Preparation, Preparation, Preparation

It is worth mentioning that Head Hunters won the 2016 Merdeka League playing with our B and C string horses.  Only three horses that were being ‘rehabbed’ back into polo after being out of action for quite a while are possibles to play in the International League.  This is not to say we have great horses, though we do have a greater depth of horses out of sheer numbers.  But it is to point out that we have done it without extravagance.  Most of the Head Hunter horses are older, aged horses, and some, like mine, are discards from other teams. How do we do it?

It comes down to management of the string.

First of all, we plan the year in general and then the individual preparation of the horses.  It starts as soon as the last season ends.

Adequate rest in the off season is essential, and by rest, I do mean spelling, going out into proper paddocks.  This is not box rest, which to me is just a form imprisonment.

Older horses especially need to be kept moving, and need more individualised preparations.  Of the horses I played in Pahang, there was only one horse under 12 years old, and my best one there is already 17 years young.

We make sure we start the horses early so that we never have to rush them into anything.   I like the horses to have 12 weeks of work before they are ready to play at their very best.  So we work backwards from the peaks we need to have when we know the high points in the calendar.

I like to make sure the horses get singled regularly to try to give each horse more balanced work on both leads.  We came to the realisation that most tendon injuries we had had were on the near fore and so we try to make sure it isn’t weak from lack of use.  (We make sure our grooms are taught how to bandage properly.  Most right handed grooms will wrap the wrong way on the left legs.)

There is nothing like having a good farrier, and we even make sure Mohan travels with us to outstation tournaments.

Feeding is a very important component of the preparation.  Head Hunters relies on Zack’s Tack Polo Mix, made for us by Equine Nutrition Australasia.   All we fed for the Merdeka League Final was Zack’s Tack Polo Mix and hay.  It was supplemented by Supa Salts and Bone Power.  That is all they got.

It is interesting to note that while our senior citizens were running past much younger horses, we were doing it on stabilised rice bran (see below) without resorting to the turbo racehorses feeds that so many other teams think they need to feed.

No preparation works without a great team of people, so let’s not forget those I thanked in my last blog post.  They are the ones who make it happen.

WHY RICE BRAN
Dr. Ray Biffin   B.V.Sc., Dip. Ed.

SRB (Stabilized Rice Bran) products for horses are the fastest-growing products in the equine nutrition market internationally.  The reasons for this include:

1. High energy
2. Gluten-free
3. Relatively high quality protein compared to cereal (wheat, barley, oats) and maize.
4. Efficient protein utilization (lower protein loss) demonstrated by lower ammonia levels in stable excrement), partly due to protein quality and probably partly due to anabolic effect of gamma-oryzanol.
5. Hypoallergenic (claimed by ADM, also demonstrated in many therapeutic diets for dogs and humans)
6. High quality oil profile  high omega-9 (monounsaturated) makes it relatively simple and inexpensive to achieve a desirable omega 6:3 ratio.
7. Widely recognized to provide “cool energy” that is, horses are less excitable and more manageable when fed high-energy diets with SRB megajoules compared to cereal megajoules. In hyperactive children this has been shown to relate to the absence of gluten, and is most probably the reason for the observed difference in horses, but could also be due to gamma-oryzanol which has been shown to raise endorphins (within-body calmatives)

STABILIZATION OF RICE BRAN

1. Gamma Oryzanol

• Rice bran is a product of the rice milling process.  It is high in fat, fibre, beta carotene, B complex vitamins and Vitamins E.
• It also contains gamma oryzanol, a naturally occurring potent “anti-oxidant” which helps to protect all cell membranes from damage that can occur during strenuous exercise.
• Gamma oryzanol is reported to have muscle building properties in horses and other animal species.

2. Energy from Rice Bran

• It is high in polyunsaturated fats which are a rich source of calories and therefore energy.  Energy derived from fat is “cool energy”.  In contrast to rice bran, the main energy sources in cereal gains are carbohydrates, particularly starch which can then horses to be nervy.  This may lead to further grain related disorders such as tying up, laminitis, colic and low grade diarrhea.
• Rice Bran is typically low in starch and provides an excellent alternative energy source to cereal grains.

3. Processing for Stabilization of Rice Bran

• Produced from the protective outer layers of the rice kernel, it is high in unsaturated fats but unprocessed rice bran can quickly become rancid during storage.  Therefore, rice bran must be “stabilized” either by heating or extrusion to deactivate the “lipase” enzyme which causes rancidity and spoilage. Rice bran obtained during milling contains 20{4d0cf3c46f5bd86e1fe8c846c8d91ec014a8eb8b0509bba78f4be9efc91a5c03} edible oil.  The oil quality deteriorates rapidly due to enzymatic activity. Bran has to be stabilized through inactivation of lipase enzyme system.
• Steam Extrusion stabilization through Steam Extrusion followed by oven roasting is the preferred method for processing rice bran. Steam extrusion is a sophisticated process that combines heat and pressure to rapidly cook and expand the rice bran. It has dual benefits… it deactivates the damaging lipase without destroy8ing the nutritional value of the rice and at the same time, pressure cooking the rice enhances the digestibility when fed to horses.

4. Steam Extruded Rice Bran

• Being steam extruded, the product is consumed more slowly than either unprocessed or pelleted feeds  this will reduce gastro-intestinal problems commonly associated with unprocessed feeds.
• The starches, proteins and oils of the finished products are untangled this manufacturing process improves both digestibility and palatability and more importantly, the vital nutrients are not destroyed.

5. Reported benefits (Studies done by Nutrition & Health Sciences  UPM & Asia Rice Foundation Expounds the benefits of Rice Bran)

• Reduced body temperature during exercise.
• Calming effect.
• Decreased weight of intestinal contents.
• Improved body condition and hair coat.
• Reduced risk of colic and laminitis.
• Reduced risk of tying up during exercise.
• Lower heart rates and plasma lactate build up during exercise.

With thanks to Equine Nutrition Australasia for the reproduction of the article, “Why Rice Bran.”