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Horses starving in barn!!

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ImpressiveInstant
Posts: 35
Joined: April 14th, 2017, 2:36 am
Location: New Zealand
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Horses starving in barn!!

Post by ImpressiveInstant »

Hi everyone,
I have this problem. I have five horses I am training in Lunge on the flat, track, gallop for 5 - 10 minutes.
Two horses are in the paddock and no problems there. they are eating 100% performance mix. However the two I left in the barn on 100% all four options of food equaling in like 400% daily energy and doing NO training are not gaining any weight and I'm getting those "Your horse isnt eating enough food" messages!
Do I just not put my horses in the barn who are in training?
~Bonnie aka ImpressiveInstant
Blue Rose Ranch
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Joined: December 2nd, 2016, 10:04 am
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Re: Horses starving in barn!!

Post by Blue Rose Ranch »

It is important, when feeding horses in barns, to note the feed weights under the daily energy section. If both values under regular feed are red then it is higher than the max feed value below it and you are feeding too much food for the horse to manage and it will eat its fill of the heavier items.
If you are training them neither of the values for feed weights should be red to make sure they will eat all the food assigned. If they are not being trained then only the first regular feed needs to be below the max feed value.
Try starting with 100% performance or weight gain mixes then adding in other foods while watching the feed weight values. If you want them to gain weight quickly it is probably easier and cheaper to do this in a pasture (especially while training) then move them back to the barn at the preferred weight. None of the horses in my barn are currently being trained and are already at the desired BCS but feel free to have a look at them for examples.
chelsea_08082
Posts: 217
Joined: December 1st, 2016, 1:28 pm
Location: Earth
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Re: Horses starving in barn!!

Post by chelsea_08082 »

ImpressiveInstant wrote:Hi everyone,
I have this problem. I have five horses I am training in Lunge on the flat, track, gallop for 5 - 10 minutes.
Two horses are in the paddock and no problems there. they are eating 100% performance mix. However the two I left in the barn on 100% all four options of food equaling in like 400% daily energy and doing NO training are not gaining any weight and I'm getting those "Your horse isnt eating enough food" messages!
Do I just not put my horses in the barn who are in training?
~Bonnie aka ImpressiveInstant
I suggest using a mix of feeds and the amount of food your horse is eating. I usually use a mix; 50% Weight Gain Mix, 25% Sweet Feed, 25% Oats. Like Blue Rose Ranch previously mentioned, it is important to not surpass the max feed your horse can eat. But I'm not a horse expert, so if I'm wrong, please correct me, although this method works for me. If you need more help, on the feeding section heading, there is a question mark at the end. Press on that, and there is a lot of detailed information on how to feed your horses, the nutrients provided with each type of feed, the ideal body condition for each discipline for showing and competing and detailed explanations. Hope this helped!
ImpressiveInstant
Posts: 35
Joined: April 14th, 2017, 2:36 am
Location: New Zealand
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Re: Horses starving in barn!!

Post by ImpressiveInstant »

Thank you for your replies!
Ok time for round two. I have put my three broodmares into my Right Wing barn to experiment on. All three are being Lunged on the flat; Hills at Gallop for 10minutes.
I have followed instructions not to overfeed them, all three mares are eating 50% Weight Gain Mix, 25% Sweet Feed, 25% Oats. Equaling in 100% Daily Energy.
One Turn: Weight didn't move on Eulogy Rose. Weight didn't move on Light Of My Life. (Shes skinny so I bumped up the Weight Gain to 55%) and the weight went up on Home Before Dark.
Two Turns: Weight went up on Light Of My Life. (Yay!) Weight went up 2 points on Home Before Dark and weight remained the same with Eulogy Rose.

So all in all I think I have sorted myself out, so thanks again Chelsea and Blue Rose Ranch :)
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