Grain thoughts?

Hey guys My horse is not on any grain currently but I've started to work him more regularly so I would like to put him on grain to supplement his grass and I was wondering what grains you guys like. There is so much out there that I can't decide haha . My friend swears by strategy. Is there anybody that feeds this to their horses? I've looked it up on the internet and it sounds good but I would like your actual opinions :)

Is your horse only on pasture? Have you had the grass tested to see what is/isn't in it? Will you be transitioning to hay for winter - if so, what type of hay will you feed? What is his current work load and will it be increasing or decreasing more than it has already? Has his condition changed with the recent increase in work? What is his current body condition? What is your goal in adding a feed to his program?

Right now he is on pasture but we are giving them hay to because its so dry that the grass is hardly growing. I just moved closer to home so I was riding him 2 times a week but I will be able to ride at least 4 if not 5. I plan on showing next year so we will be working quite a bit. We feed an alfalfa timothy mix. I Just started riding him more this past week. Im taking it slow and going to build up as we go. He is a bit of a pasture puff right now. He isnt in bad shape because he runs around with my 3 year old a lot but he is a little chunky. I would just like to make sure that he is getting all the nutrients as his work load increases.

When people feed grain is it becuase it has more calories per weight, or is more protein? What IS the reason to feed grain? If the hay is good, won't just giving more hay make the horse keep on the weight? If that was your concern.

I have no experience really with designing a horse's nutritional program. We only feed alfalfa and the horse's are on pasture 24/7. (I wish we had timothy or alf/timothy mix, though.) So, my question is one of genuine curiosity, based on genuine ignorance.

Haha that's pretty much why im asking to. I guess my question could have been should I put him on grain since his riding schedule will be quite a bit different or should I keep him where he is at for now and see how he does?

If your horse is losing weight(or losing too much if he was overweight) on just hay/grass, then you may need to feed extra calories to maintain their condition. If not, you don't need to. All most healthy horses in light work need is enough decent roughage and a good nutritional supp to ensure a balanced diet.

There are generally healthier low starch/sugar, high fibre alternatives to grain too, such as chaff, alfalfa, beet pulp, soy hulls, etc, which I would usually choose over grain.