🌾When lucerne’s light on, let lupins do the lifting 🌾By nutritionist Jill Davies...
With lucerne chaff in short supply across Western Australia until the new-season cuts come through, many horse owners are wondering what to feed instead — especially for horses that rely on lucerne for condition, protein, and digestive support.

The good news: WA-grown Lupin Fibre Cubes (LFC) and Lupin Fibre Boost (LFB) are not just substitutes. They’re low-starch, high-fibre, locally sourced feeds that match lucerne’s key nutritional benefits while offering a safer, more consistent option for many classes of horses.

🌱 1️⃣ Fibre First — The Engine of the Hindgut
➡️Both LFC and LFB are rich in digestible fibre from WA lupin hulls supporting steady hindgut fermentation and microbial health (Julliand & de Fombelle, 2016).

While LFC and LFB provide over 20 % structural fibre and can replace part of the hay or chaff in a ration, they’re not a total forage replacement. Horses still need long-stem roughage — hay, fibre cubes, or grazing — to maintain chewing time, saliva flow and hindgut motility (Harris et al., 2017).

Critically, both feeds test at under 5.5 % NSC (WSC + starch) — far lower than most lucerne chaffs grown in WA, which commonly exceed 10-16% NSC depending on cut and curing. That makes LFC and LFB excellent for:
• EMS and insulin-resistant horses requiring low-NSC diets
• Ulcer-prone horses needing soft, low-sugar, gut-friendly fibre
• Senior horses or those with poor dentition needing a soaked, easy-chew feed

Their high fibre content increases the “fibre factor” of the ration, slowing feed passage and supporting nutrient absorption in the small intestine, while maintaining hydration and hindgut motility through WA’s hot, dry months (Harris et al., 2017; Kronfeld et al., 2015; Geor & Harris, 2020).

Continued in comments...

🎫Want to go to Equestrian In The Park in style? 🎫 Well luckily for you, we have two spare tickets to the PLATINUM LOUNGE, and we want to offer them to one of our T&R customers! Valued at over $375 each, these tickets are the best way to enjoy the action, with all the comfort and a premium food and drink package.

Want to grab them? Here`s how...
1️⃣Tell us below what your favourite T&R feed is and why your horse loves it.
2️⃣ Tell us or tag the lucky person you`ll take with you.
3️⃣ Bonus if you share a photo of your horse...and extra bonus if it`s got our feed in it!

Hurry though, entries close at 3pm tomorrow, Friday 7 November AWST so that we can get you organised with your tickets in time for the big show.

Please be scam aware, we will not ask you to click on any links, add friends or anything out of the ordinary.

Winners will be announced on our Facebook page so keep your eye peeled (make sure you`re following us).

It`s Equestrian In The Park this weekend, and we`re proud sponsors again in 2025. This year we wanted to throw some extra support behind the riders and offered a free 5kg tub of Equi-Restore to each competitor that they could use in the lead up to and over the event. It`s been great to see so many riders already grabbing their tub and their horses loving it.

We`ll be there on the weekend, so if you`re keen to learn more about Equi-Restore come and have a chat to us.

Riders - if you haven`t already claimed your free tub and still want to, get in touch with us! Send us a message and we can get it organised for you.

A huge congratulations to Ava C, the winner of our Calm Care Plus testimonial giveaway! Ava entered for her two horses, Baci and Amber, who had transitioned across from another brand when Calm Care Plus was released.

"Since switching to Calm Care Plus, Amber’s condition, behaviour, hooves, and overall health have all improved dramatically. She’s now a confident, healthy, and happy young horse—and a much easier keeper."

And for Baci? "His transformation has been remarkable. His coat now gleams, his topline is filling out nicely, and—most importantly—he feels good in himself. His gut is happier, and so is he: engaged, content, and bright-eyed."

Congratulations Ava and thank you to everyone who entered. It was wonderful hearing from so many happy owners of healthier, happier horses.

Calm Care Plus is our ultra-low sugar and starch, safe feed that is changing horses (and horse owners` lives) - without the hefty price tag of alternatives, but with even more goodness like pre and probiotics in every mouthful.

How great is this? The secondary ASDAN students at St Joseph’s School in Northam are studying sustainability this term and making reusable shopping bags, and our poultry mix bags make a great upcycle!

Thanks for sharing Cassidy @cassidyeleni 👏

How much sleep does your horse really need? And do they always sleep standing up? Here are five things you should know about how your horse sleeps:

1. Horses are polyphasic sleepers
Polyphasic means they sleep in multiple short bursts in a 24-hour period, while humans are monophasic (one main, long period of sleep usually at night).

2. Yes, horses can sleep standing up BUT...
Horses can sleep standing up, but while standing can only achieve slow-wave or non-REM sleep. Up to 85% of their sleep is non-REM sleep which can be light or deep. You might have heard about them locking a hindleg to sleep standing up? Well that`s true, but they will often be in non-REM sleep while lying down too. BUT...

3. Horses need to lie down to achieve REM sleep
To achieve rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, horses need to be comfortably lying down (recumbent) because REM comes with a loss of muscle tone. Studies have shown that horses need to be getting a minimum of 30 minutes of REM sleep lying down, and this usually occurs after midnight. They`ve also shown that horses not getting the minimum amount of REM can suffer from sleep deprivation.

4. Horses need around 3-6 hours of rest and sleep every day.
Most of this is made up of rest and non-REM sleep, but as mentioned above they need to get a minimum of 30 minutes REM sleep while lying down. A foal usually sleeps for longer than this, and other factors like exercise, stress, illness or pregnancy can impact how much sleep they need.

5. If they`re not comfortable, they won`t sleep!
Factors like pain, stress, social pressure and environment can impact your horse sleep. If your horse feels uncomfortable, in pain or unsafe in their environment, they are unlikely to lie down and achieve REM.

#tiptuesday #horsehealth #horsesleep #horsetips

We`re at @budgetstockfeeds today! Come and say hi to Donna, grab a free sample, or take advantage of some special prices on our feeds...