Feeding for Weight Gain and Condition (Elementary Level)

Read the following information and then complete the quiz questions at the end of the page to test your knowledge and earn AMTRA points.

This resource will introduce you to the following topics:

• Why is the horse underweight and can this be addressed?
• The contribution of forage and grazing
• The contribution of bucket feed
• Dengie feeds for promoting weight gain
• Case studies

Why is the horse underweight? – Some key concepts

• Is there an underlying problem that can be addressed? For example, does the horse have poor dentition or are they being fed too little for their workload?
• Or do we need to find ways of managing a chronic issue such as previous worm damage or inflammatory bowel conditions?
• Energy and calories are two measures of the same thing – we tend to use calories when talking about weight gain and loss.
• Essentially, more energy consumed than used results in weight gain.

Make sure you have completed our Digestive System – Elementary Level before proceeding so you understand how the horse’s digestive system works to be able to feed it effectively.

Feeding for weight gain – grazing

• Good grazing provides the most digestible source of fibre and in the spring can provide more than double the energy requirements of a horse in light work.
• Usually highly palatable.
• Horses are usually, but not always, happier when out in the paddock.
• Often there is an unlimited supply, but if that’s not the case then alternative sources of conserved forage are needed.

Feeding for weight gain – conserved forage

• Use haylage or hay that has been cut at a young botanical age as it will be more digestible and the horse will get more benefit from it.
• Feed conserved forage ad-lib but weigh it to know that enough is being consumed.
• A change from pasture to hay is a high risk time for colic and weight loss and should be done gradually – this is because we’re changing from a highly digestible form of fibre to one that contains much higher levels of indigestible fibre.
• If the horse is struggling to chew due to poor dentition, an alternative such as short chopped fibre or fibre mashes must be used in order to supply sufficient fibre, thereby helping to maintain weight and condition.

Feeding for weight Gain – bucket feed

• Start with highly digestible fibre sources such as alfalfa and sugar beet.
• Then introduce higher levels of oil such as micronised linseed (remember to balance the ration if using straights).
• If cereal based feeds are really required, keep the meal sizes small for digestive health and maximum digestive efficiency – see our Starch Calculator – meal size for cereal-based feeds should be less than 400g per 100kg of bodyweight.
• Use digestive aids – yeast and prebiotics aid fibre digestion and support gut health.

Dengie feeds for weight gain

The Alfa-A range of fibre feeds are based on highly digestible alfalfa or a mixture with grass to produce higher calorie feeds. Alfa-A Oil, Dengie’s highest calorie fibre feed, provides as much energy as a conditioning mix or cube but with significantly less starch.

Healthy Tummy is a nutritionally complete, higher calorie fibre feed combining chopped and pelleted alfalfa with a rapeseed oil coating, vitamins, minerals, herbal blend and ADM Protexin In-Feed Formula to support digestive health and efficiency.

Dengie’s Pure Grass, Pure Grass Pellets and Meadow Grass with Herbs & Oilprovide highly digestible grasses cut at a young age for those that prefer a naturally sweeter ration or when grazing is sparse.

Cool, Condition & Shine is a high fibre fusion of soft chopped and pelleted fibres with a high oil content to promote condition without excitability.

Alfa-Beet combines highly digestible alfalfa and unmolassed sugar beet for a high fibre, higher calorie mash to aid weight gain.

Case Study: Rommel

Time and the right diet

• Elijah rehomed Rommel from Bransby Horses, the rescue and welfare charity based in Lincolnshire in January 2018, shortly after he arrived with the charity.
• Rommel is a 12 year old, 17.2hh Hanoverian Warmblood.
• Struggled to get him to eat anything upon arrival.

April 2018

• Ruled out gastric ulcers.
• Biggest challenge initially was getting Rommel to eat.
• Tempted him with soaked Pure Grass Pellets alongside Alfa-A Oil and Alfa-Beet.
• The ration was balanced with a performance vitamin and mineral supplement.
• “I began bringing him back into work slowly to build up the important top-line he was lacking and within a few weeks I could see changes in both his appetite and his waistline.”

November 2018

“We now know each other inside out, and have our routine mastered to help keep him calm and settled, but also how best to manage his weight with a natural, fibre-based diet. It’s not been the easiest path getting him to look how he does now, but I can’t thank the Dengie nutritionists enough who were always on hand to tweak things whenever we needed to.”

Summary

• Identify the underlying cause – teeth, worms and gastric ulcers are just some of the key issues that can affect how well a horse maintains weight.
• Increase the energy intake using digestible fibre sources and oil especially for those that are over-exuberant.

Test your Nutrition Knowledge!

It’s now time to put into practice what you have learnt about feeding for weight gain and condition. Answer all the questions below correctly to receive your Dengie Nutrition Certificate, plus you can earn TWO AMTRA Suitably Qualified Person (SQP) points. To ensure your points are awarded please make sure that you include your unique AMTRA number in the box provided with your details.