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Nut
Platinum Member
 United Kingdom
2838 Posts |
 Posted - 24 Aug 2010 : 8:50:08 PM
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Hi guys, thought I'd pick your brains. As we head into autumn and winter and time to start thinking about rugging and feeding, who taught you what rugs, products, feed were best to maintain and improve condition so your horses come out next spring looking fabulous and ready for the spring shows? I know a lot of work goes into conditioning and are there people you can pay to come out an teach you as you can if you wanted riding or inhand lessons? I could well buy all the right food and product and rugs but without knowing im doing the right stuff with it....thanks guys
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     www.ndlarabians.webs.com
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MinHe
Platinum Member
England
2927 Posts |
Posted - 28 Aug 2010 : 11:10:30 PM
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I learnt from experience and the recommendations of friends!
Rugs depend very much on what fits your horse! I have had good experience with Weatherbeeta and Aerborn turnouts, plus Saxon on a lightly-built rug-hater  If you can manage it (price/storage) it's good to have both a mediumweight and a heavyweight to suit the weather. I underlayer either with stable rugs, liner rugs or waffle/thermatex coolers, depending on the horse and the weather! Breathable turnouts can also double as stable rugs, but the temptation is not to de-rug to check in this situation - not recommended.
One brand I would not touch with a bargepole - King's Head. We had one £25 instead of £125 in a sale, and the clip on the breast fastening dug into our boy! He ran away at the sheer sight of it, bless him. He loves his Aerborn though
AL is a good place to ask for recommendations of various products - if you ask about specific situations/products, you might get a better response.
Keren |
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Zena
Junior Member
42 Posts |
Posted - 29 Sep 2010 : 1:33:14 PM
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| Hi im with Minhe on the weatherbeeta rugs they are fab also alfalfa added oil (dengie) sugarbeet and global herbs plus unlimited hay is what my mare gets and her weight doesnt alter all winter (use weigh tape every wk :) )natx |
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geegee
Platinum Member
England
3682 Posts |
Posted - 29 Sep 2010 : 3:04:38 PM
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In my experience, Equine science degree and from speaking to various nutrionists, my opinion is that horse weight/condition isn't really down to the amount of concentrates you feed or the rugs that you put on.
The most important factor is long forage. i.e Grass/hay/haylage. The fermentation/breakdown of fibre in the hind gut generates heat, which helps to keep the horse warm from the inside out.
If a horse (provided it doesn't have any medical problems/conditions) has access to adlib good quality hay/haylage, then you will probably find that you won't need to rug up so much and you certainly won't need to feed much concentration feed (if any, apart from a chaff to add a broad spectrum vit & mineral supplement).
Obviously, if your horse is in hard work then it will require extra energy feed.
There are also alot of feed merchants that are putting expensive ingredients in their products that the horse really doesn't need.
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Edited by - geegee on 29 Sep 2010 3:06:01 PM |
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Cinnypony
Gold Member
1160 Posts |
Posted - 01 Oct 2010 : 10:57:39 PM
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Agree with Geegee - my girl has a bib and belly clip in the winter, lives out 24/7 all winter and only wears a medium weight combo (JHL) - but she's always warm enough.
She has permanent access to round bale haylage, so always has a warm tummy (heated from within) and they have natural shelter in the fields. |
    
Cinnabar Moth --------------- -----------CF Matilda ----Red House Gaia
Susi
https://www.facebook.com/CinnabarEndurance/ |
Edited by - Cinnypony on 01 Oct 2010 10:58:07 PM |
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pinkvboots
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
3290 Posts |
Posted - 04 Oct 2010 : 2:21:31 PM
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Agree with Geegee, the best way to keep on weight is feed plenty of hay if you don't have great grazing, if either of mine look like there dropping off I up there hay ration before I touch the short feed and it works every time. mine get hay in the field all through winter. |
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rpk2006
Bronze Member
Scotland
95 Posts |
Posted - 06 Dec 2010 : 11:29:09 AM
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Plenty of adlib hay 
Our guys are getting cheap as chips chaff, pony cubes, baby is getting youngstock mix :) and beet - we have just had to cut our guys feed though.... :D
Nadem has a full clip, as he was really sweating when worked, pity now though, trapped...
K xxx |
      
Nadem (Nikkodemus x Roxalah) & Rokkademus (Nikkodemus x Judals Miamara) |
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Topic |
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Conditioning
