ridecamp@endurance.net: High protein feeds

High protein feeds

Cheryl Newbanks (horsetrails@inficad.com)
Thu, 4 Sep 1997 21:05:38 -0700 (MST)

Me again:}

Next question is about high protein for high performance horses. Blue
started running low on energy when I started working him on getting his
heart rate up and such. So I increased his feed and it helped for a while,
but once again he hit a plateu, this is a very fit horse with resting heart
rate of 27-28 and great P&R's after a big mountain pass. None of the other
horses heart rates are ever near him at our little P&R checks at the top of
the mountains and I have a hard time getting him over 44 bpm. Anyway, I
decided that since I don't feed alfalfa much, less the 50% of his ration,
that maybe I should get a better feed for him so I found some sweet feed
with a 16% protein ratio. He was a little spooky today, which is rare for
him since he is very bomb proof, so the new feed may be doing that to him,
but I didn't see a remarkable improvement in his energy level. He gets the
following 2x's a day, about 5lbs of hay, 5 lbs of lite pellets and 3 lbs of
the sweet feed I mentioned with about a 3/4's cup of corn oil added. His
weight is good, though I just got it up to where I like to see my horses in
the past month. He tends to be a hard keeper and was thin when we bought
him last january. I put the weight on him with rice bran and come to think
of it his engergy level was pretty good on the rice bran also. But the
stuff is so expensive.

His work schedule is 4 days a week or every other day, with 2 days back to
back. He does about 6 miles each work day with about 2 miles of it in
mountain and hill climbing. We are currently trotting at a slow jog about 3
miles of the trail also, walking the hills and short breaks at the walk. He
recovers great too. I started conditioning him seriously in June but he had
a lot of kid base miles on him before that (kid base miles means a lot of
long walking trail rides and gymkhanas). I am planning on doing his first 15
miler this weekend. He did it before I was seriously conditioning him (we
got sorta lost:}) and he really ran out of gas that time. He is 10 years
old and in good weight, well cared for and healthy looking.

Any ideas gang?

Cheryl Newbanks
~~^** Just In Time Ranch
~~}_ _~~ /\| Buckeye, AZ
( )__, ) ~ horsetrails@inficad.com
// \\
\\ //
** **

Home Events Groups Rider Directory Market RideCamp Stuff