feeding straight cereals

IrishDQ

IrishDQ

New Member
Mar 14, 2006
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Ireland
Does anyone actually feed their horses the old fashioned way, like on just plain oats/barley/maize or whatever? :confused: I suppose that's all horses were fed on before all the ready-made feeds were invented. so I'm just a bit curious to hear if anyone still does! :D I know oats can make ponies a tad crazy sometimes though lol. :p
 
I would have thought most people here do. We do.
Never have any ill effects but then we have 24/7 turnout. I think horses only get really 'fizzy' on straights if they don't get turnout/enough excercise.

I've been on 4/5 yards in my area and they all did. The do feed mixes aswell but usually for a specific purpose.
 
i used to feed barley but my cob actually does much better over the winter (he's prone to weight loss) on a fibre diet of hi-fi and speedibeet. The little one used to get barley but it made him itch like crazy :(
 
I used to feed my cob on rolled oats with sugarbeet and she kept nice condition and had just the right amount of energy last winter.

She's not doing much work at the moment and she's a bit overweight and has turned into a loopy nutter so won't be feeding her on them this winter!
 
I know of people that do feed straight cereals. My friend feed her Tb flaked barley for helping with his weight.

I cant do it as Kia is cereal intolerant to mixes so I wonder what he would be like on straights :eek::D

Nikki xxxx :)
 
never, lots of research has been done in america linking it to glucose and insulin increase just after a grain meal, and they think it's linked to all sorts of problems

after reading a few of these articles i've sworn off grain
 
I do. Ad lib hay and straight oats, half a liter a day split into two meals. Plus lots of turnout. The only thing extra is a mineral supplement thrown in once a day.
where I live all these ready mixed feeds have only started to crop up in the last five years. Oats and hay is what is included in my livery arrangement, so most horses get just that. My horse does just fine on her diet (checked by blood tests every year or so) so I never bothered to buy any ready made mix. I also think they are quite expensive.
 
Thanks for the info. :) Rips, all of the yards I've been at have fed the ready made feeds like cool n easy, although one guy used to feed the soaked sugar beet cubes sometimes and he had a chest freezer full of grain, I never took any notice of what sort of grain it was though lol. Maybe it's just me but I find all the huge variety of feeds available a bit (understatement!) confusing lol.
 
I do cos the cattle get straight grain and my ponies feed comes straight off the pile of grain bruised for them. (Yes I am careful to check OH hasn't thrown minerals or anything else onto it). It does turn feeding into an art not a science - I have to judge how much barley or oats is in the mix and adjust his feed accordingly. I can also say that bruised wheat is OK for my Highland Pony in small amounts.
I do know if i have have feed a bit much - he will canter everywhere instead of the usual amble (or maybe that is when I get it right.....)
 
We have experimented a lot over the years but current feed is unmollased but supplemented sugar beet, feed merchants own brand mix and added micronised barley for those who need added condition.

Star of yard however has special diet of expensive mix specially for horses prone to choking/tying up.

Only caution I would add is to make sure that your horse is getting enough vitamins and minerals if you are feeding all or part straights.
 
Viri gets 3 scoops of oats per day split into three feeds, plus mineral supplements. More when he is in hard work. It is the same diet all our horses back home have been on. Never have had any problems with the oats causing fizzyness, it is just a matter of finding the right amount for the type of horse compared to the exercises.

Nina x
 
so for example, could you feed say, a scoop of oats + a scoop of soaked sugar beet x2 per day with hay in autumn/winter with some sort of vitamin supplement instead of a ready mixed feed?
would it matter if you mixed the feeds?
or could you even supplement a ready mixed feed with some extra oats for more energy or some extra sugar beet if the horse lost weight easily, or would that mess up the balance of the ready mixed feed? hopefully that makes sense lol. Also, does anyone feed maize at all? Thanks!
 
Well, I am not too sure about these different ready feeds you guys have here in UK, but the ones we have in Finland, I have mixed them with oats. Not sure I would mix oats and sugarbeet so readily though, as that gives the horse quite a high sugar intake and that can cause fizziness!

If your horse is a poor doer during winter time, I wouldn't be upping the energy intake so much as I would be increasing the fibre intake. So feed that has as much fibre as possible plus as much hay as possible. That way you also don't have to worry about horse getting cockoo in the head.

Nina x
 
Okay, thanks! I suppose I'll have to wait and see what sort of horse I get so I can figure out what sort of diet will suit him/her best. Thanks again for the advice!
 
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