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| Feeding for energy?; No calming supplements needed here ;) | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: May 20 2010, 06:49 AM (631 Views) | |
| Sparky Boy | May 20 2010, 06:49 AM Post #1 |
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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Everyone wants to know what to give their horse to calm it down, well I have a different issue. This horse is super laid back. I mean REALLY laid back. When she's got some pep in her step, she's amazing to ride. Otherwise, you're pushing her forward and she has one canter speed - slow. I've tried Oats and ultra fire (not at the same time) with no improvement. Red Cell has been suggested before. I'm just now trying it. I did a blood panel last summer and everything was normal. One thing that works a little is keeping her in the stall the night before a show - no usual night turnout. Any other suggestions? She's a lovely horse, just needs a little pep sometimes. Edited by Sparky Boy, May 20 2010, 06:51 AM.
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| Witchy | May 21 2010, 08:19 AM Post #2 |
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You're BANNED!
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How was her Thyroid? Did you send the bloodwork to a place like Cornell, or did your vet just run it at his office? There is a huge difference in the results you get from just a quick blood panel and the one from a Teaching Hospital's lab. One of my ponies has a low thyroid and is on Thyrol L. It did help with his energy level. Nothing else did. |
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| Sparky Boy | May 21 2010, 09:04 AM Post #3 |
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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I'm pretty sure the vet ran it through his office. Are there any other symptoms with a low Thyroid? |
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| Ride'emCO | May 21 2010, 09:41 AM Post #4 |
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Off visiting Candy Cave, be right back.
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Sparky Boy, this http://www.petplace.com/horses/hypothyroidism-in-horses/page1.aspx is a pretty good, basic article on hypothyroidism in horses. You don't actually have to register to read the article, just click "Close Window" when the registration box pops up. What is your mare's work schedule (how often, how long, how physically taxing) and what are you feeding her daily? What kind of weight is she in, and condition (i.e., good weight, plenty of muscle, heavy but little muscle, lean and mostly muscle)? |
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| Sparky Boy | May 21 2010, 10:02 AM Post #5 |
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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I just read an article on THE HORSE website that says Hypothyroidism is very difficult to detect in horses and treating a normal thyroid horse for it can actually create a lot of the symptoms you think you're trying to cure. From the pet place article, she really doesn't exhibit any of the signs of a thyroid problem. That's good. The mare is 6 yr old TB/Han cross 2qts twice daily 11% Legends pellet Free choice hay while inside, pasture at night. Might be carrying a few extra LBS. but I like them like that. All the horses on my farm are like that actually She really looks great and is COVERED in dapples. Her work schedule is pretty light. Maybe two 30 minute rides during the week and then show on the weekend or regular ride at home again. At home she's pretty pokey so I don't school her too much there. At lessons or new places, she's sometimes got some pep so that's good. Here's a little foray we did in eventing this spring. Edited by Sparky Boy, May 21 2010, 10:09 AM.
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| Ride'emCO | May 21 2010, 10:59 AM Post #6 |
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Off visiting Candy Cave, be right back.
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Honestly, it may be that she's not getting ridden enough. She might have more endurance, and get less tired, if she's used to more work. I mean, if you only ran 30 minutes twice a week you might get pretty tired, then if you have to go run 2-3 times that much on the weekend, you'd be exhausted! I put my gelding back into work this fall after a year off - he'd get pretty tired halfway through a lesson and when he's tired, he's grumpy! We started off slowly, but when he got up to 5 rides per week (two 60 minute lessons, one 20-45 minute training ride, and two 20-30 minute hacks with lots of trotting) he stopped getting tired. And, when he went to his first horse show in 18 months two weeks ago, he was a rock star! He still napped in his stall between his morning and afternoon classes but he was never a SLUG.
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| Ride'emCO | May 21 2010, 11:00 AM Post #7 |
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Off visiting Candy Cave, be right back.
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p.s. - she's LOVELY!!!
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| Sparky Boy | May 21 2010, 11:24 AM Post #8 |
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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Ugh, yeah, I'd thought of that too. She's such a slug most days at home that it's a chore to ride sometimes. It will be difficult for me time-wise to ride much more than that. I might see Mr. Trainer next week. I'm going to see what he thinks about the situation as well. Thanks. I her too.
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| CDE Driver | May 22 2010, 09:27 AM Post #9 |
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It'll be an adventure! We're going on an adventure!
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Well, I will say that we are in a totally different equine sport. I thought we were closer to eventing but found out that we go a lot farther than the the eventers go! My horse has to be fit to go pretty strong for 16ish kilometers. And he is pretty much a rocket ship, so he is on calming supplements and fit, fit, fit! The previous horse I competed was laid back and would really rather take a stroll in the park than really get up and go. What I found with him was condition, condition, condition! I teach a gal that has a Haflinger that was really always kind of a slug and struggled making the times on the course. This year I outlined a very clear conditioning program for her (that she grumbled about). At our first event of the year he had energy to burn, was very forward and had no problems in the vet check. I also put him on a fat supplement (Nutrena's Empower). She says he has never looked better or has had so much go! I know you said that you can only work her twice a week, but it does sound like fitness may be an issue. If she is not fit she sure won't feel like going the extra mile You may also put her on a 14% feed. I think Smartpak has energy supplements as well. She is lovely, good luck! |
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| Sparky Boy | May 23 2010, 05:56 AM Post #10 |
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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I really wish I has somewhere on the farm or close by where we could just go for long trots and canters - outside of the ring. I feel like doing that in the ring would just irritate her. If I don't see any improvement on the Red Cell, I might try the smart energy next. |
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| jn4jenny | May 24 2010, 07:37 AM Post #11 |
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Is the meadow on fire?
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I'm sure I'll get slammed for these suggestions, but corn and barley are both higher in energy than oats. Corn would not be my choice for a horse with metabolic issues (insulin resistant, for example) but it's safe in small-to-medium quantities for the average healthy horse. Some horses also pep up on alfalfa since it's so high ion calories, so switching out some of her hay for alfalfa (or her Legends for alfalfa pellets) might be worth a try. I might get slammed for this too, but while your mare looks absolutely LOVELY, carrying around even a little extra weight can make a horse sluggish. Think about how you feel when you gain 5 or 10 extra pounds! If she dropped perhaps 0.5 on the body score scale, she might feel lighter on her feet. I can sympathize with the "no time to ride more" issue, but if you can spare even 20 minutes on another day of the week, try long-lining or free longeing. They require far less equipment than traditional riding or longeing so the pre-and-post-ride routine is much faster, you avoid the joint stress of traditional longeing, and most horses enjoy it. Use cavaletti, raised poles, and free jumping to keep things interesting and make it a better workout. With unlimited time, the best conditioning is to walk under saddle, preferably up and down hills. For hours and hours. But very few of us have that kind of time! Edited by jn4jenny, May 24 2010, 07:39 AM.
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| Sparky Boy | May 24 2010, 10:15 AM Post #12 |
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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I think the other issue with riding her more at home is the boredom of being in the ring. She's super smart and figured out pretty quickly that going in circles isn't much fun
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| Delia | May 24 2010, 10:17 AM Post #13 |
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You're BANNED!
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My 4-year old is like your mare. He's a TB, but the quietest.horse.ever. Before I had to stop riding him a few weeks ago due to an abscess from hell, for the past couple of months I really focused on getting him more fit. It's a challenge b/c I work so only can ride one night during the week and then Saturday/Sunday. Plus, since he's green I don't want to drill him in the ring constantly and make him sour. One day a week I would do LOTS of trot work, making sure to really engage his back end -- lots of lengthening and shortening, and trotting poles and raised cavaletti. We had worked up to about 30 minutes of trot, with very little walking, and then I'd do a bit of canter to let him stretch. Another day I would flat him in our field, which has a few decent hills. So he got to be out of the ring, learn to balance himself, and I wasn't on him for very long b/c of the hills -- probably 30 minutes total of mostly trotting or cantering up hill and walking down hill. And then the third day we'd usually jump little jumps or courses, with lots of cantering. After a few weeks his fitness really started to improve. While I can't say that he necessarily was more energetic, it wasn't nearly such hard work to keep him going forward. And when I'd ask him for some collection, he was developing the strength through his back to carry himself and shorten his stride, rather than drop behind my leg in a heap. So like others have said, I'd focus on trying to get your mare more fit, although bumping her up to a 14% protein feed might also help you in the energy department. |
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| Sparky Boy | May 24 2010, 05:13 PM Post #14 |
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Thomas H. Cruise!
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Here's something I've thought about. What if it's a mare thing? I'm noticing in our proofs from shows lately that she's got a pissy look on her face a lot. Wonder if it's something regumate would help with? I've never used it before though. |
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| headlesshorseman | May 25 2010, 06:18 AM Post #15 |
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You're BANNED!
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I use Red Cell for my old man....BUT I've heard OVER USE can cause liver problems...so GO easy on it... My vet loves.... He said that this would give him some energy....I've not tried it yet..I like the more protein suggestion....14% -16% SHOULD give her more energy Good luck... HH |
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She really looks great and is COVERED in dapples.
Rosaryville.jpg (22.28 KB)

He said that this would give him some energy....I've not tried it yet..
7:11 AM Jul 11