Playing Pony Series Nutrition Focus: Yard Focus – Harry Muddle

Lorna Edgar – specialist equine nutritionist

Yard Focus Harry Muddle

Burningfold Polo Club

My purpose of doing the Yard Focus features is to provide a bit of an insight into how polo ponies can be fed and managed in different ways, but still achieve the same end result – horses playing and looking well throughout the season. Whilst we tailor diets as the season progresses, we must of course ensure their diets are nutritionally balanced – after all a lot of players are mindful of their own nutrition, so why not their horses too!

For the October issue I wanted to focus on a relatively new yard to me. I was introduced to Harry Muddle, a 2 goal player based at Burningfold Polo Club in Surrey, and his long standing groom, Carlos Moyano, three seasons ago, by a client of mine, Jo Stuart. They had been convinced it was a good idea to chat about feeding their polo ponies in a slightly different manner, primarily by increasing their fibre intake and adding a balancer to their rations. There were a few raised eyebrows to my suggestions and a lot of questions asked, but in the end, Harry and Carlos slowly

Beaujangles

A 12-year-old, 15.1hh, Irish Thoroughbred who has been with Harry for seven years. She generally holds her weight well, but sometimes can need more energy, especially when polo gets busy. She is the boss of the yard and field but is very easy to look after during the winter and summer and a dream to work in sets!

Beaujangles is a go to favourite for Harry as she is always reliable at any level of polo, she gives him confidence to make any plays on her and she will always give 100%. This summer she won Best Playing Pony at Black Bears.

Diet For Hard Work

• Two level round bowl Stubbs scoops of No.21 Ease & Excel

Mix per day • Two level round bowl Stubbs scoops of No.6 All-Round

Endurance Mix per day • Two measuring mugs of Stud Balancer per day • Half a scoop of Fibre-Beet per feed

Squanda

A nine-year-old, 15hh, bred by Peter Hewitt. She has been with Harry since a two-year-old and is quite a character with a great sense of humour and always up to something amusing! She generally holds her weight well and always has plenty of energy throughout the season. As long as Squanda can dunk her hay, she is happy!

Diet For Hard Work

• Three level scoops of No.21 Ease & Excel Mix per day • One level scoop of No.6 All-Round Endurance Mix per day • Two measuring mugs of Stud Balancer per day • Half a scoop of Fibre-Beet per feed began adapting a different feeding regime to their barn of horses.

To my delight they have really embraced my way of thinking, and so far, they feel the changes have had a positive impact on his string; Carlos I am sure, as many others do too, curses me when constantly having to fill up pesky hay nets!

Although the season started late, Harry has played over 70 games, which also brings with it a lot of travelling. The horses have played and look well by combining just two mixes, Baileys No.21 Ease & Excel and No.6 All-Round Endurance Mix to meet the energy requirements for the individual.

Once polo was up and running, the focus was on All-Round Endurance Mix to increase the starch intake of the diet and provide ‘quick release energy’, but during times when games were a little more sporadic this was reduced and Ease & Excel increased – with the main focus on maintaining a balanced diet.

So, let me introduce you to the

Photography courtesy of Lorna Edgar Beaujangles is 12-year-old, 15.1hh, English Thoroughbred

chosen four…

Babe

A 15-year-old, 15.2hh, English Thoroughbred who was bred for racing by Harry’s family. She can lack a little energy during busier periods of polo, so her starch intake needs to be increased, but fortunately she holds her condition well and is probably Harry’s fastest horse.

Diet For Hard Work

• One level scoop of No.21 Ease & Excel Mix per day • Three level scoops of No.6 All-Round Endurance Mix per day • Two measuring mugs of Stud Balancer per day • Half a scoop of Fibre-Beet per feed

Babe is a 15-year-old, 15.2hh, English Thoroughbred

Picuru

A 12-year-old, 15.2hh, Argentine bred. He has a huge personality and is impossible to catch from the field so is left to follow the other horses in! He is a favourite as he offers ‘a bit of everything’ – being sharp, fast, powerful and loves a ride off. He won Best Playing Pony at The Berkshire Polo Club this summer in the Julian & Howard Hipwood 8 goal tournament.

Picuru has been treated for gastric ulcers in the past, which is something we are mindful of when putting his diets together and we need to keep starch to a minimum. However, he can lack a little energy once playing regularly so this season we kept him on Ease & Excel for as long as possible, and when he needed the extra energy during busy times, we swapped to Baileys No.6 All-Round Endurance Mix to help give him endless yet controlled energy. Carlos ensured the Endurance Mix was reduced again to try and keep the starch levels down as much as possible.

Diet For Hard Work

• Two heaped scoops of Ease & Excel Mix per day • Two level scoops of All-Round Endurance Mix per day • Two measuring mugs of Stud Balancer per day • Half a scoop of Fibre-Beet per feed

Picuru is a 12-year-old, 15.2hh, Argentine breed

Notes

• When feeding the larger quantities per day of the above diets during the busier polo periods, Carlos will spit the total feed over three meals, ensuring the horses are not getting too much food in one meal and over filling that ‘rugby ball stomach’ which can otherwise reduce efficient absorption of the feed and waste feed/money! • When the All-Round Endurance Mix is reduced for quieter periods of polo, the balancer will be increased where necessary to ensure appropriate levels of vitamins and minerals are still met. • Harry and Carlos don’t really have a need for supplements, but electrolytes are definitely added during periods of hot weather and when the horses are playing and travelling. Where muscle supplements have been used in the past, the addition of the balancer to increase essential amino acids which assist in muscle development, alongside good quality forage, has

replaced the supplements successfully. • All the horses now receive a good quality meadow hay, which they have free access to all day/night; they are also turned out as much as possible to keep them grazing and moving. • As the horses are on ad lib hay or turned out. Chaff was removed from their bucket feeds as both Ease & Excel and All-

Round Endurance Mix have alfalfa chaff included. We found that the addition of a small amount of Fibre-Beet in each feed allows for the feed to be wet whilst benefiting from extra digestible fibre in the diet without too much bulk.

By making some subtle changes the horses have completed the strange 2020 season well and have clocked up 70+ games in quite a short space of time! I am really pleased how Carlos and Harry have taken on board these changes, without a negative impact as to how the horses perform. As Carlos said during my last visit, “Every day is a learning day,” – how true this is!