Category Archives: Nutritional Advice
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“They say that if you’re working on a problem that can be solved within your lifetime, you’re not thinking big enough.”
Dr Andrew McLean is always thinking big and he is forever curious. It makes dinner table conversation diverse and always very interesting, and made for some great discussion when on the first morning of his latest trip to Perth we took delivery of two hives of bees! Of course as well as being a world renowned expert in equine behaviour, it turns out he has also co-authored a paper on bee cognition, amongst other things. There is always so much to learn.
“If there’s one thing that I’ve learnt over the past few years of feeding a team of show jumping performance horses, it’s this: keep it simple, stupid (KISS)! Don’t get me wrong – equine nutrition is an extremely broad topic that involves complex bodily processes… However, as we all know, horses have evolved to survive and thrive on a natural diet; the more that we can adhere to this, the better.”
Table and kitchen scraps can be a terrific addition to the diets of your chickens. Being omnivores, they will eat just about anything; however, care must be taken on just what (and how much) is given in the way of scraps. Remember that the bulk of what you should be feeding your birds is a specially formulated chicken feed – this will provide them with the correct amount of protein and nutrients.
However, as a supplement to this everyday feed, some scraps can be given to provide variety (and reduce your own table scraps!). We will outline some of the common foods that should, and shouldn’t, be fed to chickens. Read More
Campdrafting is a unique Australian equestrian sport in which horse and rider combinations select a bullock from a herd and drive it round a set course. The riding style is similar to American Western Riding, and the event is similar to stock horse events such as cutting and team penning.
As much as we may not want to accept it, time does eventually catch up with our beloved horses and ponies.
As they become older, issues such as arthritis, stiffness, weaker immune systems, hormonal changes and more can take a heavy toll on their quality of life. Fortunately, we are better equipped than ever to deal with such issues, with management information and products being widely available. Read More
Liz Tollarzo is a dressage coach and rider based in Western Australia. Having ridden at the FEI level at the Australian Dressage Championships, she knows what it takes to keep horses looking and feeling their best to compete.
“What do I feed my horses…. I see more and more posts regarding feeding and thought I would do my own post on the subject. Read More
So much is written on feeding practices, with different names for grains, pellets and hay, and everyone has a different idea.
Many sources of information available are not applicable to Australian conditions, or even remotely similar to what is grown and sold here. It is often a matter of trial and error, availability, convenience, seasonal and personal choice. We all have our own likes and dislikes, as I’m sure our rabbits do. What works for one pet owner or breeder, won’t necessarily suit or work for another. Read More
Keeping chickens can be both rewarding and fun, and doesn’t have to be restricted to commercial farmers. We have developed a range of feeds for chickens throughout different stages of the lifecycle to make providing the correct nutrition easy. With a direct correlation between nutrition and egg output, it’s important to provide your chickens with balanced, fresh feed that contains quality ingredients; this way, you know your chicken will be getting the right nutrients they need to thrive. Read More
We’ve had our little break over the Christmas period and now it’s time to get the horses up and running for the coming competition season. Read More
Are you confused about what to feed your sport or leisure horse? We find that the best way to think of feeding is to ‘keep it simple’; if you follow general feeding principles and use common sense, you should be on the right track. Read More
Buy Local. Buy Natural. Buy Fresh: Three reasons to support Thompson & Redwood, your local stock feed manufacturer
With the volume of nutritional information available on the internet and across social media, it’s not unusual to see horse and livestock owners getting swept up in the latest “fad product craze”. The problem is, often the latest trends don’t take into account how purchasing stockfeed made right here in Western Australia not only benefits your animals, but also local farmers, the environment and everyone involved within the horse and livestock industries. Read More
Racehorses are usually fed high energy and roughage diets for maximum power and endurance. These feeds are made up of high levels of grain concentrates. When retiring the horse, it may not need as much energy, depending on the amount of work you will be doing. You can adjust their feed by dropping the amount of grain and increasing the amount of roughage, but monitor regularly according to what your horse looks like and how it is performing. The most suitable feeds are the Hi-Performance Muesli, Oat-Free Muesli and Claytons Pellets.
Feeding lambs the correct diet early on is extremely important for their long-term growth, health and feed conversion efficiency.
Lambs are born with a digestive tract incapable of utilising pasture or other roughage. This is understandable because they initially consume only milk; their digestive tract has to undergo at least 3-4 weeks adaptation to develop the fore-stomachs that ultimately ferment solid feeds. Read More
Did you know that all horses in the Southern Hemisphere celebrate their ‘birthday’ on the 1 August? Whilst they may not actually be born on this date, their birthday is standardised for comparison due to a historical lack of records of the actual birth date. Read More
The feeding of herbs is becoming increasingly popular with horse owners across the globe. As we become more aware of the benefits of feeding certain herbs, it has become common practice to add dried herbs or herbal tinctures to horse feed as a means to promote health and wellbeing.
Laminitis refers to inflammation of the tissue which connects the pedal bone to the hoof wall. It is characterised by hot and painful feet and obvious lameness when moving. The lameness may vary from a mild shuffling to an actual reluctance to move or may get to the point where the horse is too sore to even stand.
~ By Daniel Goussac ~
What are the two most important nutrients for achieving a good egg production? It’s not often these days that the two most obvious answers that come to anyone’s mind – Protein and Calcium – are the correct answers, but in this case, they are! The full answer is, as usual, a bit more complex, and we will try and elaborate a bit in the next few paragraphs.
Our sponsored eventing rider Sophie Warren and co-founder of Sustainable Equitation, Portland Jones, recently took part in a demonstration at the PCAWA State Coaching School. Read More
Providing your young horse with the correct nutrition is extremely important for growth and development. Incorrect feeding can result in imbalances that can be harmful to your horse. As owners, we need to be aware of what it is our horses require and feed them a tailored diet to suit their needs.
Foals are commonly weaned at around six months of age. For a thoroughbred type, they will be on average 245kg (about 45% of mature weight), and will have attained around 80% of mature height. If well fed, they will continue to grow at up to 1kg per day and develop the muscle and bone which will later allow them to be a competitive race, performance, or pleasure horses. Read More
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