Get feed ready for spring

Offering low calorie, sugar and starch, high fibre feeds are key to managing the good-doer or laminitis prone horse.

Fibre is an essential part of your horse’s daily ration helping to promote normal, healthy gut function. Chewing fibre produces more saliva which is the way the horse naturally regulates stomach acidity. With spring around the corner, many owners who intend to restrict access to the new season’s grass will be looking at ways to ensure their horse still receives enough fibre in his diet but without all the extra calories, sugar and starch that could lead to weight gain and, potentially, even laminitis.

All-important fibre

There are various ways of providing fibre to compensate for restricted grass intake and how you go about it depends on your individual horse, especially if he’s prone to laminitis or a good-doer who puts on weight easily. You might choose to add extra fibre to your horse’s bucket feed or you could replace his normal forage completely with a specially formulated product that is likely to provide fewer calories and less starch and sugar than grass, hay or haylage.

Tasty and healthy

With this in mind, Dengie’s Meadow Lite with Herbs is a molasses-free blend of soft straw and grass with a light dressing of linseed and rapeseed oils to promote healthy skin and coat shine. High in fibre but naturally low in calories (5MJ/kg), sugar (3%) and starch (0.5%), it provides maximum chew time and is ideal for good-doers and those prone to laminitis. It also contains highly digestible pea hull fibre, postbiotics to support the gut microbiota for general health and wellbeing, plus cinnamon and thyme for added flavour.

As it contains no added vitamins and minerals, it can be fed as part of a bucket feed or as a complete or partial forage replacer alongside a vitamin and mineral supplement or balancer to ensure your horse has all the nutrients he needs. It’s also 100% natural, made with non-GM ingredients and free from molasses, alfalfa, cereals, preservatives and binders.

Reap the benefits

Dr Katie Williams MSc (Dist) RNutr, Technical and Product Development Manager at Dengie Horse Feeds, says, “Providing a range of fibre types in the diet is beneficial for digestive health, and Dengie Meadow Lite with Herbs contains three types – grass, straw and pea hull fibre.

“Feeding straw can be particularly beneficial for good-doers, and recent studies have shown that using straw as part of the ration – up to 50% – does not increase the risk of gastric ulcers, while being a valuable source of low-calorie fibre. In addition, the postbiotics (inanimate micro-organisms and/or their metabolites) in Dengie Meadow Lite with Herbs have a health benefit to the animal that consumes them, and, for horses, it’s important to use approved sources of these postbiotics to ensure that they are safe, efficacious and have a reduced risk of contamination by prohibited substances.”

TOP TIP
Straw is low in sugar, starch and calories. Feed up to 50%, as part of the forage ration, to offer a valuable source of low-calorie fibre and increase chew-time.

Case study

Emily switched to Dengie Meadow Lite with Herbs for Spud, her fussy feeding, 14-year old cob gelding.

“Although Spud is naturally a good-doer, he’s very fussy with his bucket feed and I’ve struggled to find a low-calorie feed he enjoys. Dengie Meadow Lite with Herbs is so soft and tasty, he licks his feed bowl clean.”

For personalised feeding advice or for managing the good-doer this spring call our friendly feedline on 01621 841188.

Click here to find out more about Dengie Meadow Lite with Herbs.