Simple systems feed

[No_Angel]

Anyone feed it? What are your views on it? Which products do you use?

[Bay Mare]

Been feeding it for ages and LOVE IT :D

Saff is currently on Enduro Complete mixed with Lucienuts (soaked) with additional Linseed (from SS), CalMag and 1/4 ration of TS Anti-Lam (she gets too sparky on any more than 1/4 ration).

For an 'extra' feed she has soaked Lucienuts which I used to mix with soaked Meadowbix (grass) but they haven't got any at the mo so I'm going to try their Timothy Cobs which are timothy grass with a bit of lucerne added.

She also likes Ruff Stuff and Greengold :)

Look out for the "Bucket to Barrow" lectures given by Jane Van Lennep from Simple Systems. There's one in Berkshire on 27th April for anyone who's interested :D

http://www.enlightenedequitation.com/ee/boards/index.php?topic=18874.0

[Hanchen5]

Fab stuff!! Goodie my OAP TB is on it, hes always been a poor doer and every winter its been a battle to get him to put weight on and then keep it on.. he put on over 30kg very quickly when he was switched onto SS... He has 1kg grass nuts, 1kg lucienuts and 1kg purabeet in the evenings.. all in a trug and he loves it. Hes done so well i was able to cut his food back this winter and i have just cut it back again so hes on half rations... I think he looks fab for his age :cool: SS were very helpfull as well through lots of emails from me asking for advice!

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b8/Hanchen5/DSC00064.jpg

[Sienna Star]

Started using it last year after reading posts about it on this site and i am completely converted! I feed green gold and total eclipse to my 4 boys, 2 are welsh sec a yearling colts, 1 is a shetland x welsh yearling colt and the other a 5yrd old sec d, all look really healthy and the foals are filling out well on it. I ran out of greengold last week so had to buy a bag of dengie alfa-a and i was shocked at the amount of molasses in it :eek: , there were literally lumps of the stuff (not to mention the mould inhibitors and preservatives!)

[evilgiraffe]

Ooo, this is very encouraging - my share's owner has decided to swap her two on to simple systems - has just taken delivery of the first batch of stuff! As soon as they've finished what they're on currently they'll be changing over - will be interesting to see what happens. Horses are very different - Trig is good doer ISH-type who loves his food, and Boycie is TB poor doer, also OAP and has just had tendon injury so will be off work for next 3-6 months :(

Will try to remember to report back on their progress!

[Yann]

I like the concept but having to buy in bulk is a pain and you can feed a diet along the same lines with off the shelf stuff. Some horses can be reluctant to eat it too, especially at first, or if they also have access to good grazing. I also don't buy the 'addicted to sugars' sales pitch either, my horses still get excited about thier high fibre low sugar dinners :)

[No_Angel]

thanks for replies everyone:)
Ive decided to not feed shay chaff anymore as it seems to contribute to his coughing, he loves sugarbeet but isnt keen on ceryns fibre beet so im looking for alternatives.
I like the sound of the blue bag grass nuts and the enduro complete, tho it sounds as if it has chopped lucerne in it, which might not be too good.

Do you have to soak everything, or can the grass nuts be fed dry as it says they can be used in feed balls?

[Bay Mare]

No, you don't have to soak everything. I soak the lucienuts/meadowbix as a feed but use lucienuts 'dry' for clicker training.

The people at SS are great at answering your questions and are excellent to deal with.

I had to wean Saff onto the SS stuff but it didn't take long before she was loving it :D Like any change in feed you need to do it slowly.

I did feed purabeet for a couple of weeks coming out of winter because she had lost a bit of condition but have stopped it again now as she was putting on too much condition! Apart from that, though, she's maintained her weight much better than on any other feeds on the market.

With regards to lucerne, there is a theory that supplementing with Mg eradicates the issues that some people have with lucerne. We didn't have a problem so I'm not speaking from experience, just what other people have said :)

[Iron Maiden]

Another vote for SS from me, P is looking really magnificent at the mo but then she's been looking good all winter on it. She's got bags of energy but for a youngster is incredibly level headed, she doesn't seem to hot up at all. Her coat condition is especially improved compared to how she was when I got her. She gets lucienuts (soaked), greengold & linseed, I have also given her eclipse recovery to give her a bit of a boost (she had antibiotics for a cough a while back) & it's seemed to work.