweight. If your horse is not maintaining their condition, the forage can be increased.

  • If horses are regularly leaving a lot of hay, rather than assume that they are simply full, inspect the left over hay to check that it is not mouldy or just full of unpalatable weeds etc. It is better to discard hay that is not consumed within a reasonable amount of time, if they are not eating it, there will be a reason.
  • If horses are living out in a group, make sure that hay piles are spread out enough to ensure that timid horses are in fact getting their share. A good idea is to also offer more piles to the number of horses.
  • The quality of your forage will also have an impact on horse’s condition. Good quality will provide more nutrients and energy.

Top Tip

For horses that spend a lot of their time stabled over the winter months it is a good idea to provide them with some additional forage sources. Horses love to browse through a variety of different forage sources when stabled. This is a great way to stimulate natural browsing behaviours and reduce the risk of boredom.

Buckets of chaff, chopped grass, and Saracen Super Fibre Cubes placed in a ‘boredom breaker’ ball can be offered alongside the usual hay or haylage.

Step 2 - Feed to Support Weight Gain and Condition

Once you have established that your horse is being offered the correct amount of forage and you have increased the quantity where possible. The next step is to look at the feed you are adding to your horse’s diet and assess whether it is meeting your horse’s needs.

When to introduce a Conditioning Feed –

  • When forage alone is not enough to maintain body condition
  • When increasing the quantity of feed may compromise digestive function
  • When more energy is required for the work being done and the horse is not overweight

How to choose the correct Conditioning Feed 

Before choosing or changing feeds it’s important to consider a few points.

  • Your Horse’s Temperament - Some horses are naturally excitable, so you should avoid feeds that contain high levels of micronized cereals and starch, which can provide fast-release energy. Instead, look for alternative feeds with more oil, high levels of "Super-Fibres" like alfalfa, soya hulls, or sugar beet, and lower starch levels. Slow-release energy sources, like fibre and oil, can help reduce the risk of over-excitement.
  • Workload - The amount of work your horse does can affect what kind of feed you should give them.
  • Time Spent in the Stable - If your horse spends most of their time in the stable, you might want to avoid feeds with fast-release energy especially if they have an excitable temperament.
  • Meal Size V’s Recommended Feeding Rate - For your horse to benefit from your chosen conditioning feed you need to feed the recommended daily allowance, which you will find on the feed bag. This will vary with different types of feed. The feed should be calorie dense so that the meal size can remain manageable. This is especially important for those horses who have limited appetites.

Fully fortified feeds provide a complete feed as they contain a full spectrum of vitamins and minerals meaning that no additional balancers need to be fed alongside the feeds when fed at the recommended daily intake.

The ingredients are always in descending order of inclusion, so that the highest percentage inclusion goes first and the lowest goes last.

Demystifying Digestible Energy

Digestible Energy (DE) refers to the amount of energy (calories) that a particular feed or forage will supply. Conditioning feeds are formulated to be calorie dense in order to promote weight gain. This means they have a higher digestible energy value than a typical cooling mix (12.5 - 13.0 MJ/Kg rather than 10MJ/Kg).

Feeding for Condition with some added oomph! 

Some conditioning feeds contain higher quantities amounts of micronised cereals and starch, these are extremely effective for adding weight and condition. The added cereal provides a great source of energy for those laid-back types. These are generally not suitable for those with plenty of natural energy or not in a great deal of work.

Conditioning Feeds for Horses prone to Gastric Ulcers 

Gastric ulcers is not just a digestive issue just for performance horses. It can affect all types of horses or ponies in many different scenarios. Horses prone to gastric ulcers or digestive upset need careful consideration when choosing a conditioning feed.

Look for cereal free feeds which are low in sugar and starch. Less than 1g/Kg BW starch per day and less than 2g / Kg BW per meal.

Feeding for Condition without Fizz

For those hot horses with plenty of natural energy and excitable temperaments, for example a young horse or an ex-racehorse, a cereal free feed that is lower in starch and high in ‘Super-Fibres’ and oil would be a more suitable option.

The key to successfully feeding any horse or pony is offering a fully balanced diet and carefully monitoring your horse’s weight and condition throughout the year. Looking after horses in the winter is hard work but by regularly assessing your horse’s condition, providing plenty of a good quality forage, the right feed and clean fresh water you will be maximising your horse’s health and wellbeing.

Step 3 - Water

When the temperatures drop make sure the ice is broken and removed from field water troughs. Some horse’s will not drink very cold, icy water.

  • Although they are convenient to use, automatic waterers make it difficult to monitor water intake. If you are concerned about how much water is being consumed it would be better to switch to using buckets.
  • Adding a well soaked mash to your horse’s diet is a great way to increase fibre and fluid through the winter. The Saracen Re-Covery Mash™ can be made into a soupy drink, which will encourage the horse to drink the fluid off the top before enjoying the mash at the bottom of the bucket. Re-Covery Mash™ can be fed without disruption to your horse’s normal routine and alongside your normal feed. Re-Covery Mash™ also contains electrolytes which will help to support your horse’s thirst response.
  • Adding salt to feeds. You can keep your horse well hydrated by feeding salt, which we recommend doing on a daily basis to top up on sodium and chloride. Offering a salt lick in the stable, and or field, will allow your horse to top-up on their required salt intake, however salt licks cannot be relied on alone to provide enough salt in the diet. Horses have very smooth tongues and often they cannot get enough salt from a salt lick.

Find out more and see the full range of feeds avaiable visit Saracen Horse Feeds using the button below. 

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