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Post by Louise Dixon on May 6, 2015 12:20:01 GMT
Top Spec Top Chop is the best I find for laminitic/EMS as it contains no molasses whatsoever, unlike Hi fi Lite, I think Dengie now do an unmolassed chop. Mine is on Anti-lam and Top Spec Top Chop, soaked hay, magnesium and his meds and plenty of exercise and not much grass!! There is a forum of Yahoo groups which is called The Metabolic Horse which is very informative too. You can now get a molasses free version of Hi-Fi light (one of mine won't eat Top Chop Lite so is now on this), but you have to make sure you get the one in the purple bag. It is such a minefield, totally agree with sarahp about reading the bag labels, but the manufacturers don't always make it easy to understand.
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Post by catkin on May 8, 2015 12:56:18 GMT
I was advised by the vet to feed my cushings pony (on Prascend) very, very little hay (soaked) and a well known laminitic trust endorsed chaff (which is molassed). This felt all wrong to me as it was clear he needed more bulk and calories and I didn't like the thought of feeding any sugar I didn't have to. The drug is working really well and he can be turned out as usual, albeit on poor grass, and I feed alfalfa chaff, oil, unmolassed sugarbeet and micronized linseed. He has a reasonable amount of soaked hay. He doesn't look brilliant, but is bright, happy and well. Having got into this regime, all my ponies are fed the same (with the addition of some v v v low starch conditioning cubes) but in varying amounts dependent on their needs.
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Post by lancslass on May 15, 2015 12:23:45 GMT
My Boy's EMS. What I've learnt over the years is to take each day as it comes, check his feet, his crest, his weight and any up and coming issues with him perhaps putting on weight over the loins and shoulder area. Those are my key points that I keep a close eye on all through the year and so far, touch wood, we have been doing well since the initial diagnosis. Not a lot of folk knew what EMS was all about when he came down with it (and neither did I up until then!).
He's managed with diet, restrictive grazing in the spring/summer/autumn months and exercise.
He's on Soaked hay all year round, will soak for an hour during the winter months and more recently 24 hour soaked hay now we are approaching/into the danger zone grass wise!
His 'token' hard feed consists of around 100gms of Fast Fibre that literally does the job of carrying his bespoke supplements that I purchase from Forage Plus....these being the Winter Hoof Health Balancer (and similarly the Summer HH Balancer when we change seasons, as different nutrients are needed or not, at differing times of the year!), Linseed meal and Mag Oxide are also added. He has this once a day all year.
He's out over winter every day on an unfertilised old meadow-type grasses field in a herd and comes in of an evening.
He's about to be turned around over the weekend to going out at night and coming in during the day (to a decent amount of 24 hour soaked hay to munch on while he's in his stable as he needs his fibre to keep the system ticking over and not be without,....works well for us and he's no ulcer isssues etc, so am happy with this regime).
He is barefoot all round and he's got the best feet he's ever had since finding Forage Plus and their supplements. We used to suffer at least once a year with abcesses,...but no more!...we have been 'abcess free' for quite some time now and hopefully we're going to stay that way.
He's trimmed every 6 weeks in Summer and every 7/8 weeks in Winter to keep him balanced and make sure everything's as it should be.
I ride as much as I can and he's also privy to going on a walker twice a week too, which is a godsend sometimes, especially in winter when sometimes riding is not possible.
I've had to do alot of reading and listened to other folks advice and suggestions and we are managing our EMS as much as we can, within livery yard rules! - which I have to say are more than happy to accommodate the EMS types as much as they possibly can. I'm very lucky in that respect to have a d**n good yard/owners as I realise alot of horse owners can struggle to get what's right for their horse health wise.
I would have had him out overnight a little sooner to be honest, but yard rules and the recent dogdy weather has set this back a bit,....but we're out overnight in the next couple of days or so, so that's good news!..and time to start the poo picking regime in his restricted paddock!
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Post by LinsopStud on Jun 10, 2015 17:46:09 GMT
I have a very slightly EMS positive horse who is on Hi-fi no molasses, Hippostar slobber mash, 5 hours turnout a day and soaked haylage at night.
No fat pads and has never had lami. However he could do with a little weight and a little more "ooph" - is there anything that is considered safe to feed that I could add a small quantity to his feed. Linseed has been recommended? Thanks in advance
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