At 1:06 PM +0000 12/15/07, Erin in Ohio wrote:

What are OTB cubes?

Ontario Dehy Timothy Balance cubes, actually abbreviated ODTB, but people often get confused, and the abbreviation ends up to be some permutation of those letters. In the Files, there's a list of abbreviations, and I think this is on it.
Some of those files can come in quite handy. My solution to constantly having to go online and look things up was to copy some of them, then paste them into a word processing program, then putting that into a folder on my desktop called Cushing's Info. When I needed to refer to some piece of info, like the list of abbreviations, it was more accessible. I also copy and paste some messages that I find I refer to over and over again. Just a suggestion on how to handle and process all the info you get here. It worked well for me.

What is the tipping over temperature of 20o F?

This one stumps me. Just a guess -- maybe they are talking about a temperature where horses begin to be affected by the cold? I really don't know, and it's hard to guess out of context like that.
--

Sandy Su
ssu@...

What are OTB cubes? What is the tipping over temperature of 20o F?

I've tried to locate this info. in the files and have not found it.

Thanks,
Erin in Ohio

Just wanted to clarify more-I have not decreased her "wet" hay I have increased the cubes and TCSS this winter. Many friends shrug their shoulders, etc when I explain the soaking hay regime...sometimes I get tired of doing it but as long as I can do it I will. I know some who board, etc can not, so I feel lucky in some respects that I can provide her different feeding schedule, items...
Judy

When it comes to nutrition for IR and Cushing's horses, we don't "do" close <smile>

TC Low Starch is around 15% sugar/starch - too high for most horses on this list. A guaranteed analysis of the feed store product is the first place to start, including sugar/starch levels, list of ingredients etc.

Beet pulp benefits can't be expressed enough. Glycemic Index is around 1 when served with no molasses. Custom mix about 70 cents per day in most cases (or less!). If feeding safe hay, no more than a handful of soaked beet pulp is needed to add supplements for the horse where TC Low Starch has feed recommendations listed in pounds, not handfuls so is it really more cost effective? Doubtful.

Hay is the single most important part of your horses diet and the first place to start.

Amberlee
www.fivepineranch.com
Please Visit Our Site!

Soaking hay is cheaper too!


http://www.sportshorses.com/cases/rollinslinda.Peanut.htm

Judy, from every vet I've ever known (and that's quite a few), hay is precisely what should be increased in cold weather, for the reasons you cite - it is more work to utilize, ergo more calories expended, and we all know from just mucking out how warm you get expending calories. There are figures on how much to increase, but I will let the feed gurus chime in on that. The tipping temperature (for a horse) to increase, as I recall from a lecture at Tufts Veterinary, is below 20 degrees (wind chill would be a factor in the degree measurement).

Carol and Blue in Maine

It was my information that TCLow Starch was not low enough NSC numbers for IR horses-I feed TC Safe Starch to my Cushings/IR mare. Last Spring when she was still very "iffy" and had one last bout of laminitiis I eliminated every thing except soaked hay-then slowly introduced TCSS back in. It is very expensive-for me-so don't use as main feed. However since she has been doing well the last 8-9 months and it is is very cold here (Mo) I feed her more TC and also feed OTB cubes. Not sure how the metabolism of domesticated horses differs if any from wild horses but cold wet hay sounds like more work to utilize than dry food.
Judy

it is 15 % NSC. I stopped feeding it to my IR horse. But wait to see what
others have to say.

Michelle L. Chambers



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I can't remember, but was Triple Crown Low Starch formula found to be
adequate for a cushings horse? I can't get it where I live, but my feed
store is now making a copy-cat version of it that is very close...third
ingredient in it is beet pulp..and will cost me the same as a bag of
plain beet pulp...

Ginger