“My horse Elvis, performed really well over the weekend and we were lucky enough to take first place in the Rookie 80 class.

I have always fed Thompson and Redwood to all our horses so the prize of 7 bags of feed will be very welcome in our stables!“

Thanks to Shelley for sharing the lovely note and photo with us, and well done on the win 👏

Do you know a "Roger"? Poor doer, poor teeth and struggling to keep weight on in winter. You`ve tried feeding him more, but it`s just not helping...

The challenges:
- His dental issues will be making it difficult to chew hay efficiently, reducing fibre intake and limiting the calories he can consume from his pasture and hay, even if you`re supplying it ad lib.

- His digestive system may be aging and less efficient at digesting fibre.

- He might be eating lots of feed, but it might not be high enough in calories for him.

What we should focus on:

✅ Adding easy-to-chew fibre
Including a soaked fibre mash like Lupin Fibre Cubes or Lupin Fibre Boost increases his digestible fibre intake without the challenge of chewing long-stem forage.

✅Feed more calories in every mouthful
We need to choose a calorie-dense feed that increases his calorie intake without requiring him to eat huge volumes of feed.

✅Get his gut functioning well
Keeping his microbiome as efficient as possible helps digestive efficiency. Incorporating super fibres and pre and probiotics can make a big difference.

✅Support his protein needs
Older horses often benefit from good levels of quality protein and amino acids to help maintain muscle and overall body condition.

✅Account for the colder weather:
Make sure he is staying warm and dry enough with shelter and rugs when appropriate, and that you`ve accounted for the increased calorie demand

Additional checks:
- Is he up to date with his dental checks? They may need more regular checks as they age.
- Has he had a vet checkup recently? If he`s losing weight, make sure there aren`t underlying conditions or issues causing it.

Our Feed Recommendations:
Senior Horse Cubes are our highly concentrated, calorie dense and nutritious feed designed for keeping older horses healthy. With added pre & probiotics, it`s great for gut health, and soaks down into a mash to make it easier for him to chew.

Add Lupin Fibre Cubes or Boost to add super fibres, cool conditioning support and support gut function.

#HorseNutrition #SeniorHorse #PoorDoer #Thoroughbred #WinterFeeding #HorseHealth #EquineNutrition #HorseCare #HorseFeed #ConditioningFeed

Are you available Mondays and Thursdays? Have you got experience in admin support? Love animals? Would you like to join our office team?

We`re looking for a reliable, organised and friendly person to join us, so if you think that could be you ⬇️

Read more on our website: https://thompsonandredwood.com.au/careers-with-thompson-and-redwood

Send your CV to: jobs@thompsonandredwood.com.au

Know someone that would be a good fit for us? Feel free to share this post with them!

Do you know the starch and sugar content of your hay or chaff?

When you`re balancing your horse`s diet, your hay and chaff make up a huge volume of their daily feed intake. But they can often be high in sugar and starch, and if your horse is eating up to 10kg of hay a day, that could be contributing a significant amount of NSC to their overall diet.

`Cereal` refers to hays and chaffs made from oaten, wheaten and barley crops. The grains are naturally high in sugars and starch, but so are the leaves and stems of the plant. Some sample results from WA hays/chaffs are:
🌾Oaten - NSC 31.5%. WA`s Oaten hay consistently tests between 30-38% but has been recorded as high as 42.63% in Southwest WA!
🌾Wheaten - NSC 28.8%

💡LET`S CALCULATE: For a 500kg horse fed 10kg of oaten hay a day, with an average of 35% NSC, is consuming 3.5kg NSC. That adds up to 1,246kgs of starch and sugar in their hay alone in a year!

Compare that to a concentrate that has 24% NSC, fed at 3kg per day. That will only contribute 720g of NSC to the overall diet per day.

Importantly, not all horses tolerate NSC the same way, factors such as breed, body condition, workload, metabolic health, and total daily intake all influence tolerance.

Performance horses and healthy, active horses can generally process higher levels, while easy keepers, ponies, and horses with insulin dysregulation or a history of laminitis or ulcers may be far more sensitive and need NSC-restricted diets.

So, when you`re thinking about their diet, don`t forget to think about their hay and chaff!

TIPS:
💡Make sure you know the test results of your hay and balance out their diet accordingly.

💡Use Lupin Fibre Cubes as a low NSC (5.3%) chaff alternative. It provides good levels of digestible energy and is a quality fibre source that promotes gut health.

From Kalgoorlie to Boddington, T&R were out and about over the weekend. We had a great time with @apex.barrel.racing meeting new people and watching the action. Thanks for having us and well done to all competitors

#rodeo #barrelracing #sponsored

Your Friday flying fix courtesy of Charlee Morton-Sharp and SV Super Maxi, launching into the water at mi3de. In only her first CCI4*L at 18 years old, Charlee and Super placed 5th, an incredible result!

SV Super Maxi is fuelled by Calm Care Plus, Lupin Fibre Boost and Claytons Pellets.

#eventing #sponsoredrider #eventer #fuelledbytandr

Do I need to feed my horse more in cold weather? Maybe, but not always...

Horses are quite good at managing cold, in fact they`re better at handling very cold than very hot weather. But every horse is different, and whether they need more feed comes down to a few key things ⬇️

Lower Critical Temperature or LCT
This is the temperature below which they must use extra energy to maintain body temperature. In most horses this is between 0°C and 5°C, BUT it can vary depending on:

➡️ The climate they are used to (if they`re accustomed to the cold with a thick coat, the LCT can drop as low as 8°C- 10°C).

➡️ Whether they have a natural, thick coat or not

➡️ Age (young horses, foals and seniors have a higher LCT)

➡️ Condition and SA:vol ratio

➡️ Health status (sickness can increase LCT)

➡️ Wind chill factor and wet weather

➕ When temperature remains above LCT, a horse can usually stay warm without increasing energy expenditure and energy requirements.

➖ Once temperature falls below LCT, daily energy requirements rise as the horse burns more energy to stay warm.

Condition and SA:Vol Ratio:
A horse`s surface area-to-volume ratio (and body condition score) influences LCT because heat is lost through the body`s surface, while heat is generated by the body`s mass.

➕ Larger, well-conditioned horses generally have a lower surface area relative to their body volume, so less area to lose heat across meaning they lose heat more slowly.

➖ Finer-framed horses with lower body condition scores have a higher surface area relative to their body weight and tend to lose heat more quickly.

TIP: Wet, windy conditions dramatically increase heat loss because it reduces their coat`s ability to insulate them. Make sure they have adequate shelter, especially from wind.

So, do you need to add more feed?
🅰️ It depends on the horse standing in front of you and your individual climate. If you`re not sure, our nutrition team can help you, just send us a message.

REMEMBER: fibre is a very good source of energy and helps to keep them warm! Make sure they are getting enough quality fibre first, then adjust their diet to add more calories if needed.

EOFY SALE IS ON NOW plus a free gift with every purchase...

Our much-loved rugby tops and polos are on sale, and now is the perfect time to grab yours before they`re gone! There are a range of colours in kids, women`s and men`s sizes available.

- 25% OFF Rugby Jumpers
- 10% OFF Polos & Caps
🎁 FREE Drawstring gear bag with every online purchase

Plus, every online order placed during the sale goes into the draw to WIN a voucher for 2 x 20kg bags of feed

Whether you`re at the stables, out and about at shows or keeping warm on chilly mornings, our rugby jumpers have become a customer favourite for a reason.

Shop now and save >>> https://thompsonandredwood.com.au/online-store

FREE FEED? Yes please!
Our June entries are open, so now is your chance to leave us a review on any of our products (from any of our equine or animal ranges) and go into our monthly draw for a free bag of feed!

Congratulations to last months winners ⭐ Cheyenne Van Den Berg and Sharon Sparrow⭐ Send us a message to claim your voucher.

How to enter:
Comment on this post and tell us about your horse, their favourite feed and add a photo 📷

Or drop us a review on our website:
https://thompsonandredwood.com.au/testimonials

Or leave us a review on Google:
https://g.page/r/CVYtyMfHrwFYEAE/review

Already left a review on our website, but haven’t won a free bag yet? You can still enter our giveaway by commenting on our Facebook post. We read every entry, every month.