Do you feel that your horse changes with the seasons? Just lately my boy doesn't have his usual spark. He's eating as normal, goes out and mooches about, but he seems tired when ridden - lack lustre. Could it be because he's on hay now and not grass? Could it be the cold? The shorter days? Maybe his feed needs revising in view of all of this?
Does your horse seem lack lustre this time of year?
- Thread starter showqa
- Start date
my boy is the same, he seems to be more of a spring/summer pony, this year i have been putting cod liver oil in his feed every day and it seems to have given him a bit more of a spark
Definitely wouldn't worry about it at this time of year.
Routine goes bang out of the window whatwith the weather and the rest of it, so it's just as can be expected, honestly.
I've given Red a stern warning that if he doesn't take a chill pill, he'll be getting ridden. That'll teach him.
Routine goes bang out of the window whatwith the weather and the rest of it, so it's just as can be expected, honestly.
I've given Red a stern warning that if he doesn't take a chill pill, he'll be getting ridden. That'll teach him.
Red is on high fibre horsehage (the blue one) for his laminitis and his breathing problems. I find that the high fibre-ness is just the added touch he needs, and he loves it. I give him two slices a night, fully broken up and shaken out inside two small holed haylage nets.
Ha ha ha ha! My horse isn't the slightest bit lethargic. We jog here, we jog there, ask for proper trot and we get squeals and choppy canter. She's just the way I like her.
Other than hay, what are you feeding?
Other than hay, what are you feeding?
Daffy has SAD, or would if it were diagnosed in horses. He simply does not like winter, so I do what I can to make it more comfortable for him.
He's on a large, heaped scoop of Alfa Oil chaff, cup of Baileys balancer, garlic and apples/carrots in the morning, then three quarters scoop Speedibeet, cup of balancer, swede/carrots in the evening. He's 5, in what I'd call light work (ridden 5 times a week), comes in at night, and rugged during the day.
If he's a baby he might be putting some energy into growing. Do you know what time of year the hay he's getting was cut & how old it is? It can vary a lot in its nutritional content. If you want a bit more pep you could feed him some extra oil (make sure you give a selenium/vit E supplement though). My mare is another firecracker wanting to blow at the moment, she's getting nothing heating in her feed, I think it's just the fact that I got her fit in summer & don't get the time to ride her as much in winter, so she has excess energy. She's just changed onto being fed some late-cut haylage which hopefully won't have too much of a heating effect on her. The early cut stuff she was on before was like rocket fuel!
Showqa, I wouldn't say no to, but would be careful with, the haylage. It depends on the quality and - of course - on the individual horse, but NFA warned us about haylage - some Andalusians don't do well (or rather they do too well) on it apparently.
I honestly believe that breed can make a huge difference - you don't specify that your horse is an Andalusian and you might get different (more appropriate) responses if you did - I think the fact he was born in Spain probably makes him suffer a bit in winter.
I honestly believe that breed can make a huge difference - you don't specify that your horse is an Andalusian and you might get different (more appropriate) responses if you did - I think the fact he was born in Spain probably makes him suffer a bit in winter.
Yeah - perhaps I should have said he was an Andalucian - and I suppose it all keys in with his reluctance to be out in the field maybe? I do recall NFA advising that if you use haylage to ensure it's second cut. Do you have a PRE too Dooley? I'd be so interested to know, because they are a bit unusual and I could maybe pick your brains more specifically. Thanks.
newrider.com