Omolene 200 or Miniature Horse & Pony Feed

[ManyMinisFarm]

My miniatures are being fed Omolene 200 along with some Beetpulp and Oats. Omolene 200 is a great feed, but its not seeming to be doing much. And its so expensive!! I want a feed that you can see the results on the horse. Which feed out of the 2 do you reccomend.

 

[dmhsinc]

try 500 it is better. we had problems with the mini feed

 

[ManyMinisFarm]

What kind of problems?

 

[amysue]

I have over 30 horses in the barn, and found that no one feed works for all of them. I like mini pony for easy keepers but it is not enough for breeding or performance horses. Omo 100 is designed for pleasure/light duty horses, omo 200 is designed for horses in work, omo 300 for breeding animals and 500 for performance horses. You should be able to find the omolene line at tractor supply. I like purina ultium for my performance horses as it has the energy they need without making them hot, but it is very expensive and usually has to be purchased from a purina dealer. What sort of results are you looking to get from your feed? More weight?

 

[JMS Miniatures]

Neither lol. I've had issues with both, will not go back to Purina again.

 

[lkblazin]

What results do you want? Also how good is your hay/ type?

 

[ManyMinisFarm]

My hay is good orchard grass hay. And my minis are performance horses and I'm looking for them to fill out and drop the top line.

 

[ManyMinisFarm]

Should I change the hay??? Its good orchard hay but its not great!

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

What do you mean by 'see results?'

What is your definition of 'performance horse?' My stud that's heavily shown pinto doesn't even get grain - and he was 2nd overall in the state. Only my growing filly gets anything special anymore.

A feed program alone won't make a horse a winner - wash a dog, comb a dog, still a dog. But a horse in need of a special program for a specific reaso will benefit from one:

 

[ManyMinisFarm]

My stallion is in all performance classes except driving! And I have a almost 3 yr old filly in training for halter and showmanship. And I have a great exercise program, but there is some results that you don't get from exercising you get it from a good feed.

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

How frequently are they exercised? That determines more about feeding needs than what classes they go in. My stud also does everything but drive - he is lunged for maybe and hour 2-3 times a week. I consider him a pasture puff. Yes, he's shown frequently, 5-6 times a year in rated shows plus a few small fairs etc, he's in shape, but not under huge demand requiring calories to burn by any means. Still a pasture puff in my book. Showmanship, halter, and trail in hand I don't consider all to physically demanding so long as he is in decent shape which a couple hours of lunging a week accomplishes. He maintains weight fine, is healthy, has a great coat, and isn't deficient in anything. Therefore, I call that a good feeding program.

The pony filly is growing, and worked a few times a week. She is in need of protein to grow and calories to burn. She gets blue seal brand extruded feed at 16% protein, 8% fat and good Timothy hay. No pot belly, good top line, not growing too fast - therefore I consider her feed fine. She runs around a lot more and is in need of the calories to grow and work - only reason she even gets grain.

What results do you exactly expect to see on your horses that would make you change your program? What isn't the omelene 200 doing? Do you have pictures? That would be a big help

 

[amysue]

By results do you mean shinier coat and silky hair? Healthy skin and hooves? More energy? Or do you want your horses more fit/tone? It is a combination of feed, grooming and exercise that produce winning results. I agree, pictures would help a lot. Also, how much quantity of feed/hay do your minis get? How long/intense and how frequent are they worked?. Maybe its a quantity instead of a quality of feed issue causing you to not be getting the results you want.

 

[ManyMinisFarm]

Right now there are not being work because of whether conditions. But when they do get to they are lunged 4-5 times a week for about 15 mins. They are both fed 2 1/2 cups Beetpulp, 1 cup Omolene 200, and 1/2 cup Oats. They get fed that am and pm. They are kept on a dry lot so the are fed hay threw out the day. And results more energy and fit/tone. My stud does some halter but its at smaller shows. And they have winter coats right now, but I can still post pictures. Do y'all still want the pictures?

 

[chandab]

Omolene 200 should be fed at a minimum rate of .3# per 100# bodyweight. Feeding less than the recommended rate means your horse doesn't get the full benefit of the feed. One cup of 200 is likely only about 1/3#.

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

Your horse is only being exercised for an hour total a week? That might be the 'tone' issue. 15 mins doesn't seem like enough time to get warmed up - much less a real workout.

With biggies, the rule was to go until they started to look 'worked' (ie a little sweat, beginning to breathe a bit heavy) then do 10 more laps. With a mini I generally only go 5 more - cause they take a lot more steps in a 'lap!' You're better off doing a few real workouts than frequent short ones.

Some horses a feed program just won't put energy on - my guy is a prime example. You could feed him like a racehorse and he'd still be lazy. Feed won't change personality.

 

[ManyMinisFarm]

OK thank you. I know there exercise is short. But I'm still in school and I get home at 4:30 and that only leaves an hour before dark. And weather has been bad. But I do more then lunge. Lunging 4-5 times a week. Long trotting and hill work too. My 30inch stallion weighs around 135 and my 36 inch filly weighs around 180. How much should I increase the omolene 200?

 

[chandab]

If the stallion does only weigh 135#, then at least 1/2#, so cup and a half of Omolene 200 daily (I'd probably drop the oats, since oats are in Omolene, and just do 2 cups of the Omolene 200). If the filly truly only weighs 180#, sounds really light, my 36" minis weigh quite a bit more and aren't fat, then she should get 3/4# or 2.5 cups minimum. [My mini boys at 2 years old, were about 36" and weighed 250# or a bit more.] I think you are guessing/figuring light on the filly, I'd feed her at least a pound, so 3 cups daily, and same, drop the oats since they are in the Omolene.

 

[JMS Miniatures]

Are you sure on weights? I can see the 30" stallion weighing that much but my minis around 36" to 37" weight between 300 to 350lbs.

Don't go by measuring cups, get an actual scale and weigh the food. Ever since I started doing this my horses looked better. Also weigh the hay, you'll be surprised how much hay you'll save if you do.

It says .3lbs per 100lbs of Omolene minimum, and hay 1lb to 1.2lbs per 100lbs. You're probably ok on the beet pulp, I actually use the Hills measuring cups for dog/cat food on the beet pulp and I use roughly 2 1/4 - 2 1/2 cups.

If I was feeding my 36.50" mare who weighs 350lbs I would be feeding her .9, almost a pound of Omolene along with 3lbs of hay a day. IMO its just not a lot of hay.

Right now she is getting with my feeding program 3/4 of a lb of SeniorGLO and 3 1/2 lbs of hay, and 1/4 of a lb of beet pulp TWICE a day.

 

[ManyMinisFarm]

Last time I weighted my filly was 3-4 months ago so she weights more now I'm sure. And I will up the Omolene 200, and yes I've been think about dropping the oats! And I'm going to get a scale for sure!