Answer

By Your Horse

Katie Williams replies:
Cereals provide quick-release energy in the form of starch, and some cereals give more energy than others. Here are some useful guidelines:
1, Oats generally give the most sparkle, but they can also make some horses very spooky and silly. If you do feel he needs more energy, introduce a few bruised oats to his feed.
2, Remember that any energy that isn’t used for work will be stored as fat, so extra feed could just make him put on weight rather than be more lively.
3, Try a low-calorie balancer such as Baileys Lo-Cal or Top Spec. This will allow you to use straight oats, and you can adjust the level of cereal you feed according to his workload.
4, Always introduce cereals gradually, starting with small amounts, and monitor his behaviour.
5, Use as little cereal as possible, in many smaller feeds, to reduce the risk of problems like laminitis.