Preparing Your Horse Or Pony For A Stay Away Show.
With stay away competitions and championships being the culmination for a season of hard training and preparation, there is often a lot to consider. Quite often the work regime and daily routine will differ fairly significantly to what your horse or pony might be used to at home, so here are our top tips to preparing for your action-packed horsey weekend!
Consider your fibre source
At this time of year, it is quite common for horses to still have access to a good amount of turn out, whereas stay-away competitions will often require your horse to be stabled. Throughout this time, grass may be restricted and hay or haylage will instead become the main fibre source. This change of fibre is quite a significant change in the diet and can increase the risk of digestive upset. As with any diet changes, we recommend changing forage slowly, so we would therefore advise introducing a small amount of the forage that you will be using when you are away at camp to your horse’s diet where possible prior to travelling.
Fussy drinkers
Many horses can become fussy with their water when they are away from home and so monitoring their water intake is crucial. Adding apple juice or even encouraging your horse to ‘apple bob,’ can be a great way at encouraging them to drink, or of course – there is our infamous Re-Covery Mash! Re-Covery Mash is highly palatable, versatile and convenient to use in many different situations and would make an excellent addition to your lorry essentials list. It contains a blend of ’Super-Fibres’, known for their superior digestibility and provision of non-heating calories, plus a source of electrolytes to aid re-hydration.
Feeding salt
Feed salt on a daily basis. When horses sweat, they lose electrolytes which can cause early muscle fatigue, reduced stamina, muscle cramps, dehydration and slow recovery rates. To help overcome this, add 1 - 2 tablespoons of salt to the feed per day to replace some of the mineral salts lost through sweat. This will also help to increase the natural thirst response, helping to keep your horse or pony well hydrated.
Reduced appetite
Some horses will back off of their feed as their competition or work schedule increases, and so if required, using smaller intake feeds such as a balancer will ensure that their meal sizes remain small, but that they still receive the correct nutrients for their health and well being.
Fussy feeders can also become picky with their forage when they are away from home. Providing extra ‘fibre buckets’ throughout the day will encourage their natural browsing behaviour, stimulating their appetite and help to alleviate any boredom between sessions. Going out for a hand graze is also a great way to spend time with your horse and discuss how well behaved they have been being! Better still, it will stretch their legs, give them some 'down time,' and encourage their appetite further too.
NEED GUIDANCE?
If you would like any further information about preparing your horse for a camp, please feel free to contact our nutritional team on 01622 718487 or email info@saracenhorsefeeds.co.uk
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