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Regular
Posts: 82
| Excuse me for asking what is probably a very dumb question, but what do you look for on a guaranteed analysis to identify sugar/starch levels? We have been feeding a local 12% sweet feed to everything in our barn, and am I looking to revamp our program. Everything I'm reading says low sugar/starch and high fat is ideal.... | |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
  
Location: North Dakota | The lower NSC the better. Sweet feed is just about the worst thing you can feed a horse because it is typically made of low quality grains that may or may not have a consistent formula. Also, it's called sweet feed for a reason. It's packed with sugar. Now sweet feed isn't poison or anything, but good for you for looking to change! Our horses are athletes and they should be fed like athletes. Sweet feed is like giving them fast food every day. I prefer not to feed any processed feeds (excluding Renew Gold) but if you are set on feeding processed feeds, check out the Ionophore thread(s) and make sure that you pick a brand that's safe and look for one with quality ingredients (oats, barley, beet pulp, alfalfa...)and not stuff like molasses and corn. Personally I think the best feeding program out there is whole oats, Renew Gold, alfalfa, flax, and beet pulp. Cheap, easy, and my horses have never looked/felt better. | |
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Regular
Posts: 82
| I am not set on sticking with a processed feed - I am just trying to better inform myself. When I pull up Purina's or Nutrena's (for example) websites, I am not seeing "NSC" on the guaranteed analysis. Where do I find this?? | |
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 I hate cooking and cleaning
Posts: 3310
 
Location: Jersey Girl | It's not always listed on the bag or even the website. You might need to contact the manufacturer directly and get it from them.
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Expert
Posts: 2121
Location: The Great Northwest | Why do you feed a sweet feed or a grain? | |
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Go Get Em!
Posts: 13503
Location: OH. IO | skye - 2015-12-24 8:50 PM
Why do you feed a sweet feed or a grain?
Oh please........why does anyone?. .. to the OP....there is no such thing as a stupid question if it has to do with learning. | |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 477
Location: Lost in the swamps | cavyrunsbarrels - 2015-12-24 12:15 PM
The lower NSC the better. Sweet feed is just about the worst thing you can feed a horse because it is typically made of low quality grains that may or may not have a consistent formula. Also, it's called sweet feed for a reason. It's packed with sugar. Now sweet feed isn't poison or anything, but good for you for looking to change! Our horses are athletes and they should be fed like athletes. Sweet feed is like giving them fast food every day. I prefer not to feed any processed feeds (excluding Renew Gold) but if you are set on feeding processed feeds, check out the Ionophore thread(s) and make sure that you pick a brand that's safe and look for one with quality ingredients (oats, barley, beet pulp, alfalfa...)and not stuff like molasses and corn. Personally I think the best feeding program out there is whole oats, Renew Gold, alfalfa, flax, and beet pulp. Cheap, easy, and my horses have never looked/felt better.
I'm looking into doing a similar formula as yours. Could you tell me #'s or percentages of each you feed per feeding? | |
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Common Sense and then some
Location: So. California | Two Nickles - 2015-12-24 10:26 AM I am not set on sticking with a processed feed - I am just trying to better inform myself. When I pull up Purina's or Nutrena's (for example) websites, I am not seeing "NSC" on the guaranteed analysis. Where do I find this??
If they list the Starch and Sugar %, you can add those together to arrive at NSC %. Many who are feeding a higher fat, lower NSC feed, want the NSC to be 12% or less.
You may also want to add vitamins and minerals to their diet. Any supplement you add, you should look at their ingredients as some companies add a bunch of sugar to supplements as well to make it more palatable. I personally use UltraCruz feed. http://www.scahealth.com/ultracruz-products/ultracruz-horse-products/ultracruz-horse-supplements.html | |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | imturnin3 - 2015-12-24 9:24 PM cavyrunsbarrels - 2015-12-24 12:15 PM The lower NSC the better. Sweet feed is just about the worst thing you can feed a horse because it is typically made of low quality grains that may or may not have a consistent formula. Also, it's called sweet feed for a reason. It's packed with sugar. Now sweet feed isn't poison or anything, but good for you for looking to change! Our horses are athletes and they should be fed like athletes. Sweet feed is like giving them fast food every day. I prefer not to feed any processed feeds (excluding Renew Gold) but if you are set on feeding processed feeds, check out the Ionophore thread(s) and make sure that you pick a brand that's safe and look for one with quality ingredients (oats, barley, beet pulp, alfalfa...)and not stuff like molasses and corn. Personally I think the best feeding program out there is whole oats, Renew Gold, alfalfa, flax, and beet pulp. Cheap, easy, and my horses have never looked/felt better. I'm looking into doing a similar formula as yours. Could you tell me #'s or percentages of each you feed per feeding?
Absolutely! Keep in mind my horse is fairly large (about 16 hands and STOUT) and is kept on a dry lot so doesn't get to graze. He gets a couple massive slow feed hay nets so it's nearly unlimited. Daily my horse gets 4lbs whole oats, 6lbs alfalfa pellets, a flax supplement from smartpak (you could do 1/2-1 cup whole flax instead), 1 lb Renew Gold, and a couple handfuls of soaked beet pulp which isn't absolutely necessary but makes it easier to mix in powdered supplements if you have any. | |
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Starch/Sugar in processed feeds