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Ingredients Background

Our chart of Baileys Feed Ingredients gives an overview of many of the ingredients used in Baileys feeds and what they contribute, nutritionally.  Whilst an ingredient may be selected principally for the nutrient it supplies in the greatest quantity, most also supply other nutrients, in varying amounts, which must also be accounted for when the feed is formulated.  The colour coding helps identify the levels of major nutrients that the ingredients supply.

Protein

  • This is what really sets Baileys feeds apart!  It’s as much about quality as it is about quantity and we go to great lengths to ensure that we use only the best quality protein sources. 
  • Protein is composed of individual amino acids, some of which the horse can manufacture from dietary components and others which must be supplied in the diet, known as “essential” amino acids.  These include lysine and methionine, which are so important, we add extra to feeds for horses whose requirements are high, like breeding and performance horses.
  • The higher the proportion of essential amino acids supplied by a protein source, the better is deemed its quality.
  • Protein provides the building blocks of all body tissues, including muscle, tendons, ligaments and hooves.  When fed at recommended levels, the protein supplied by our feeds will promote the rounded top line and musculature that makes a Baileys-fed horse stand out.

Carbohydrates

  • These include starch, which is found in cereal grains and is made up of chains of glucose molecules.  Glucose is a simple sugar and is used as an energy source by all body cells.  Starches and sugars are easily digested to release readily available, “quick" or "fast release” energy.
  • At Baileys, we micronise our cereals, using infrared heat, to ensure the starch content is cooked to render it as digestible as possible for the horse.  This maximises the chances of it being digested and absorbed in the foregut, where it should be, and reduces the risk of undigested starch reaching the hindgut and causing problems.
  • Extrusion is another cooking method, which uses steam and pressure to gelatinise the starch.  We use this when producing the small nuggets for Outshine high oil supplement.

Oil/Fat

  • Oils are fats which are liquid at room temperature.  Vegetable oils are a useful source of energy for the horse as they supply 2.25 times as many calories as the same weight of cereals. 
  • Due to the way they are digested and metabolised, the calories supplied by oil are "slow release" and non-heating so shouldn't exacerbate excitable behaviour.
  • Some ingredients are rich in oil, while straight oils may also be included in a recipe.

Fibre

  • Fibre is fermented by bacteria in the horse’s hindgut to produce volatile fatty acids, which are then used by the body as an energy source.  Because this process takes time, the energy supplied is referred to as "slow release".  Fibre should be the basis of every horse’s diet and the most cost effective way to feed it is as preserved forage or fresh pasture.
  • Alternative sources, like oatfeed and wheatfeed, are used in feeds to provide additional digestible fibre.
  • Some fibre sources, like alfalfa, beet pulp and soya hulls, are rich in "superfibres", like pectin and hemicellulose, which are more easily fermented, and yield higher energy levels, than the cellulose which is most commonly found in forages. 

Vitamins and Minerals

  • These are included in pellets with other ingredients, to ensure their palatability, and the balance is carefully formulated to ensure that a horse receives all he needs when a feed is fed at recommended levels. 
  • Chelated minerals are included in performance and stud feeds to support horses’ increased nutritional demands.  “Chelating” is a process whereby minerals are attached to other molecules, like proteins or simple sugars, and helps the body absorb and utilise them more easily. 
  • Many vitamins and minerals act as antioxidants, protecting body cells from free radicals, produced through metabolism and natural body processes.  Baileys feeds contain these antioxidant vitamins and minerals at levels to support health and well-being as well as performance.  Selenium is an important antioxidant and  the organic selenium Baileys use is more readily available than other forms of this mineral.

Digestive Enhancers

  • This collective term refers to ingredients like yeast culture and Digest Plus prebiotic, which are included to help promote gut efficiency.  
  • LIve "probiotic" yeast culture is included for its benefits in stimulating fibre digesting bacteria in the horse’s hindgut.  Maximum benefit is gained when it is included in the diet on a daily basis.
  • Digest Plus acts as a food source for beneficial gut bacteria so that they can flourish at the expense of pathogenic species.

Non-Heating

  • A non-heating feed is one that is less likely to produce excitable behaviour in some horses and ponies, when fed at the recommended rate.

Oat-free / Free From Whole Oats

  • Many of Baileys products are free from whole oats but may contain oatfeed as a source of digestible fibre.  This co-product, from the processing of whole oats for human food, has a minimal starch content so will not have the “heating” effect traditionally associated with the whole grain.
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