Some feed advice please for an out of condition elderly laminatic!

[raggydoll]

Hi,

I'm havent visited this board for quite a while - i keep trying to 'come back' but finding myself to busy to keep up! Anyway, i have now (just this week) gone part time in my employment to give myself more time to concentrate on my two girls which means that i can finally concentrate on getting my older girl Bim back in condition. She hasnt been in regular work for over 6 months now, having been ridden maybe once a fortnight for a steady hack out in that time. She is looking a little underweight - you can clearly see her ribs but inparticular she is quite under muscled. She is about to begin light schooling again and will be asked to work properly when hacking out, i will also start long reigning her again now. I realise the spring grass will be coming through soon so her weight will improve quickly soon but i'd really like to supplement her feed with something that will help her build the much needed muscle back up. So a little bit of background, shes a Haflinger about 20 years old and recently started to look her age, she has had laminitus in the past so i am always very conscious of this, she has arthritis but is on cortaflex and buteless for this and seems to be coping ok on this. She is currently being fed a large scoop of hifi lite and a small scoop (dry weight) of speedibeet + additional hay. She lives out 24/7.

Any feed recommendations greatly received :)

[puzzles]

A forage diet based on energy cources of fibre and oil, would best suit a veteran prone to Laminitis. I think what you are currently feeding soudns fine - Speedibeet and Hi-Fi Lite - but in order to promote optinum health and condition you need to add a feed balancer. A conditioning feed could provide too many calories and may not suit a Laminatic, but a feed balancer will provide all the essential vitamins, minerals and trace elements she needs without the unnecessary energy. I recommend Baileys Lo-Cal or Blue Chip Original/Pro (the last two being especially useful for veterans). Due to feed balancers being fed in such small volumes (typically 100g/100kg bodyweight) they are not energy sources and will not promote weight gain but good condition instead.
I would also add a digestive enhancer to her daily diet, such as Dengie XP Triple Action/Yea-Sacc, NAF Pink Powder (also a balancer) or Biotal Equine Gold. This will help to ensure that she makes the most of her diet, digests and utilises nutrients more efficiently and aid (in particular) the difficult and corrosive digestion of cellulose in fibrous foodstuffs.
I also recommend soaking her hay to reduce its nutritional value and energy content without compromising on vital fibre.
Light exercise will speed up her metabolism and help her to develop the correct muscle tone all round.

Good luck!

[martini55]

If she has no problems on the hay she is getting I wouldn't bother soaking it :) I agree that feeding a digestive supplement would be a good idea, considering she is underweight and also laminitic it could be beneficial to her. I personally feed yea-sacc, which you can get from either dengie or dodson and horrell (I think)... or if you are a fan of ebay there are a few shops on there that sell it.

If you are looking to add something more into her diet then have a look at spillers high fibre cubes or dodson and horrell high fibre nuts (basically the same thing but d+h tend to be cheaper).

Another thing you could maybe think about is feeding linseed.

[Pink's lady]

I'd try her on Alfa-Oil. High protien (good for muscle building) and high oil (good for weight gain) but no mollases or starches in it. Kalli (who is a potential mild laminitic) was getting bucket loads of it last winter.

I'd also try a probiotic - Pink Powder (by NAF) is probably the best and easily avalible. It's a good probiotic and a fed balancer all in one - she won't need any other vits and minerals.

[Skippys Mum]

My little shetland was in the same boat (but he's also got Cushings to be fair which can cause the lack of neck muscle etc). He was very very ribby but when I tried to increase his feed he got laminitis.

After reading lots of posts here, he is now on happy hoof, spillers high fibre cubes and pink powder. I can see a marked difference since he started on the pink powder so I would definately suggest giving it a go.

[raggydoll]

Thanks guys, thats really helpful :)