Feeding Guide

Feeding Guide
The following chart will assist you in choosing the correct feed for your horse; if there is not a suitable Horseheath product a cost-effective alternative will be suggested.

Base Feed: Green leafy material - primarily grass as grazing, hay or haylage. Horses all need to eat at very least 1.5% of their bodyweight as dry fibre to maintain healthy gut function & in practice will eat 2- 4%.

Your horse fit & well & performing satisfactorily? No need for extra feed - save your money & stop it getting too fat!

Your Horse Overweight? See advice in Nutrition Problems section.

Your horse resting/in light work: just needs a top-up ? Feed a long-fibre product e.g. chopped straw, grass or alfalfa chaff or similar, to encourage chewing. Add low-energy high fibre nuts or balancer or mineral & vitamin supplement e.g.Hors-E-Vit™ or coarse mix e.g. Horseheath AntiLam™ Most horses in normal condition can tolerate some sugar in their diet; ponies less so. If too fat it should be avoided as far as possible.

Your horse in medium/heavy work? Feed products with a higher nutrient density e.g. Horseheath BodyBuilda™ and/or Acceler>8™, or Lam-E Balancer™ (for those requiring minimal starch & sugar).

Your horse doing speed work? e.g. S/J, Fast Driving, Racing, Polo etc…BodyBuilda™ as base feed plus Acceler>8™, LinGold™, Cod liver oil, Cooked Linseed, Full-Fat Soya, rolled oats, Hors-E-Vit™, electrolytes, as required.

Your horse underweight & thin? See Condition and Weight Loss.

Breeding and Developing Stock Diets

Horses	Ponies	Stallions	Foals	Yearlings	Developers	Veterans

Stud Balancer or BodyBuilda™ and Hors-E-Vit™ for last 2-3 months of pregnancy & during lactation.	Stud Balancer (with caution - may be too rich for some); or BodyBuilda™ and Hors-E-Vit™ for last 2-3 months of pregnancy (native breeds).	Stud Balancer or BodyBuilda™ or whatever you can get them to eat!	Stud Balancer or BodyBuilda™ and Acceler>8™ pre and post weaning.	BodyBuilda™ and Hors-E-Vit™.	BodyBuilda™; or if condition good, a cheap nut or mix, with chaff or chopped alfalfa or dried grass and a little mineral/vitamin supplement if necessary.	BodyBuilda™ is very effective in maintaining the older horse's condition. If teeth are a problem, feed BodyBuilda™ with generous amounts of soaked sugar beet and extra chaff. This combination has kept several toothless geriatric ponies alive and in good condition for a number of years (see Emma Chamberlain testimonial). Cooked Linseed, LinGold™ or Full-Fat Soya may also be required for condition. Healthy joints & flexibility can be maintained with Lingold™ Mobility or TurmeGold™.
Click HERE for advice about diet-related problems such as laminitis; condition; behaviour & temperament, gut disorders such as colic, scour (loose droppings) & ulcers; Cushing’s disease; skin & coat problems e.g hives & itching; cracked hooves; EMS (equine metabolic syndrome); PSSM Polysaccharide Storage Myopathy - Azoturia - “Tying-up”; neuro-muscular disorders such as shivers, etc.