Les Bunning

Amanda Howell - Eventing

The first thing to consider when feeding a horse is that they have small stomachs & are therefore designed to eat small amounts often. Grazing in the paddock is the most natural way for a horse to eat, but when we humans begin interfering, by giving our horses grain & training them hard, we need to remember to keep to as simple a regime as possible.

At the moment I have 4 eventers - two entered for Melbourne 3DE this June, one Pre-Novice youngster, & one injured horse confined to the stable & small yard. Each horse has different needs but the basics are the same:

3DE horses - these two horses are working hard 6 days a week & are heading towards the last event of the season before winter break. They are out in the paddock from 8am - 4:30pm & stabled at night. I feed these two horses three hard feeds a day (8am, 5pm & 10pm), & they have short but lush green grass & a grass hay roll in their paddocks, & add-lib hay in their stables. The reason for the three feeds a day is that they require a lot of energy both for their workload & to keep weight on. With the amount of feed the horses require, it is best broken down into three separate feeds keeping smaller amounts often, as only two feeds would be too large an amount for the horses' stomach to digest in one go. The horses have roughage freely available whether they are inside or out, so they can graze continuously as they naturally would.

Pre-Novice horse - this horse lives outside 24/7, with a shelter, grass hay roll, & short but green grass. He has access to roughage/grazing all the time, & is hard fed twice a day. Because he is not working as hard as the 3DE horses & looks well, he doesn't need three feeds a day, but he is eating enough to require two feeds a day at 8am & 5pm. (Another good point to mention, is that by feeding morning & night, we are also checking the horse is OK, & not leaving him unsupervised for more than 12 hours at a time). If this horse needed three feeds a day, I would feed him lunch, as it isn't ideal to go fumbling out to the paddock with a feed at 10pm in the dark!

Injured horse - this horse needs to be kept quiet but needs to keep condition, so is on three small hard feeds a day, always has hay in the stable, & gets turned out into a small yard for a few hours a day with some grass, & hay added. Because he's not grazing outside as much as usual, I ensure he always has grass hay to keep his digestive system working, & to help stop boredom. And because he is stabled next to the 3DE horses, he would feel left out if the others were fed & he wasn't, so we break his daily feed amount into three small feeds. This is inevitably better for his digestive system, & helps combat boredom. When he is allowed out into his paddock, he will have two feeds a day, as he will have free range grazing & be more like his natural lifestyle.

It is worth noting that all my horses have their diets analyzed by HyGain's nutritionist, & if their condition or situation changes, I consult HyGain again to ensure the most suitable diet.

Amanda Howell

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Francesca Christie - Showing

Well I have to say that I am from the school where reality and regularity comes in.

Not everybody has the luxury to be at home all day to give the five small feeds a day - some people believe this the answer to weight gain. I had a great friend that had the time to be able to do this, it did work for them however, there horses did not walk they waddled. She was a special person that was dear to many hearts...maybe that is why they were so fat. So in real terms consistency is what works with horses and time. They are all different and there metabolisms vary considerably.

I believe that given to many opportunities horses are able to be great anorexics, even without a mirror. Commonly seen to be given ten different choices they will have a little bit of this and a little bit of that and they think there full. With all that said, I feed two feeds a day with good pasture hay available at all times.

I watch what they are eating at all times. I try to keep diet according to what they are doing. The more work the more feed the less work the less feed. This is not really hard stuff, think of what happens if your sitting on the couch eating fatty food watching TV as opposed to having a major pig out and never stopping. Some people get to the point that they can not stand up - some horse get to the point they lose there hooves.

HYGAIN has fully trained staff that can work out correct diet requirements for each horse, it is a specialist field. I have had years of experience and still constantly consult the expertise of the fully trained nutritionist that is available to advise on the correct feed available for your horse with consideration to its environment and work load.

So there you are, full of great advise this month........but honestly, take advantage of what is on offer, call HYGAIN, I do.

Enjoy
Francesca Christie

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Les Bunning - ShowJumping

It is fair to say that when I started feeding Hygain it was fairly revolutionary for me as I was one who liked to feed Chaff, bran and oats a little bit of this and that. So not only has it simplified my feeding programme but I am comfortable knowing that my horses are now getting a well balanced diet.Whether you feed your horse once or twice a day may depend on many factors, keeping in mind that horses are grazing animals by nature.That been said I believe my wife and I have worked out a feeding program/routine that seems to keep our horses happy and looking well and more importantly performing well.

Our competition horses and clients horses are stabled at night and spend most of the day in day paddocks, there is limited grazing in the paddocks for most of the year. So our feeding must spread out in a way that keeps them happy and out of trouble during the day and night.We start the day off with a hard feed at about 6.30am, by about 8am all the stabled horses are out in their day paddocks, we put them out with half a piece of hay this gives them something to pick at and also stops them from charging around the paddocks.Any horse that hasn't finished their hard feed, that is also taken to the paddock.

We have a broodmare and several young horses that live in larger paddocks they also need to be hard fed due to the lack of grazing and it is very important that the broodmare and foals get a well balanced diet,so they all get chaff, Lucerne,oats and Hygain Balance and plenty of hay, that's oaten hay here in WA.In summer we often give these horses a large round bale of hay this helps keep the young ones out of trouble.

The competition horses are all worked during the morning and at lunchtime we give all the horses a decent biscuit of hay this helps break up there day, when away at events we always take hay or hard feed with us and give them little snacks throughout the day.

They usually start coming back in around 4.30pm and receive another hard feed and one or two pieces of hay depending on the horse,as some require more bulk then others, so this is given at the end of the day.Finding the right balance for each horse can make all the difference in their performance,from feeling to well, getting strong, big in condition.
So in general we give two hard feeds per day and hay three times a day, keeping in mind my horses have limited pick for most of the year, if their paddock had consistent grazing I would cut out the small piece of hay in the morning.
This system has been working for me for many years. I think the horses have been kept content and I've only had one serious colic in all that time.

All the best
Les Bunning

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