I have a 3 year old gelding that is a little on the thin side. I would like to put weight on him. He is on free choice hay, mostly alfalfa with a little grass, 1 1/2 pounds of Gro N Win ration balancer, and 8 ounces of Purina Outlast. What would work best to help him gain weight. Alfalfa pellets, cubes, beet pulp or ??? I am open to any suggestions.

I've got two old ones that need weight. I'm giving rice bran a try. 

I've used Purina Amplify in the past, works really well.

I'd get rid of the ration balancer.  Those are more geared for easy keepers that do not need the extra calories. I'd look for a different feed, Buckeye has other good options if you'd prefer to stick with them. 

Completely agree with this! 

Ration Balancers aren't used for hard keepers. Those typically need more fat and protein in their diet from a grain 

So what is the best option for high fat and protein? I am open to any suggestions. Willing to do away with the ration balancer. 

There are many options out there now for feeds with higher fat content. See what is available in your area, produce wise, u need something with at least 6-8% fat and at least 12% protein, since it is three year old. Still having lots of growth. After u see what is available and what u can afford, come back on here and see what other people have use with success.

Safe yourself the hassle of adding extras and choose a higher fat feed. I'm gonna say that majority of the feeds out there are pretty much the same so just chose something that's convenient for you to get and won't bust your pocketbook! Buckeye makes a good feed.. their EQ8 line is nice with built in gut support.. the performance is 14% protein and 12% fat feed. And the EQ8 sr is 14/10 I think either one would be helpful. Plus they have the gro n win in it for the vitamin/mineral package.  The safe & easy performance is also 14/12 .. I'm pretty sure all their NON ration balancer feeds are fortified with the gro n win. There are several other feed options but since you're already feeding buckeye those are the ones I'm familiar with. Not a huge purina fan but plenty people use it and are happy with it. 

99.9 percent of commercial feeds include, soy, soy hulls, wheat mids, molasses, beet pulp. RG is one of the few that does not. THey all have the same ingredients different order. 99 percent fillers and JUNK 

Ok, everyone. I will easily drop the ration balancer. Do I keep the Purina Outlast? I don't feed any other grain anyways. I have access to Purina, Buckeye, Tribute, Manna Pro and Equishine that has 12% protein and 20% fat with vitamin E added (rice bran). These just are from the local coop. Will also check Fleet Farm this weekend. Give me your opinion on which is best. Thanks! And add to that Nutrena.

If you like the outlast and think it's helping you should keep it. Out of what you listed ... I'd go with Buckeye or Tribute .. Tribute has the Kalm and EZ or the Kalm Ultra which is higher fat. Are you not wanting to feed a "grain"?  Do you have access to Renew Gold? You can always add the Renew Gold to what you are feeding now for extra calories and fat and gut support. You could even keep the gro n win if you went that route but I still think it'd be easier (and cheaper) to just feed a higher calorie and fat feed. Just depends on how complex you wanna make it lol 

I never figured out the problem, but all mine looked dull and lost weight on the RG. Back then it was hard to get too. 

Thanks everyone.  I have some good things to think about from this post.

Years ago, I had the same experience, so I quit it for a long time. But when I started using it again its great. I have no idea. LOL 

If Renew Gold did not work for you we can usually identify what is in the way of proper bloom happening. A free call to 855 377 3639 and a visit with me usually does the trick. As to the OP on this thread, I would be sure that the teeth are looked at. A three year old has a lot of mouth changes going on and is sore mouthed almost all year. Addressing that can let them chew the roughage part of the diet much more completely simply because it no longer hurts to chew. This results in  more complete digestion of the roughage and better utilization of the nutrition that it contains. I have seen big changes with just a dentist visit an no other changes to the diet.

Outlast is only a gut supplement. Not going to help with weight as far as protein and fats but will help keep the tummy happy. I would keep it! 

Yes, teeth were done 5 weeks ago.

I feed a 14% protein feed and rice bran which is 20% fat. If you feel you need a little protein boost I feed TRI AMINO. It is also a big help for hooves. 

The best way to put weight on a horse is to feed him more... I like Purina Equine Senior for weight gain. You can feed 3x daily, at least 10 lbs per day plus the free choice hay and you can still add a little alfalfa if you want to. You can start there and increase the Senior if you need to. Get a scale and weigh your feed. If you're feeding the recommended amount of 10 lbs then that bag shouldn't last more than five days. That's $300.00 per month to feed that hard keeper a good quality feed. You can skip the supplements because he'll get everything he needs in the feed. :)

Rice bran and good quality alfalfa 

I have tried beet pulp with good results in gainig weight. The only problem is that it tends to make them hot and stiff.

Looks like it will be rice bran and the alfalfa.

Pre/ probiotic fast track or FORCO. 1/4 cup coconut oil 2 tablespoons white salt, clovite, Purina calf manna( designed for horses)

My feed program for years has been good alfalfa, ration balancer and rice bran. I feed it to everything, young/old, hard keepers/easy keepers, pasture ornaments/perf horses/horses in training, never once have I had an issue. I don't buy the pellets I get the actual powder stuff as the process for extruding pellets requires heating which changes nutritional value.  I feed  2 lbs a day making a mash. I've never had an issue with it turning bad as I keep it in a sealed container  and use it quickly even in the summer months. My horses love it and if they need meds or something it's easy to just mix it in with zero issues. I've tried some of the other more expensive mentions on here and as someone pointed out, mostly fillers. RG May very well be a great product but it did not work for me, expensive and the first ingredient is rice bran. 

Increasing high-quality forage always does the trick for me unless there's an underlying medical condition. Are you able to offer free choice high quality forage?

I just started mine on this to give it a try. Not a young horse, but just wanted some extra calories coming out of a hard winter for my 7 year old. She doesn't tend to carry much extra weight anyway - she self regulates.

Test your hay and see what it's providing, you'll have a base line that way. Get ahold of some good- GREAT alfalfa (i prefer long leaf for gut health/saliva production) which will provide a lot of calories, then i feed a locked ration fortifed feed. If I didn't have access to Bluebonnet, I would feed Triple Crown.   I have so many before and afters of my horses and customer horses after making the switch. Depending on how much weight you are talking you may just consider the HindGut Program (if your hay is able to do the job from a calorie basis).

The answer is a good all around feed....feed 2x a day, free choice hay and clean water. After feeding twice a day for a month without results, increase your feed rations....this of course if you've wormed and checked fecal on horse first. If this isn't working, check their teeth with equine dentist. If that doesn't work, go to the vet and check for ulcers. If horse is healthy and you're feeding religiously same time every day good quality feed, he will gain weight.