Pack Horses

Kentucky hunter

Active Member
Jul 22, 2013
275
0
loretto ky
What type of pelleted feed do you all use going to start feeding them some a few weeks before we head out so they don't have a sudden big change in diet? I know it has to be pelleted for the back country no hay no grain type feed. Thanks everyone!!
 

packer58

Very Active Member
Aug 24, 2011
916
0
Loma Rica, Ca.
Cubes are real handy, little to no waste. Get em started a month before your trip. Another thing is if your coming from a mild climate take some blankets........your stock doesn't have enough hair to stay warm in cold temps.
 

RockyMtnGuy

New Member
Jul 27, 2015
9
0
You will need to get your horses accustomed to eating pellets or cubes. My dad is a vet and he said that horses can choke on cubes. It's rare, but I go with pellets for that reason. I use Standlee pellets. Depending on where you camp, and how much free time you have, you can also pack a battery-powered electric fencer and some fencing tape to create a pasture. Just use something insulated to tie the fencing tape to small trees and such or pack poles. Don't let your horses spend the night in the "pasture" as they may get out and take off!
 

Gr8bawana

Veteran member
Aug 14, 2014
2,670
604
Nevada
I used to have horses too and I have also heard about them sometimes choking on cubes, they are kind of big and horses are kind of dumb. We fed our horses pellets and there are different formulations depending on the level of work the horse is doing.
Certified weed free pellets are available everywhere, that would be my choise
 

Kentucky hunter

Active Member
Jul 22, 2013
275
0
loretto ky
You will need to get your horses accustomed to eating pellets or cubes. My dad is a vet and he said that horses can choke on cubes. It's rare, but I go with pellets for that reason. I use Standlee pellets. Depending on where you camp, and how much free time you have, you can also pack a battery-powered electric fencer and some fencing tape to create a pasture. Just use something insulated to tie the fencing tape to small trees and such or pack poles. Don't let your horses spend the night in the "pasture" as they may get out and take off!
Your right we had an old horse choke on grain before an had to call the vet we ended up putting rocks in her feed pan to make her slow down eating she had to move the rocks around with her nose to find the grain Thanks everyone
 

Kentucky hunter

Active Member
Jul 22, 2013
275
0
loretto ky
Cubes are real handy, little to no waste. Get em started a month before your trip. Another thing is if your coming from a mild climate take some blankets........your stock doesn't have enough hair to stay warm in cold temps.
I have a horse blanket going to have to get one more it will still be mild if not warm here in KY
 

mntnguide

Very Active Member
Most important thing with cubes is making sure they get plenty of water. .they need the water to help digest them. I like cubes because if you don't have much grass for grazing, you can feed 4 horses with one 80lb bag for a day....cubes are made for backcountry hunting, just need to take care of your stock properly if you use them
 

Kentucky hunter

Active Member
Jul 22, 2013
275
0
loretto ky
Most important thing with cubes is making sure they get plenty of water. .they need the water to help digest them. I like cubes because if you don't have much grass for grazing, you can feed 4 horses with one 80lb bag for a day....cubes are made for backcountry hunting, just need to take care of your stock properly if you use them
You all keep talking about cubes Ive not seen them we always feed a grain mix or a pelleted feed Ill have to stop by the feed store an see what they say
 

Kentucky hunter

Active Member
Jul 22, 2013
275
0
loretto ky
I found the certified weed free hay found the cubes as well but none of the bags of cubes had certified weed free on them Im going to ck with the feed provider an see if they are certified weed free or not
 

Gr8bawana

Veteran member
Aug 14, 2014
2,670
604
Nevada
I used to buy certified weed free pellets at my local IFA store, you might see if you have one near you.
 

Slugz

Veteran member
Oct 12, 2014
3,664
2,340
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Casper, Wyoming
http://standleeforage.com/nutrition/standlee-difference/certified-noxious-weed-free

"Standlee has several of its’ fields inspected yearly and certified to be free of noxious weeds by the State of Idaho Department of Agriculture. Select Standlee Premium Western Forage® products are Certified Noxious Weed Free in compliance with the North American Weed Free Management program. Standlee Premium Western Forage® certified bagged products include Alfalfa Cubes and Timothy Grass Pellets. Standlee also has certified compressed bales of Alfalfa, Timothy Grass and Straw, as well as certified Grab & Go™ compressed bales of Alfalfa and Straw."

In my experience. All cubed, pelleted forage is weed free and its also "cooked" in some manner during the compression cycle to kill that kills disable any seeds. Thats why you never see timothy growing in a camp that feeds (cubes) all year long. Go to a camp that feeds straight timothy or alfalfa and its sprouting up everywhere. All the forest service people I have ever been inspected by understand this also.

Hope that helps. Good luck.
 
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