INTRODUCING CASTLEREAGH PELLETS

When introducing Castlereagh Pellets to your horse you have to do it very carefully because you can’t just change its diet from one day to the next. Unless you go about it very slowly and gradually, you might cause your horse to scour.

Any new feed should always be introduced over a period of at least one week – not one day. The way to do this is to start your horse off on one handful of pellets and increase the amount gradually, a handful at a time, with every feed until you reach the desired level of feeding.

FEED LITTLE AND OFTEN

Feed little and often because the horse’s stomach is not adapted to one large feed per day. For normal mature horses such as dry mares and geldings, 2 feeds per day would be sufficient whereas horses requiring a little more feed such as foals, yearlings, pregnant mares and stud stallions, 3 feeds a day would be preferred. Racehorses in training should be encouraged to eat 4 feeds per day.

WATER

Ample fresh water should be available to the horse at all times. It must be kept in mind that due to the rich and oily nature of Power Pellets your horse will always be very thirsty and will drink about twice as much water, than before. It will therefore be absolutely necessary to alter any existing watering schedules.

OBSERVATION

The horse’s droppings should be observed for consistency and odour because the droppings can reveal much about the horse’s general state of health. Droppings should be firm but comfortable and should break-up on the ground (but should not spread out like cow’s droppings). The odour may be a little strong but should not be offensive.

NO LAXATIVE FEEDS

Castlereagh Pellets are very rich and are already somewhat laxative and therefore must not be fed or mixed with any feeds of a laxative nature otherwise it may result in digestive upsets. The feed becomes overlaxative and results in loose or wet droppings and a lowered feed efficiency.
The following laxative feeds are not compatible with Castlereagh Pellets and must be avoided;

• Molasses
• Wet bran mash
• Boiled grain
• Linseed oil
• Other laxative feeds

GIVE YOUR HORSE “ENOUGH” ROUGHAGE

Castlereagh pellets are a solid feed but the horse’s digestive system is not adapted to digesting any solid feed on its own without any roughage.

Therefore, never give your horse any power pellets without giving it plenty of hay or chaff to go with it because whether the pellets are properly digested or not doesn’t depend on the pellets but on whether or not you give your horse “enough” roughage.

Enough roughage means as much roughage as your horse is able and wants to eat over and above the prescribed amount of pellets. By the same token, roughage must not be fed separately, before or after, but mixed together with the pellets.

CARE OF THE FEET

The hoof grows about 1cm per month. Shoeing is a necessary evil of domestication, to prevent the hoof from wearing faster than it grows. Once the horse is shod, the hooves must be cut back and the shoes re-set or replaced every 4-6 weeks. This job is for blacksmiths and persons without the v\necessary training should not attempt to shoe a horse.

In addition, shod horses should have their feet cleaned or checked at least every day, ie after each ride to see whether any dirt, stones or splinters are stuck in the cracks and crevices of the hooves.

For this reason, horses should never be turned out to pastures with their shoes on.

Many of the leg problems seen in horses can be traced to neglect of the feet, especially when the horse was very young.
When do you start a foot care program for a foal?
When it is a month old. Regular trimming at this early age will avoid defects at a later stage.

CARE OF THE TEETH

In mature horses, after years of wear, the cheek teeth develop sharp edges. The edges are the result of long uneven wear and usually protrude on the outside of the upper teeth and the inside of the lower teeth. These edges are sharp and when chewing can cut the gums, scratch the inside of the cheeks or bite the tongue so the whole mouth becomes sore and it is difficult and painful for the horse to bite and chew properly. As a result, the horse eats extremely slowly, chews very cautiously and lets food drop out of its mouth or holds its head to one side whilst chewing.

For this reason, it is necessary to check the teeth regularly every 9-12 months and, if necessary, they must be rasped so that the horse can chew and bite properly again.

This job is called “floating” and may only be done by a trained horse dentist.