It’s stressful having an underweight horse, and you’ll be looking for the best horse feeds for weight gain as we head into winter. Many horse owners are also finding their horses haven’t gained their usual summer weight this year, so you’re not alone. Whether your horse is a poor doer, fussy eater or has been affected by the lack of grazing, now is the time to review your horse’s feed.
I’ve spoken to feed companies who have recommended products from their range that would be suitable for a horse who needs to gain weight and condition. If you’re struggling sourcing forage, and this is causing weight loss, consider one of the best hay replacers first to increase the fibre in your horse’s diet.
Best horse feeds for weight gain
NB: Cost per day has been calculated using the feeding rate for a 500kg horse in light work (where there was variation) and the RRP of the smallest available bag/tub. Some products require you to feed more in certain situations, which will increase the cost per daily measure – these costs per day and feeding rates are a guide only.
Baileys No.4 Top Line Conditioning Cubes
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £18
Daily ration: 2kg
Cost per day: £1.80
Baileys Top Line Conditioning Cubes is a fully balanced feed that promotes weight gain, topline and muscle tone. It’s based on highly digestible micronised wheat, , which is prepared to be non-heating and suitable for all workloads. The cubes can also be soaked if needed.
Dengie Alfa-A Oil
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £21.19
Daily ration: 2.5kg
Cost per day: £2.65
This high-fibre feed is ideal for promoting weight gain and condition without excitability. Made from pure alfalfa, providing quality protein for topline and muscle condition, it is blended with a rapeseed oil coating to provide energy while being low in starch (2%) and naturally occurring sugar (4.5%).
TopSpec CoolCondition Cubes
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £19.95
Daily ration: up to 1.5kg
Cost per day: £1.53
The CoolCondition cubes from TopSpec are formulated for when extra condition and topline is required without the fizz. They are cereal-free, low in sugar and starch, and are non-heating. The cubes are a blend of conditioning ingredients, with good quality protein from high-oil soya and linseed.
British Horse Feeds Fibre-Beet
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £20
Daily ration: 750g
Cost per day: £0.76
Described as a ‘super fibre’ conditioning feed, Fibre-Beet contains all the benefits of the original Speedi-Beet product, with added alfalfa, which provides quality protein for muscle tone and function.
It has a high digestibility value, so provides slow-release energy without the fizz, and helps to generate heat to maintain core body temperature. It’s ready to feed in only 15 minutes when soaked in warm water or 45 minutes if soaked in cold water.
Allen & Page Care & Gain
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: From £17.60
Daily ration: 1.1kg
Cost per day: £0.97
A high calorie feed, free from alfalfa, soya, molasses and whole cereal grains. This feed is suitable for those prone to laminitis and ideal for poor-doers who need to gain weight or more energy, while keeping starch and sugar levels low.
It contains high quality protein to support muscles, along with vitamins C and E to support the body’s immune system, antioxidant capacity and muscle function, plus pre-, pro- and postbiotics for digestive health.
Saracen Condition Improver Cubes
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £19.50
Daily ration: 2kg
Cost per day: £1.90
This calorie-dense feed contains Equi-Jewel, which is a rice bran supplement that supports topline development. It includes super-fibres and oil to provide controlled energy release, support a healthy digestive system and promote healthy and shiny skin and coat.
Dodson & Horrell Build Up Conditioning Mix
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £21.05
Daily ration: 2kg
Cost per day: £2.10
Build Up Conditioning Mix from Dodson & Horrell is high in oil for condition, slow-release energy and controlled weight gain. It contains L-lysine to promote muscle condition and topline, probiotics to promote digestive health and a comprehensive blend of vitamins and minerals.
Rowen Barbary Solution Mash
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £20.96
Daily ration: 2kg
Cost per day: £2.10
This palatable and fully balanced mash from Rowen Barbary is ideal for horses that need to gain weight and condition without the risk of excitability. It’s a high-oil formula with just 1% sugar, and contains added antioxidants, digestive enhancers and natural herbs to support overall health.
Spillers Digest+ Conditioning Cubes
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £18.15
Daily ration: 3kg
Cost per day: £2.73
Low in starch and high in digestible fibre and oil for slow-release energy, these cubes from Spillers contain pre- and probiotics to support gut health and reduce the risk of excitability, as well as high quality protein sources to support good muscle tone and topline development. They are molasses-free and contain no added sugar.
Equine America More Muscle Xxxtreme Pellets
Bag weight: 10kg
RRP: £88.50
Daily ration: 330g
Cost per day: £2.92
This is carefully formulated feed for building muscle definition, outstanding shine and gut health. Includes key amino acids, omega-3 fatty acids, tri-biotic blend and antioxidants.
Connolly’s Red Mills Define & Shine
Bag weight: 18kg
RRP: £34.39
Daily ration: From 500g – 1kg
Cost per day: From £0.95
This high-calorie pellet is rich in key amino acids and omega-3 oils, and is formulated to promote extra condition, muscle definition and coat health. It has a low starch non-heating formulation.
Cavalor WholeGain
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £69
Daily ration: 500g – 1kg
Cost per day: From £1.72
This feed is 20.5% fat, which safely adds weight without excess energy. Feeding fat does not cause undue systemic stress, such as kidney issues seen with protein-based feeds, or muscle and gastrointestinal problems correlated to high starch rations. With additional omega-3 and prebiotic, Cavalor WholeGain also helps strengthen immunity and improves gut health and digestion.
Mollichaff Condition Complete
Bag weight: 15kg
RRP: £14.99
Daily ration: 2.5kg
Cost per day: £2.49
Mollichaff Condition Complete is a balanced blend of alfalfa, dried grass, oat straw, fibre pellets, barley, soya flakes, soya oil, mint and a broad-spectrum vitamin and mineral supplement. It also includes Yea-sacc and a prebiotic to help support a healthy digestive system.
Pure Feed Company Condition Mix
Bag weight: 15kg
RRP: £23.62
Daily ration: 2kg
Cost per day: £3.15
Condition Mix from the Pure Feed Company is a complete, all-in-one feed designed to help horses maintain or improve condition. Formulated with highly digestible fibre, slow-release energy sources, linseed, rapeseed oil, and unmolassed sugar beet, it provides steady energy without spiking blood sugar.
The built-in balancer supplies essential vitamins, minerals, and trace elements, while gut support ingredients and biotin promote healthy digestion, hooves, and coat. Ideal for horses needing extra calories to maintain weight and condition.
Thunderbrook Gentle Gain
Bag weight: 20kg
RRP: £24.95
Daily ration: 1.5kg
Cost per day: £1.87
Thunderbrook Gentle Gain is a forage pellet, based on sainfoin and rice bran, ideal for all types of horses needing to gain or maintain a healthy body condition. It provides a natural, grain-free solution to support healthy weight gain without compromising metabolic health.
H&H’s website editor Carol Phillips has used this feed to improve the condition of a seven-year-old thoroughbred mare.
“She has gained condition and her top line has improved considerably while feeding Gentle Gain alongside aid-lib hay, a vitamin and mineral balancer and chaff with daily turnout and appropriate exercise,” says Carol.
“There was clear improvement seen in one month, and after three months she had an optimum body condition score. She’s shown no signs of hotting up on this feeding regime, which really suits her.”
How to feed a horse for weight gain
Owning an underweight horse will have you researching “horse feeds for weight gain” or “feeding a horse for weight gain”. Once you’ve identified that your horse is underweight – body condition scoring can be a useful tool to help with this – it’s important to identify the root cause. It could be a range of problems, such as inefficient digestion or dental issues – or you could simply be feeding the wrong feed or the wrong ration.
Horse feeds for weight gain will contain a range of components – some will be high fat, while others will contain extra proteins. To work out what your horse needs and what will suit him best, it’s worth contacting a range of feed manufacturers to see what they would suggest. Most offer a free nutritional helpline service and will take a full history of your horse in order to offer the best advice.
It’s also important to know that not all feeds – even horse feeds for weight gain – will provide your horse with everything he needs in his diet. Ones that do (assuming you feed them at the recommended rate) are called complete feeds. To be absolutely sure he’s receiving a complete and balanced diet, an additional feed balancer or vitamin supplement could be your answer, but it’s best to consult a nutritional helpline if you’re unsure.
Is haylage better than hay for weight gain?
To encourage weight gain in horses, forage (hay, haylage, and grass) should be provided ad-lib. Haylage is cut at an earlier, less mature stage, and undergoes a wilting process that preserves more nutrients, leading to a higher digestible energy content compared to hay. This elevated energy content makes haylage an effective way to help horses put on weight. When feeding haylage, it’s generally necessary to offer a greater quantity by weight than hay, due to its higher water content.
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