Winter is often the most costly time to keep a horse as they use more bedding in the stable and tend to eat more especially if they are a poor doer. There are ways though to save some money without having to compromise on quality or doing the best for your horse.
Buy In Bulk
This first top tip is especially beneficial if you are feeding a whole yard full of horses. You can often streamline your feeding regime by having one high calorie and one low calorie feed and mixing the two to get the right balance for each horse. As long as you don’t mix straights with nutritionally balanced feeds you won’t be messing up the balance of nutrients in the ration.
High quality fibre based horse feeds such as alfalfa and sugar beet are a great way of providing energy for work as well as contributing towards the horses total fibre requirement. This can often result in removing the need for any cereal-based feeds providing that a mineral and vitamin supplement or a balancer is fed alongside.
Cut Down On Supplements
Many diets tend to have at least one unnecessary supplement. If you are unsure on which one to remove or whether you could cut down on them altogether, speak to an equine nutritionist who can advise you on your horse individually. Usually, lots of the extra things that owners buy as supplements often overlap. They also tend to have a little bit of everything in, as opposed to enough of anything, so in fact they aren’t doing much good. Look for a registered nutritionist and explain that you are looking to streamline your ration and they will be happy to give you an objective assessment of the ration. One phone call or email could save you hundreds of pounds over the year.
Get More From Fibre
Horses can get more nutrition from forage when given a digestive enhancing supplement so less horse feed is required to promote or maintain weight gain. Yeast, has shown to help horses to get more out of the fibre they eat, which is particularly helpful during the winter months.
Share With Your Friend
Why not buy a large tub of the vitamin and mineral supplement you use to capitalise on the financial benefits of buying in bulk but share it with a friend so you don’t have to pay for it all yourself. You both get a better cost per kg but can share the up front cost of a bigger tub.
Weigh Your Horse and Your Horse Feed
Horses lose weight if they eat too little. By weighing your horse you will know exactly how much horse feed they need, so you don’t over-feed and spend more than you should. Additionally, by weighing the horse feed, you know exactly what you are using.
Hopefully these top tips will give you some food for thought when it comes to feeding your horse this winter. If you would like further advice, don’t hesitate to contact an equine nutritionist.