OTTB Won't Gain Weight

This was my horse's diet last year.

Morning - 2 flakes hay
4 quarts grain (Blue Seal Performance LS (low starch) )
Fat supplement (tried about 8 different ones with no results)

Midday Snack
5 lbs alfalfa hay cubes
2 pounds rice bran
3 lbs beet pulp
(I wet it all up and let is soak into a nice mushy mash. He gobbled it up like a piggy.)

Dinner - Same as morning.

With this food, my horse remained a typical ribby TB.

Over the winter I found a place that feeds free choice hay. I decided to give it a try, ditched everything except the grain and the SmartGain fat supplement that ended up being the one that actually seemed to work. Despite a VERY cold winter, he gained about 200 lbs.

We left that place in April and now he's at a barn with not free choice, but amply hay, and very lush grass that they have access to about 4 hours a day. They didn't feed Blue Seal, so we switched a Poulin equivalent, Equi-Pro Performax. So now his diet is:

2 lbs Poulin morning and night, SmartGain supplement, hay & grass. The grass was the real key for him. Within 2 weeks of being there, we started seeing more weight gain. He's almost to where I'm going to ask to cut back on his grain a little. I didn't think that would ever happen.

Without the availability of grass, maybe you can substitute soaked alfalfa hay cubes? I'm thinking that would be the closest equivalent to grass. I do agree with others that sweet feed can overstoke a TB's furnace and they end up burning off calories standing still. Hope that helps.

Where are you boarding? I'm right outside Plant City in Dover. Ice is also on a dry lot :/

ETA: Looking at your pictures, I've seen that stall before haha...are you at Hidden Meadows?

When I'm all finished working out his new diet plan, here's what it will look like:

AM:
-3 flakes T&A
-3/4 scoop (about 2 1/2 pounds) Manna Senior
-1/4 scoop Max E Glo (stabilized rice bran)

PM:
-2 flakes T&A
-3/4 scoop Manna Senior
-1/4 scoop Max E Glo

I might add in some alfalfa cubes, but he's doing really well on the extra flake, so if I can add in the extra work and he keeps well enough, I won't push it!

Switch over to whatever feed you choose gradually over about a week, mixing in 3/4 sweet feed, 1/4 new feed, then 1/2 and 1/2, and so on. Anything that's high in fat, and maybe if you're working him a lot, some protien for stamina and to help him build muscle.

Turn out is key. Can he have hay while turned out?

Yes, he's at Hidden Meadows.

So this is the feeding schedule that you recommend?

I've been reading about the dif. Nutrition requirements of horses, but am having a hard time figuring out how to translate the requirements into practicality. LOL

Not w/o feeding the whole herd he's out with...something that is NOT in our budget.

I would look for a new boarding stable that feeds hay while the horses are truned out, or provides a private paddock or run for turn out. Horses should not go more than 2-3 hours without hay in front of them. Going longer can cause ulcers and behavioral issues.

I like to feed hay at least three times a day. Some grass hay for "lunch" to give them something to munch on if you're feeding alfalfa or alfalfa mix for morning and night feeding.

I'd say go with whatever your barn goes with. If they feed three times a day, break everything up into 3 daily feedings. Where I'm at we do twice a day feeding, so that's what I've broken it up into. I think its better to just go with whats already in place, rather than request something out of the normal routine, and not have it done 100% of the time.

What are your plans for your guy? Unless he's going to be a professional show horse or a work horse, he won't be classified as "heavy" work, but if you're going to put him through professional training, it might be "medium". Most trail horses, weekend show horses, etc do well on a "light work" feed regimen. That should help as far as feeding breaks down.

I can't help you on nutrition, I know just about nothing, just what I've picked up from here!

In our area, that's not practical. I don't know anywhere around our area that has facilities AND provides grass/round bales, and I've been looking since I bought Ice! Round bales way too expensive to come by in the summer, and hay is also pretty costly. My board shot up a whopping 75 dollars just because I added an extra 1 flake onto his meal!

As far as plans for him, I honestly don't know. I'd like to be able to pleasure ride, but beyond that I'm not sure. I'd also like to get into dressage. I had a taste of it while in the Pony Club as a teen, and loved it. Beyond that, see what he's good at and go as far as we can go together. If that's showing...great! If it's pleasure, I'm happy with that too.

I didn't say round bales. Just feed hay three times a day. You can use a small mesh hay net in the stall to extend eating time.