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Regular
Posts: 78
| Recently I found out Bluebonnet was discontinuing my feed- The Intensify 12/8 Pellet. Only one now is the 14% pellet. I am curious as to whether that will be too much "OOOMPH" for my horses since they really do not get worked very hard at all. I don't want them to get too energized on it or have issues. Will that little increase of protein be a problem or what? I don't want to switch from Bluebonnet- have had such great luck with their feeds over the years and our horses look better than ever. Just curious on everyone's thoughts. Maybe I just feed less, or mix with some rolled oats? They are stalled a lot and have a large fenced off field that sometimes has grass in it sometimes not. They are fed Coastal Hay also. Thanks!  |
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Rad Dork
Posts: 5218
 
Location: Oklahoma | I would feed a lesser amount. I feed a little bit less on days that my gelding is off. |
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Expert
Posts: 1599
 
| I just found the Bluebonnet Horseman's elite 10/10 pellet, and I love it! 14:50/bag! I was feeding the Omega Force when I was running her but now that she's bred and turned out this is perfect. And my colt is an easier keeper so he's good on it too. I will try to stick with it when I go back to riding her, I do supplement with Platinum CJ so that has all the probiotics etc. |
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 Jr. Detective
Location: Beggs, OK | When we heard that the 12/8 was being discontinued we switched to Omega Force and haven't looked back. We feed VERY little and have been extremely pleasesd with the results. Ultimately the Omega Force is cheaper to feed than any of the other feeds that we have tried, because it needs nothing added. We only supplement with Transform DSI which is already included in the formula in a lesser amount. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 851
Location: West Texas | A big misconception is that protein gives energy or OOOMPH, as you called it. It is the quality of protein and source which matter most, and protein content as a measure of energy provided and nutrition is best reserved for forage analysis. I doubt you will see little difference when feeding a 12% to a 14% concentrate. Being as the source of protein that many concentrates use is soybean meal, this is just upping the protein content, for feeding with lower quality forage, to ensure your horse gets enough protein. Not enough protein is always worse than too much. I would not recommend feeding less and mixing in with rolled oats. When feeding concentrate with grass hay, it is important to feed at least the minimum recommended concentrate amounts, so the horse is getting enough nutrients in the diet. Secondly, oats are a very high energy product and adding oats will most certainly give you more OOOMPH than the higher quantity of 14% alone.
Honestly, If I were feeding coastal hay, I would definitely feel like a 14% protein concentrate would be a better choice than a 12%. 12% concentrates are meant for feeding with alfalfa hay and it wont hurt on bit to feed a 14% over a 12%, even with alfalfa hay.
If your horses aren't being worked that hard, and you feel you need to feed an 8% fat feed (matters not whether it is 12 or 14% protein), I would think an alternative choice would be to feed a higher quality hay or add in some alfalfa to the diet. In my opinion, it would be healthier, cheaper, and more appropriate for horse being minimally worked. It wouldn't matter whether it was hay, pellets, or cubes (my preference of course). They would all be my choice over adding concentrate with by products, and added fat.
Edited by Tdove 2015-07-08 10:08 AM
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Regular
Posts: 78
| Thank you for your input. I appreciate it. |
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  Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | Rachel has done alot of research on feeds, nutrition etc.. id listen to her |
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