Ridecamp: Re: [RC] Alfalfa Cubes - Vet Opinion, Please -- Susan?

In a message dated 6/4/02 1:21:53 PM Pacific Daylight Time, 
suendavid@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:

<< 
   Ideally,
 I always prefer that a horse only get feeds he's accustomed to at
 home---but, horses are odd critters and invariably want whatever the
 neighbor is getting (which, of course is always better than his own).  So
 the very arbitrary rule of thumb I suggest is that eating virtually any at a
 check is better than eating nothing, and so if he really insists, a horse
 can have 15 minutes or so of eating 'different' forage, or maybe 5-10
 minutes of 'different' concentrates.  After that, I'd prefer they go for a
 walk and a drink and then see if they'll eat their own regular feed instead
 of doing the Base Camp Vegetarian Tours.
  >>

For horses lucky enough to be on pasture, it's essentially impossible to 'not 
change the feed program' for a ride.   I am currently managing this by 
feeding my pasture horses a daily ration of beet pulp (quantity varies by 
time of year and quality of pasture) with one cup (about 1/3 pound) of 
alfalfa pellets and one cup of grain.   I add their daily general supplement 
to this and wet it all into a mooshy mess.   

Then at rides, I have free choice grass hay, and a similar mooshy mash of 
BP/alfalfa pellets/grain - all they want at vet checks.   My 
no-evidence-whatsoever basis for this is that feeding even small amounts of 
the BP/pellets/grain mess on a daily basis keeps them geared up in some way 
to digest it more readily at rides.   Susan - whadaya think?

pat farmer

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