Hobbs on the right & his pal Henry on the left
I was getting really excited about entering my first show with Hobbs (!!!) even though it IS an indoor dressage show. (Indoor AND dressage, you've got to be kidding me, we need to get out more)
I went to the barn today and I'm really enjoying this possible bond that Hobbs and I are developing. It's hard to see things clearly up front but he seems really eager to come and hang out with me lately. He knickers at me and meanders over to the gate and waits there for me. When I got Hobbs I was SO excited about bonding with him. I have always had a real hard time riding other peoples horses, it makes me feel like I'm the worst rider ever, and I feel like I don't ride that well when I don't know any past and can't foresee much future. But I've kind of forgotten about building trust between the two of us, because it just seems to be happening.
Back to us walking in. I unrugged Hobbs the other day and I noticed him dropping a little weight but I didn't think too much of it since round bales aren't out yet and I have been struggling with his weight here and there. Although today I took his rugs off and noticed it wasn't getting any better. I started going into a panic and I felt like a horrible mum and I couldn't even ride because it made me so annoyed and upset.
Prompt call to mom - it goes mostly like this 'can you google that for me?'
My past two horses have been the worlds easiest keepers. It was more about what NOT to feed them, than what to feed them. Hearty eaters more prone to hay belly so much so that they might of been faking pregnancy. I never really realized how little I knew about horse nutrition until I started doing a little research and felt the struggle personally. I still don't think I know that much, but I think I made a good couple of decisions to try and help Hobbs gain some weight and become more chunky. Which is funny because I've always enjoyed my horses more on the slimmer sexier looking side.
My changes are as follows...
- Take out sweet feed - we had him at a great weight in the summer as he has lovely large fields, and wanted more energy. This didn't really help.
- Add one more pound of Beet Pulp (No molasses)
- Continue with 1/2 pound of Fat n' Fiber
- Add one pound of Purina TRIMAX (ultium)
- Add 1/4 pound of Rice Bran
- Add cocosoya oil
Hopefully this will start adding a little bit of weight over time. I was thinking of adding alfalfa cubes - about a pound - just free to have in a bucket in his stall, but I need to do a little more research there. Off to the Google to rack my brain some more about all things nutrition.
I went to the barn today and I'm really enjoying this possible bond that Hobbs and I are developing. It's hard to see things clearly up front but he seems really eager to come and hang out with me lately. He knickers at me and meanders over to the gate and waits there for me. When I got Hobbs I was SO excited about bonding with him. I have always had a real hard time riding other peoples horses, it makes me feel like I'm the worst rider ever, and I feel like I don't ride that well when I don't know any past and can't foresee much future. But I've kind of forgotten about building trust between the two of us, because it just seems to be happening.
Back to us walking in. I unrugged Hobbs the other day and I noticed him dropping a little weight but I didn't think too much of it since round bales aren't out yet and I have been struggling with his weight here and there. Although today I took his rugs off and noticed it wasn't getting any better. I started going into a panic and I felt like a horrible mum and I couldn't even ride because it made me so annoyed and upset.
Prompt call to mom - it goes mostly like this 'can you google that for me?'
My past two horses have been the worlds easiest keepers. It was more about what NOT to feed them, than what to feed them. Hearty eaters more prone to hay belly so much so that they might of been faking pregnancy. I never really realized how little I knew about horse nutrition until I started doing a little research and felt the struggle personally. I still don't think I know that much, but I think I made a good couple of decisions to try and help Hobbs gain some weight and become more chunky. Which is funny because I've always enjoyed my horses more on the slimmer sexier looking side.
My changes are as follows...
- Take out sweet feed - we had him at a great weight in the summer as he has lovely large fields, and wanted more energy. This didn't really help.
- Add one more pound of Beet Pulp (No molasses)
- Continue with 1/2 pound of Fat n' Fiber
- Add one pound of Purina TRIMAX (ultium)
- Add 1/4 pound of Rice Bran
- Add cocosoya oil
Hopefully this will start adding a little bit of weight over time. I was thinking of adding alfalfa cubes - about a pound - just free to have in a bucket in his stall, but I need to do a little more research there. Off to the Google to rack my brain some more about all things nutrition.