Comparing Soaked vs. Unsoaked Ontario Hay - A Balanced Bay Blog Post…

Continue

Soaking hay is a popular topic in equine nutrition. There are many reasons a horse owner may choose to soak their horse’s hay. Some examples include laminitis, poor dentition, digestion concerns, metabolic disorders, as well as respiratory problems. Today’s blog post will discuss what the research tells us about soaking hay to reduce non-structural carbohydrate (NSC)…

Continue

You are probably wondering what equine nutrition has to do with buying a new saddle.  Let me explain.... 

 

If you are anything like me I am really due for another saddle, but because of the big price tag that is usually attached to purchasing 'the right one', I knew I had to look at my budget and see the areas where I can trim back to jump-start my "saddle…

Continue

A horse's nutrition for the most part these days is largely dependent upon the experience, knowledge, but most importantly the "attitude" of its owner.  Attitude plays a key factor in almost everything we do, and often determines our successes or failures in our relationships, our work and, in this case, the horses we love and care for.

 

As I continue to work with horse owners in helping them with balanced nutrition plans for their horses, I find that it is…

Continue

Next time you are in the barn take a few minutes to look at your hay.  Are you familiar with the quality of it or guessing it?  What about the nutrient content?  "Forage Is First" rule applies to all horses - their digestive systems work the best when ample forage is supplied.  But not all forages are created equal.  Was it a good year or a stressful year for…

Continue

Continue

Chances are that your hay bill is one of your highest bills in caring for your horse. The last thing that anyone wants to do is to waste hay, especially when the cost of hay is so high. Luckily for you, we’ve got some great tips to minimize hay wastage in your barn.

Store Hay Correctly

Did you know that before you even feed hay, you may…

Continue

Horses have delicate systems that were designed for constant pasture grazing, but modern horsekeeping can throw your horse’s gastrointestinal tract off balance. High-grain diets combined with the stress of training and competition may leave your horse prone to ulcers, digestive problems and poor overall health. But if you build your horse’s diet based on his individual needs, you can help bring him back into balance.



Throw hay, dump grain, turn the horses out. Do… Continue

I'm sure a lot of folks who self board their animals have had this happen once or twice.. 'Oh look, the feed bill came, how much is it this month?'... -insert jaw drop, eye pop, and then possibly a thwack after hitting the ceiling + string of expletives- Mine got to 700 dollars for TWO HORSES a few months ago FOR ONE MONTH. 'WTF!'

 

My first…

Continue

Another missive from yours truly ... aka Shakespeare "The Equine" ... direct from Poet's Paddock. Enjoy!

 

Day Dreaming

 

I trot to trees green;…

Continue

Continue

Continue

The moon is in a good position for us to ride in the evening. It's also starting to cool off around sunset. Last night we had a cool breeze blowing which made it even more comfortable.



We had planned this night ride a little differently. I picked up some takeout food on the way home. Ranae had gotten home about 15 minutes before me and fed the horses. We had dinner and then saddled up. It was nice for a couple of reasons. One, we weren't hungry and two, we didn't have to worry about… Continue

It's hot. BUT, we didn't let that stop us from riding. Saturday morning I had scheduled a second stack of alfalfa to be delivered. It was a good price and, while I may have an excess now, I won't have to worry about making time to go pick it up.







Most of the rest of the day was dedicated to doing chores. About 4:30 we convinced ourselves it had cooled down… Continue

Last week we told you in part one of this blog that there were five factors that influence starch digestibility in the small intestine. Here they are in more detail.



1) Source of starch

Over 80% of the starch in oats is digested in the small intestine, whereas less than 30% of the starch in whole-corn and barley is digested in the small intestine. Starches are made of sugars, predominantly glucose. So why is glucose from oat starch digested differently than glucose from corn… Continue

For all you people that are wondering what Koala hay is, well it's a long story. In the 30's Koala's were introduced to Kangaroo Island , (not a native to the island) and for a good few years now they have been eating themselves out of house and home. Koala's only eat a particular type of gum leaves. Lots of Koala's ,not much to eat. So the government said we should Cull some of the Koala's so the numbers come down and they don't all starve to death.One quick shot or a slow lingering death by… Continue