FAQs

A: The Vitaline Feeds range consists of 9 products – each one carefully formulated to fulfil a specific purpose.  There is a product to suit the needs of each and every horse no matter what the breed, age, work load or temperament.  If you select the right product for your horse’s needs you will get great results! Furthermore the Vitaline Feeds products are fortified with good quality vitamins, minerals and trace minerals which eliminates the need to add additional vitamins or minerals.  The whole idea behind Vitaline is to make feeding easier!  No more adding hundreds of additives and mixing all sorts of ingredients – just choose the right product, scoop straight from the bag into the feed manger. Vitaline has become the choice of champions; it is a consistent feed of high quality.

A: It depends on the size of the scoop and the product.  There is no such thing as a “standard 1kg scoop”!  Different products have different densities and will therefore give you different weight measurements per scoop.  Cubes for example will generally weigh more per scoop than meal products.  The only way to know what YOUR scoop of feed weighs, is to actually get a kitchen scale and weigh the food.

A: Just like humans, no two horses are the same.  The amount of feed needed would depend on: age, breed, temperament, metabolism, health / veterinary conditions, work load, etc.  Guidelines for feeding are printed on the cards that are stitched into the bags but each horse should be fed according to its own needs.  When in doubt, please consult with Renita.  Always remember that concentrated feed is meant to supplement a horse’s diet.  It is very important to feed roughage (teff or eragrostis) ad lib.

A: There are MANY reasons why horses colic.  Stress, dehydration, pain, sudden changes in weather conditions, sudden changes in diet and many other reasons can cause colic.  Feed can cause colic if the feed got wet and is mouldy (and the horse ingests the mould), if there is contamination of the feed or if dietary changes were not done gradually.  Unspoilt feed that is fed correctly should not in its own right cause colic.

A: Horses are very sensitive to climate change – especially from hot to cold.  During the change from summer to winter one mostly experiences warm days but chilly to cold nights.  This causes the horses’ water in their buckets to cool down drastically during the night and together with them feeling colder than during the day they become hesitant to drinking the cold water.  Since they aren’t drinking enough water they often get impaction colics during these times.  The best way of managing / preventing these beginning-of-winter colics is by adding warm water to the water buckets at night, feeding added electrolytes / salt to make the horses thirsty and/or to soak teff nets before feeding to ensure additional intake of water.

A: All Vitaline Feeds products already contain high levels of vitamins, minerals and trace minerals and unless one is feeding less than 3kg per day of the Vitaline Feeds products it is not necessary to add additional supplements.  The highly concentrated pellets, Balancerline and Fibreline can be fed as little as 1kg per day without needing additional supplementation.
A joint supplement is always a good idea for horses in work and even for broodmares in their last trimesters and for growing youngsters.
Horses competing in extreme competitions such as Endurance riding might also need additional supplementation during long rides.

A: Foals are mostly weaned at the age of 6 months.  It is not a good idea to feed concentrates while the foal is still drinking from the mare but concentrates can slowly be introduced during the month leading up to weaning.  Once the foal is weaned the feed can gradually be increased over a week until the foal is eating 1kg per day.  Thereafter the daily intake should be altered according to the foal’s condition, growth and development.  This is a rough guideline that would apply to most foals but if anyone is unsure it would be best to discuss it with a dietician / nutritionist.

A: Weanlings and growing youngsters should be fed a Stud ration, i.e. Vitaline Studline or the Vitaline Balancerline.  They should remain on the Stud feed until the age of 3 to ensure optimal growth and development.  As soon as backing starts it is adviseable to change to the Vitaline Pastureline; Pastureline should be fed until the youngster is fully grown.

A: Firstly, have your horse checked by a veterinarian.  Pain of any nature can cause horses to lose weight / battle to gain weight.  A major contributing factor, especially with Thoroughbreds and high level competition horses could be the presence of gastric ulcers. Ulcers would definitely cause horses to be moody, have dull coats and generally battle to maintain or gain weight.  With the correct diagnosis and treatment such a horse will quickly gain weight.
Feeding GOOD QUALITY roughage is very important!  Horses should have access to ad lib good quality roughage.  Once you are sure that the horse has no veterinary issues and that you are feeding good quality roughage it is very important to choose the correct concentrate product for your horse’s needs.  It is also more advantageous to feed smaller, regular meals instead of one or two large meals of concentrates daily.

A: It is not a good idea to add anything to the feed as the feed is scientifically balanced and any additives could upset the balance of the feed.  Adding a joint / health supplement is totally acceptable but one should stay away from adding for example Bran as it would upset the Calcium : Phosphorus balance of the feed.  If you select the correct product for your horse it should not be necessary to add any raw materials afterwards.  It is always best to consult a dietician / nutritionist before mixing other ingredients into the feed.