Loki (9yrs, roughly 1200lbs) gets two pounds Strategy, 2 flakes of quality prairie hay, and green, lush pasture daily (weather permitting) for at least 30 minuets, up to 2 hours.
Obviously as a working horse he will need more grain to make up for lost energy. But how much more? What other feeds would you recommend? With Sammy, my rescue, and Red (whom I am in the process of selling) I cannot afford to feed him ONLY Strategy at the moment. Later, yes, when Red is sold and Sam is at a reasonable weight level and not eating more than Loki and Red combined.
He cannot be on anything like sweet feed. It's like giving a hyper active kid a sack of sugar and a 12-pack of energy drinks, then telling him to scarf it. I know this because against my wishes a past stable gave him sweet feed and oats even though I SPECIFICALLY told them ONLY Strategy (two pounds) since he was not working at all. I swear he could have floated he was so hyper.
I've began light work, few minuets of lunging, desentizing. Right now it's only every few days as it rains quite a bit, and often times when it's not it's bitterly cold.
Still, I need to re-examine his feed intake and prepare to give him more as I increase his work load from light to moderate, and possibly even to heavy as he goes to training for a refreshers course in 'How NOT to give your rider a heart attack and ride CALMLY out past the barn'
Suggestions...? Loki is a higher-energy horse and is built more like a QH or a Paint than a Foxtrotter. More stockier.
I would like to keep him that way without him turning into Super-Rocket Horse X-Treme Second Edition (new AND improved!)
Obviously as a working horse he will need more grain to make up for lost energy. But how much more? What other feeds would you recommend? With Sammy, my rescue, and Red (whom I am in the process of selling) I cannot afford to feed him ONLY Strategy at the moment. Later, yes, when Red is sold and Sam is at a reasonable weight level and not eating more than Loki and Red combined.
He cannot be on anything like sweet feed. It's like giving a hyper active kid a sack of sugar and a 12-pack of energy drinks, then telling him to scarf it. I know this because against my wishes a past stable gave him sweet feed and oats even though I SPECIFICALLY told them ONLY Strategy (two pounds) since he was not working at all. I swear he could have floated he was so hyper.
I've began light work, few minuets of lunging, desentizing. Right now it's only every few days as it rains quite a bit, and often times when it's not it's bitterly cold.
Still, I need to re-examine his feed intake and prepare to give him more as I increase his work load from light to moderate, and possibly even to heavy as he goes to training for a refreshers course in 'How NOT to give your rider a heart attack and ride CALMLY out past the barn'
Suggestions...? Loki is a higher-energy horse and is built more like a QH or a Paint than a Foxtrotter. More stockier.
I would like to keep him that way without him turning into Super-Rocket Horse X-Treme Second Edition (new AND improved!)